By Amlan Tumusiime

On the night of December 31, 2019, I attended special prayers organised by Pastor Vicent Museveni the head of Ebenezer City Church in Hoima at Sir Tito Winyi playgrounds.

The event organised to usher in the New Year 2020 was attended by over 20,000 people and my good friend Journalist turned Pastor Joseph Kabuleta was the main preacher.

I must confess that I was overwhelmed by the huge crowds; majority of them being the youth and as if Pastor Museveni read my mind, he took the microphone from me and said that he would first make a few comments before I address the gathering.

Smartly dressed in a white suit with white matching shoes, Pastor Museveni aged 34 cleared his voice and said “Dear brothers and sisters, it is my responsibility as your spiritual leader to not only minister you with the word of God, but also advise and guide you on the type of good leaders you should trust.  I know President Yoweri Museveni is a good leader, the reason why my father named me after him because I was born the very day Museveni took over power and I personally cherish and support him”

Pastor Museveni added: “Some people keep talking of change, but I keep wondering why we should change the man who has transformed the country that was almost becoming a failed state?”

Pastor Museveni is a crowd puller, who commands huge following in the whole of Bunyoro and majority of his followers are youths and women. Many people believe in him that he performs miracles through prayers.

After his address, I found it easy to address the already excited congregation and it was clear that President Museveni was a darling here. 

A few hours earlier I had also attended similar prayers at Kilyatete Miracle Centre church where I had been invited by the church head Apostle Emmanuel Kiiza and similar comments praising President Museveni as a saviour of Uganda took place.

I felt it necessary to write an article about this because many Opposition politicians tend to create a false belief that Ugandans are yearning for change claiming that President Museveni has overstayed in power. This is not true; many Ugandans still treasure and trust President Museveni’s leadership. 

It is also a fact that the two men of God Pastor Vicent Museveni of Ebenezer City Church and Apostle Emmanuel Kiiza of Kilyatete Miracle centre church Hoima were spot on to say that President Museveni rescued Uganda from collapsing when he took over power 34 years ago.

There is evidence that since 1986 many things have changed positively in Uganda and these include infrastructural development, revamped economy, peace and stability, rule of law, respect for human rights and professionalisation of the army, rural transformation and generally improved standards of living for Ugandans, including health and education, among others.

Today, one drives on tarmac from Kampala to Eastern Uganda and connects to Lango via Bunyoro to Toro region still on tarmac. Despite a few isolated cases of robbery on high ways people travel safely even at night.  Ugandans can now access basic daily needs like soap, salt, sugar, and paraffin even deep in the villages something that was not possible during the regimes of former Presidents like Amin Dada, Milton Obote or Tito Okello Lutwa.

Museveni has created a good working environment that Ugandans can now work in every part of the country as they wish as far as they follow the law. Ugandans are now educated much better because of free education for all like UPE, USE and the availability of several University institutions situated in different regions in the country.

It is because of the availability of social institutions like hospitals and health centres across different parts of the country and provision of health services that the Ugandan population has tripled since the NRM came to power in 1986. The known killer diseases that used to kill children at infantry have been eliminated and now Ugandan children can grow into adults, reasons why closely to 70% of Ugandans are President Museveni’s bazukulu (grandchildren).

During the regimes of Amin Dada, Milton Obote and Tito Okello Lutwa, people in rural areas used to accommodate their families in mud houses and sleeping on papyrus and those ones considered rich could sleep on sacks packed with grass. People could wash their clothes using pawpaw leaves while others could use dry herbal leaves as tea leaves. Others could squeeze sugar cane and put in tea for their children to take as sugar.

The army was indisciplined and had no respect for civilians that they would rape and kill women at will. I remember while in P.2 at New Mulago Primary School, I used to stay in Kamwokya and one day, my friend Ali Karungi removed the jerrycan from the line belonging to a boy whose father was a soldier in the Obote government called Afande Onyango and the boy ran and informed his father about the incident. Afande Onyango came with a gun and shot dead my friend Karungi and nothing was done to him. It is Hajati Safina the grandmother of Ali Karungi who instead went and begged Afande Onyango to forgive her since Onyango had threatened to finish the entire family.

The things I am talking about are only 34 years ago and not 100 years! But under the Museveni regime, such a thing cannot happen anymore. Today the country has a professional army that respects civilians and has been ranked 11th best army in Africa by the respected Global Fire Power group that ranks the best armies around the world. There is rule of law and the government systems are working well. Uganda is recognised internationally and for good reasons.

I have on several occasions stated that no honest Ugandan can fail to vote for President Museveni on the basis of service delivery. Museveni has offered services and truly he rescued Uganda from total collapse and it is also true that majority of Ugandans still trust and love him, but the problem he is facing is some of the people who have access to him and know the facts on the ground do not tell him the truth. Some of the NRM leaders tell the President lies and this leaves people with unresolved problems hence hating the party. 

Many of the Opposition activists in rural areas are behaving the way they do because of the mistreatment they receive from some of the NRM leaders not because they love the opposition. If President Museveni was to be told the truth as it is on the ground, he has all what it takes to resolve the issues affecting the people and he could even get more than 70% of the total vote in next year’s elections. Some of the NRM leaders cannot tell the President the truth because in one way or the other are the beneficiaries of the confusion yet this is hurting the party.

In my opinion, it is easy to diffuse the Bobi Wine pressure group than FDC’s Kizza Besigye because even those who put on the People Power caps do it for fun and they confirm this when talking to some of us.

There is no reason why President Museveni having rescued Ugandans from absolute poverty and senseless killings from the previous regimes should fail to win the 2021 Presidential elections with over 70%, but this will be facilitated by him knowing the challenges facing his voters on the ground and the true information will not come from top NRM leaders, but rather ordinary supporters.

The writer is an NRM mobiliser.