Walk-to-work protests were justified, but...
Apr 13, 2011
WITH the escalating prices of commodities and inflation hitting double digits, the opposition could not have found a more just cause on which to galvanise support from some Ugandans to support their “Walk-to-Work Protest.â€
By Benjamin Rukwengye
WITH the escalating prices of commodities and inflation hitting double digits, the opposition could not have found a more just cause on which to galvanise support from some Ugandans to support their “Walk-to-Work Protest.â€
The protest was meant to show their discontent with government’s perceived inability to deal with the increased cost of living and mounting prices of fuel and food.
For once, most Ugandans can relate to the unaffordable prices of food – figures from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) indicate a 30% to 40% increase in the prices of foodstuffs over the last six months. A kilogramme of rice or beans costs sh2,500 or sh3,000, from the sh1,200 or sh1,400 that we paid for the same quantity a few months ago.
The sharp rise in fuel prices, now averaging between sh3,200 for diesel and sh3,800 for petrol has only worsened the situation with transporters increasing fares and making it a hard choice between eating and going to work.
These are tough times for everyone and media reports of husbands who have had to send families back to the villages or schools that are rationing meals or families that have resorted to a meal-a-day are all confirmation that something needs to be done to compel Government to act promptly.
With the “Walk-to-Work demonstrations†the opposition hoped to bank on what they believed to be a frustrated population to cause civil disobedience, but this did not happen.
However, there is every justification for Ugandans to demand more from the Government because this is not the first time we are experiencing a fuel shortage or rise in commodity prices resulting from ill-planning. The empty oil reserves in Jinja stand like an eye sore every time we experience fuel shortage.
Evidently, the Government and the Police are in a catch-22 situation — damned if they make arrests, damned if they do not.Whereas these protests are justified and backed by constitutional guarantees, they were uncalled for. By the Police invoking Article 29 (d) which is also qualified by Article 43 – although highhandedly, rightly quashed the protests. The Police mandate under Article 212 involves the detection and prevention of crime. This means that given justification, the Police is authorised to apprehend someone in case they sense that there is considerable possibility to commit a crime. This is where the opposition’s bad reputation preceded it and made it difficult for them to advance a noble cause.
Dr. Kizza Besigye and Nathan Nandala Mafabi (FDC), the chief architects of these protests are major oil dealers within the country, owning several petrol stations around the city and beyond.
Like every oil dealer, they know the reasons for the fuel crisis are beyond Uganda’s grip and yet they are still benefitting from the high fuel prices because their petrol stations charge the same price as all the others.
Why then are they being pretentious, hypocritical and opportunistic by asking people to demonstrate when they know Uganda does not control the world oil prices? If they are as much a statesman as they would like us to believe, why don’t they close their stations or even give out free fuel to Ugandans?
Besigye, we all agree with you that something urgently needs to be done and that it is not enough for the Government to blame world prices, Arab land unrest or bad weather for this predicament, but we need to trust the Government. because the reason they and not you are in power is because Ugandans voted for them with the belief that they are able to find solutions.
The writer is a researcher
WITH the escalating prices of commodities and inflation hitting double digits, the opposition could not have found a more just cause on which to galvanise support from some Ugandans to support their “Walk-to-Work Protest.â€
The protest was meant to show their discontent with government’s perceived inability to deal with the increased cost of living and mounting prices of fuel and food.
For once, most Ugandans can relate to the unaffordable prices of food – figures from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) indicate a 30% to 40% increase in the prices of foodstuffs over the last six months. A kilogramme of rice or beans costs sh2,500 or sh3,000, from the sh1,200 or sh1,400 that we paid for the same quantity a few months ago.
The sharp rise in fuel prices, now averaging between sh3,200 for diesel and sh3,800 for petrol has only worsened the situation with transporters increasing fares and making it a hard choice between eating and going to work.
These are tough times for everyone and media reports of husbands who have had to send families back to the villages or schools that are rationing meals or families that have resorted to a meal-a-day are all confirmation that something needs to be done to compel Government to act promptly.
With the “Walk-to-Work demonstrations†the opposition hoped to bank on what they believed to be a frustrated population to cause civil disobedience, but this did not happen.
However, there is every justification for Ugandans to demand more from the Government because this is not the first time we are experiencing a fuel shortage or rise in commodity prices resulting from ill-planning. The empty oil reserves in Jinja stand like an eye sore every time we experience fuel shortage.
Evidently, the Government and the Police are in a catch-22 situation — damned if they make arrests, damned if they do not.Whereas these protests are justified and backed by constitutional guarantees, they were uncalled for. By the Police invoking Article 29 (d) which is also qualified by Article 43 – although highhandedly, rightly quashed the protests. The Police mandate under Article 212 involves the detection and prevention of crime. This means that given justification, the Police is authorised to apprehend someone in case they sense that there is considerable possibility to commit a crime. This is where the opposition’s bad reputation preceded it and made it difficult for them to advance a noble cause.
Dr. Kizza Besigye and Nathan Nandala Mafabi (FDC), the chief architects of these protests are major oil dealers within the country, owning several petrol stations around the city and beyond.
Like every oil dealer, they know the reasons for the fuel crisis are beyond Uganda’s grip and yet they are still benefitting from the high fuel prices because their petrol stations charge the same price as all the others.
Why then are they being pretentious, hypocritical and opportunistic by asking people to demonstrate when they know Uganda does not control the world oil prices? If they are as much a statesman as they would like us to believe, why don’t they close their stations or even give out free fuel to Ugandans?
Besigye, we all agree with you that something urgently needs to be done and that it is not enough for the Government to blame world prices, Arab land unrest or bad weather for this predicament, but we need to trust the Government. because the reason they and not you are in power is because Ugandans voted for them with the belief that they are able to find solutions.
The writer is a researcher