The likes of Otunnu have learnt, forgotten nothing

Sep 10, 2009

RECENTLY, the media hyped a lot about the return of Olara Otunnu. His homecoming has raised many questions about the value he is to add to Uganda’s political panorama. Recently the vicious Oxford University scholar said Uganda had not made any progress

By Fred Mbagadhi

RECENTLY, the media hyped a lot about the return of Olara Otunnu. His homecoming has raised many questions about the value he is to add to Uganda’s political panorama.

Recently the vicious Oxford University scholar said Uganda had not made any progress whatsoever since he left the country two decades ago.

This statement is proof that Otunnu and company have learnt and forgotten nothing about Uganda’s progress for the last 23 years.

Whereas it is the duty and right of the opposition politician to examine the ruling government’s performance, I take it as both narrow and limiting to only over emphasise ousting Museveni. Otunnu claims getting rid of the NRM will make Uganda a paradise on earth. I expected the brilliant lawyer to differ from the prevailing style of the opposition by taking time off to examine the fundamental changes the country has gone through.

The fact that Otunnu, an ardent longtime architect of egocentric and malicious lies against Museveni, comfortably and freely traversed the country, is in itself a fundamental change. It is a manifestation of the current President’s unwavering tolerance in leadership.
It is to ridicule the integrity of Ugandans and its leadership to claim that Uganda is in a worse shape than when it was under Otunnu’s military Junta.

Ugandans, especially in Jinja and western region, paid him in the right currency by snubbing his gatherings.
Moreover this reinforces the fact that most of the vicious politicians that have earlier used the agende slogan to ascent to national leadership have all turned into perennial losers.

As such, leadership has hitherto remained elusive for them. This reminds me of political scientists like Richard Loudbear who have postulated that a man is not on the path of righteousness if he likes settling matters in a violent haste.

A wise man calmly considers what is right and wrong and faces different opinions with truth and is guardian of truth. The Bible reinforces the above assertion, in John 8:32. It says we are urged to tell the truth which shall set us free. Some of us who are bold enough to tell the redemption song have been labelled sycophants.

However, being a sycophant does not erase the facts that it is the first time in history for our country to be relatively peaceful for over two decades. This underpins the 80% growth in GDP in comparison to 1985 which has been the catalyst to the enviable socio-economic performance of the country. This is not to say that all is well.

As is with any other nation or person, there shall always be insatiable challenges all through. But as of now, the most paramount concern to our government is that of uneven distribution of the earned success among the local populace that have vowed to maintain NRM in power.

On this, the Government has started the battle through the prosperity for all programme, universal primary and secondary education, the National Agriculture Advisory Services and many others. Although some of these programmes have been mishandled by some of the bureaucratic civil servants at the grassroots.

Finally, it is a fact that Uganda belongs to every Ugandan and to this end, each of us has to work for its progress. This, we cannot do if we are not right. As noted by the romantic poet James Russell, each day, the world is born anew for him who takes it rightly.

The writer is the MP Kagoma constituency, Jinja district

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