‘Big jobs for Westerners’ remark was in good faith
Jan 16, 2008
I refer to articles by Ofwono-Opondo in the New Vision of January 8, 2008 and Frank Tumwebaze in Sunday Vision of January 13, 2008. Both Opondo and Tumwebaze took exception to what I submitted on regional bias in government appointments to statutory bodies in favour of the Western region. This was a
By Mike Mukula
I refer to articles by Ofwono-Opondo in the New Vision of January 8, 2008 and Frank Tumwebaze in Sunday Vision of January 13, 2008. Both Opondo and Tumwebaze took exception to what I submitted on regional bias in government appointments to statutory bodies in favour of the Western region. This was at the NRM Caucus Meeting.
The NRM Caucus Meeting was the correct forum for my submission. Its agenda covered a number of party and national policy issues including, a post-mortem of the Bugweri by-election.
My submission was in good faith; it was for the health of the NRM and it was good for Uganda. Because the Chairman must have found merit in my submission, he delegated the Prime Minister, Prof. Apolo Nsibambi, to investigate the matter of appointments to key government and statutory bodies and report back to the caucus. This investigation, I believe, is still ongoing. As such I need not comment on it except by way of elaboration or substantiation. Otherwise, I don’t want to engage in debates in the wrong forum. I am mindful of NRM’s cherished tradition that insists on using the right forum to discuss sensitive and/or topical issues. However, I will be glad, if called upon, to assist Nsibambi and his investigations with researched evidence to back up my submission. I advise other spirited NRM cadres such as Ofwono-Opondo and Tumwebaze to do likewise.
About my nationalism and pan-Africanism, it is partly because of my nationalism that I spoke during the caucus meeting of the dangers of regional inequality in government appointments. And it is because of my pan-Africanism that I am grieved by what is unfolding in Kenya; this is a warning that we, in Uganda, can ignore to our collective peril. Some of the key contributing and underlying factors are real or perceived historical injustices long suffered by a cross section of Kenyan society.
The issue of real and/or perceived regional bias in key appointments that I submitted to the NRM Caucus meeting is healthy for the NRM party and good for Uganda, our beloved “Pearl of Africa.â€
I was motivated by good faith with the intention to heal rather than hurt the NRM party. I made my submission in the spirit of the Runyankole saying: “Urunkunda akugambira ka ankwanga†(The one who loves you tells it like he hates you!)
The writer is the NRM Vice-Chairperson for the Eastern region
I refer to articles by Ofwono-Opondo in the New Vision of January 8, 2008 and Frank Tumwebaze in Sunday Vision of January 13, 2008. Both Opondo and Tumwebaze took exception to what I submitted on regional bias in government appointments to statutory bodies in favour of the Western region. This was at the NRM Caucus Meeting.
The NRM Caucus Meeting was the correct forum for my submission. Its agenda covered a number of party and national policy issues including, a post-mortem of the Bugweri by-election.
My submission was in good faith; it was for the health of the NRM and it was good for Uganda. Because the Chairman must have found merit in my submission, he delegated the Prime Minister, Prof. Apolo Nsibambi, to investigate the matter of appointments to key government and statutory bodies and report back to the caucus. This investigation, I believe, is still ongoing. As such I need not comment on it except by way of elaboration or substantiation. Otherwise, I don’t want to engage in debates in the wrong forum. I am mindful of NRM’s cherished tradition that insists on using the right forum to discuss sensitive and/or topical issues. However, I will be glad, if called upon, to assist Nsibambi and his investigations with researched evidence to back up my submission. I advise other spirited NRM cadres such as Ofwono-Opondo and Tumwebaze to do likewise.
About my nationalism and pan-Africanism, it is partly because of my nationalism that I spoke during the caucus meeting of the dangers of regional inequality in government appointments. And it is because of my pan-Africanism that I am grieved by what is unfolding in Kenya; this is a warning that we, in Uganda, can ignore to our collective peril. Some of the key contributing and underlying factors are real or perceived historical injustices long suffered by a cross section of Kenyan society.
The issue of real and/or perceived regional bias in key appointments that I submitted to the NRM Caucus meeting is healthy for the NRM party and good for Uganda, our beloved “Pearl of Africa.â€
I was motivated by good faith with the intention to heal rather than hurt the NRM party. I made my submission in the spirit of the Runyankole saying: “Urunkunda akugambira ka ankwanga†(The one who loves you tells it like he hates you!)
The writer is the NRM Vice-Chairperson for the Eastern region