Who Says Ugandans Can Not Extricate Themselves?
The Ugandan Bush War, also known as the Luwero War, the Ugandan Civil War or the Resistance War, was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 1980 to 1986.
Milton Obote was overthrown in a coup d’état in 1971 by General Idi Amin, who established a military dictatorship. Amin was overthrown in 1979 following the Uganda-Tanzania War, but his loyalists started the Bush War by launching an insurgency in the West Nile region in 1980. Subsequent elections saw Obote return to power in a UNLA-ruled government. Several opposition groups claimed the elections were rigged, and united as the NRA under the leadership of Yoweri Museveni to start an armed uprising against Obote’s government on 6 February 1981. Obote was overthrown and replaced as president by his general Tito Okello in 1985 during the closing months of the conflict. Okello formed a coalition government consisting of his followers and several armed opposition groups, which agreed to a peace deal. In contrast, the NRA refused to compromise with the government, and conquered much of western and southern Uganda in a number of offensives from August to December 1985.
Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni (born 15 September 1944) is a Ugandan politician and retired senior military officer who is the ninth and current President of Uganda. Yoweri Museveni was involved in rebellions that toppled Ugandan presidents Milton Obote and Idi Amin before he captured power in 1986.
In the mid-to-late 1990s, Museveni was celebrated by the West as part of a new generation of African leaders. Museveni’s presidency has been marred by involvement in the Congo wars, the Rwandan Civil War and other Great Lakes region conflicts; the rebellion in Northern Uganda by the Lord’s Resistance Army, which caused a humanitarian emergency; and constitutional amendments, scrapping presidential term limits in 2005 and the presidential age limit in 2017.
Museveni’s rule has been described as authoritarian. On 16 January 2021 , Museveni was re-elected for a sixth term added to the previous 10 years under his fold with 58.6% of the vote, despite allegations of electoral fraud, and human rights violations.
Tibuhaburwa Museveni set a precedent
After usurpation of power January 26th 1986, President Tibuhaburwa inwardly, in a clandestine manner, set out a plan to rule for his life time the landlocked poverty stricken East African nation currently with a population of 45.74 million (2020).
Like a good chess player who reads the mind of his opponent, president Tibuhaburwa Museveni, in the most insidious manner, convinced citizens that he was going to lead the country for just three years and organise elections there after. After the lapse of three years, he was on the dais convincing citizen that Obote had abolished the country’s 1962 constitution that paved way for Idi Amin to rule the country under decree, subsequently, even Obote two regime which he toppled followed suit. He rightly asserted that it was of paramount importance to enact and promulgate a constitution that would usher in a new order of democracy.
Citizens gave him a nod, thus he instituted a constituency assembly that traversed the country to collect views to enact a constitution. After five years, a new constitution was promulgated in 1995, Ugandans felt a sigh of relief and comfort likened to baby who is ensconced on the laps of its mother while suckling the teats a situation that drives it into a slumber unknowingly. He convinced citizens that he had led the country for 10 years without the mandate of the people, now that the constitution was in place, with a clause of a maximum 10 years two consecutive terms for a president, he would offer himself for elections strictly adhering to the constitution.
Thus in 1996, he organised elections in which he competed with Dr. Paul Kawanga Ssemwogerere his erstwhile rival in the 1980 charade Obote elections. Although he claims to have beaten him hands down, since then all subsequent elections have been marred by violence, rigging and intimidation by security forces that operate on his whims!. It’s not surprising therefore that all elections 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021, president Tibuhaburwa has been taken to court which court, fell short of nullifying the elections despite admittance of rigging! It is only elections of 2021 that NUP withdrew the case midway on realising that court had been compromised
It should be noted that according to the constitution, president Tibuhaburwa should have ended his controversial elections triumph with elections of 2001, but just like many African presidents, president Tibuhaburwa Museveni, tinkered with the country’s barely 10 years old constitution and removed the term limit clause that barred him to stand again. Come 2017, looking into the future for 2021 elections, president Tibuhaburwa Museveni, using the carrot and stick style, once again, removed the age limit after ordering the army to invade the August house and forcefully beat up and maimed opposition members of parliament who were resisting this infamous move.
2021 Elections Results, the die was cast
Buganda and Busoga the two most populous regions of the country roundly resisted, violence, intimidation and murder characterised by elections in Uganda and rejected president Tibuhaburwa. To president Tibuhaburwa Museveni, kissing the unenviable dust of defeat after employing all the mischief mentioned above, was something he couldn’t fathom.
Kayunga District By Elections
Following the death of Ffefekka Sserubogo the National Unity Platform Party (NUP) that had given president Tibuhaburwa Museveni, a run for his money especially in Buganda where even his vice president and almost all his entire minister candidates were defeated, president Tibuhaburwa Museveni, vowed to turn elections in favour of his unpopular candidate Andrew Muwonge! ” Even if you dance for 20 hours for your popular candidate, my party NRM has the last word on pronouncing the winner” the president said.
Indeed his unpopular candidate Andrew Muwonge who was defeated by over 15,000 valid votes by National Unity Platform candidate Nakweede was pronounced winner in total disregard to results on the declaration forms at the tally centre!
Analysts say that with this glaring theft of elections, Ugandans can now take the unpopular route of retrieving power from the the hands of a president who nolonger serves the purpose of a common man. In his own words, the president said, “ I don’t work for any body, I work for myself, children and and grand children”
Mugisha Muntu’s View
General Mugisha Muntu a Former army commander who joined the ranks of opposition following the footsteps of retired Colonel Dr. Kizza Besigye in FDC and was later to form his own part Alliance for National Transformation (ANT) in which he, unsuccessfully tried to unseat president Tibuhaburwa Museveni is of the view that citizens can extricate themselves through an insurrection. “You don’t even number near to 500,000, you can’t match the power of citizens who are yearning for change” Muntu stressed