Age limit: Put emphasis on quality, not quantity

By Kajabago -Ka -Rusoke

AGE LIMIT

Age is a period a person has spent or, a type of object has existed for in the world. It is being calculated depending on the nature of the concern by the one calculating it.

According to the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda in Article 102(b), a person is not qualified for election as president unless that person is not less than 35 years and not more than 75 years of age.

A period of time an object or person has spent is an expression of quantity whereas to what use such an object or person can be put is an expression of quality. Attention, therefore, should be paid more to quality than quantity. For quantity is form, while quality is content and quality is more valuable than quantity.

In Uganda's case, the need for what type of person or which one should be President must be based on what qualities one has rather than quantity of age he or she has. Questions which arise here, therefore, are, for example, is the considered and desired presidential candidate a pro-people philosopher? Does he or she have fundamentally the desire for a people's welfare state? Is he or she a type of person who is spiritually dedicated to establishing an economic system that shall serve the needs for all? Or is he or she in for using presidential status for accummulating wealth for himself or herself i.e. self-agrandizement.

These questions do not depend on age. They depend on a kind of spiritual and ideological standards of a person aspiring for leadership and typically for what purpose.

The nature of purposes and aims for leadership does illustrate the nature of the social character of the individual in question. They will draw direct images of whether one is for a few individuals with whom he or she must share wealth or whether he or she is in for the economic and spiritual principle of all for each and each for all in order to satisfy the needs of an entire national body politic. It will not be correct to replace one of 75 years old who is deeply, spiritually pro-people and is able to perform, with one who is younger but whose fundamental aim is to accummulate personal wealth against the welfare of a body politic.

It has appeared all the time during elections that candidates do not present programmes illustrating what they want to do for the areas they are intending to represent through the state apparatus. This has also been so during Presidential campaigns where a Presidential candidate does not show any programme of how the country should be run and organized but just that the one who has been President should just be removed. This is an illustration of how one just wants another out for purely selfish and personal reasons and not national. This is also an illustration of very low standards of education in spirit and ideology where such people are just biological economic-oriented beings and victims of money and property fetishism.

Anybody who says "Museveni has overstayed and Museveni should just go" without any programme as to how he or she can run the country better than what "Museveni" has done, is a mere vulgar fulminating demagogue. This may not mean that "Museveni" has not had any shortcomings but please illustrate what they are and how they can be solved. Do not just attack a person. Go philosophical and academic.

In order to be properly understood academically and correctly, organise public lectures and seminars where people are invited peacefully to listen and discuss knowledge. Attention must be paid to the need for promoting the art of debate and discussion.

During debates and discussions, people can be exposed to subjects such as political economy, political science, philosophy and history, which must be used as tools or gadgets for gauging our own society as to how we started and where we have reached so far in development and, finally, which way forward for further development in our country.

Each and every political party or organisation should develop the art of debate where knowledge is discussed then avoid vulgar demonstrations where public property is damaged and hatred developed and conducted.

All those are low and poor standards of academic and spiritual approach to phenomena.

When one is academically and spiritually clear, he or she cannot either initiate, or engage in or enjoy a physical fight in any organ of the state apparatus like what happened recently in Uganda's legislature.

 There must be an emphasis concerning the party in power which is above all other political parties in the country that there is need for political and spiritual education for the entire population in all urban areas and countryside in order to raise the level of national social consciousness to differentiate between good and bad, wrong and right.

For practice without a guiding scientific theory is blind practice whereas what is considered ideal theory without practice is an empty theory.

Those intending to conduct public lectures should inform security organs of the state apparatus so that they are not confused with the would-be non-academic vulgar groups that would be likely to cause chaos and hatred.

Go philosophical, academic and spiritually clean, in a struggle for peace, friendship and love.       

The writer is a senior presidential adviser on ideology