Freedom not for one group

Mar 17, 2012

From a philosophical point, freedom can never be absolute as society has found that it functions best when there are laws to govern people’s behaviour.Related to freedom not being absolute is the concept of responsibility.

By William K. Ngabu

Lately, opposition politicians have clashed with the Police in their quest to hold rallies where the Police have not permitted them. 

They insist the Police are infringing on their freedom of assembly and association as enshrined in Article 29 of the Constitution. 

The freedom that my brothers and sisters in the opposition are talking about is absolute freedom which is unattainable. 

From a philosophical point, freedom can never be absolute as society has found that it functions best when there are laws to govern people’s behaviour.

Therefore, our rights of freedom are subject to reasonable limitations especially when it comes to being mindful of the rights of others.

As one writer observes, ‘With so much weight being given to rights these days, it is easy to forget that there is another side to the equation – the rights of others’. 

Observance of fundamental freedoms will only be possible to the extent that the freedoms of some do not unreasonably infringe on the human rights of others. I implore my colleagues to read the article they were referring to in its entirety not just picking what best suits their purpose. 

Related to freedom not being absolute is the concept of responsibility. Responsibility means allowing others the same rights that we expect for ourselves. Other people’s rights are dressed up as our responsibility.

Secondly, the Government and the opposition parties may be political adversaries, but they share a common national responsibility and obligation of nation-building and advancing the prospects of real development. 

Therefore, the Government and the opposition have to see themselves as partners. The Government must acknowledge that there needs to be democratic space for the opposition to function and to enable other views to exist. 

An authentic democracy is one where the ruling party has an effective opposition, and genuine political opposition is a necessary attribute of democracy. 

A strong opposition is the most effective means of creating checks and accountability in hybrid regimes and, therefore, the most important prerequisite for democratic deepening. Thus the role of the opposition is to hold governments accountable and ensure they deliver.

While opposition parties are free to criticise the ruling party and the Government, and the ruling party is expected to entertain the values of tolerance, cooperation and compromise, the opposition also needs to use the democratic space provided responsibly to raise legitimate dissent where this is required, without becoming needlessly disruptive.

True opposition has a duty to oppose, but this must not be done for the sake of opposing; it should be done constructively by offering alternative solutions. 

That is why in established democracies, opposition parties are referred to as ‘governments-in-the waiting’ or ‘alternative governments’. And they should constantly present themselves as an alternative to the existing government.

Lastly and above all, opposition parties are expected to recognise and respect the authority of the elected government. That is why we have the notion of a loyal opposition, and which notion is central to any democracy. 

The concept of loyal opposition is drawn from the United Kingdom where the major opposition party and specifically its shadow cabinet is often called Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition. The adjective ‘loyal’ is used because, while the role of the opposition is to oppose Her Majesty’s Government, it does not dispute the sovereign’s right to the throne and, therefore, the legitimacy of the government.

Unfortunately, in Uganda and in many African transitional democracies, when opposition loses an election or when they are certain that they are going to lose in the election, the parties tend to boycott the election, or reject the election results by using various pretexts in their attempt to de-legitimatise the incumbent party. 

When that fails they become obstructionist even when they have been accorded democratic space. And this is where they miss the point in modern politics! The essence of having political parties or a multi-party system of government is to guard against violent revolution, disorder and chaos. 

The writer is the Member of Parliament for Kyaka County, Kyegegwa District

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