By Ambassador Henry Mayega
Uganda’s democratic bar has, during the Yoweri Museveni administration’s epochal supretendence, been raised to unprecedented levels rendering several old and new parties on the country’s political canvass failures and unable to cope with the dictates of the political parties and organizations act.
The resumption of political party activities on the canvass after the referendum of 2005 as a consequence of the enactment of political parties and organizations law, the renaissance of the rule law in 1986 devoid of extrajudicial killings that had dogged the country before plus the bounteous dividends of peace, security and tranquility for the last four decades have all combined to throw off-balance not only Uganda’s independence parties like the UPC and DP but also the fledgling political was nymphs like FDC and NUP.
First, with the current rising political temperatures due to the upcoming election season, several of those nymphs have either sold candidatures for various electoral positions to highest bidders by cobbling together small cabals of oligarchs in party headquarter droughty rooms or appointed family and gullible flag bearers for various electoral offices. By doing so, they have fragrantly flouted the length and breadth of the PPOA provisions.
The NUP for instance is said to have recently convened a secret delegates conference of 120 people to ostensibly rubber stamp Bobi Wine and a couple of others for the top jobs in their nestling party. In an ideal situation, the PPOA provisions would have caught up with that Bwaise-based party.
Secondly, on the other hand the NRM has methodically and in accordance with the PPOA religiously undertaken the pre-primary election processes of democratically registering candidates in preparation for the internal elections for all the echelons of the party as well as the national elections. All these things have been made possible within the NRM thanks to Uganda’s best President since independence, Yoweri Museveni, who has cultivated and buttressed the revered political pedigree and culture that were once practiced during the five year bush war.
The political calculus here is that you can’t give to others what you don’t have; as others merchandise in candidatures, the NRM is the only party that has, conversely, nurtured and grown intra-party democracy in accordance with the law.
Thirdly, all Uganda’s independence parties including the UPC, CP/Kabaka Yeka and DP having initially responded to a stimuli; namely the fight to obtain our independence; their leaderships were largely clueless about planning for the political exigencies of post-independent Uganda; they neither sufficiently grew nor deepened internal democracy amongst their rank and file because they lacked the calculus that the NRM has enjoyed. They have tried to punch above their weight during all past electoral and non-electoral seasons by introducing small doses of democracy and lip servicing the processes thereof to no avail.
They also, for example, didn’t have the dexterity and temerity of juggling global influences vis a vis the always recalcitrant national constituents. The newer parties are not any better; NUP and FDC for example have had their behavior thoroughly controlled by the invisible hands of foreign interests; the reason why their leaderships cluelessly gravitate towards western capitals to accuse the NRM whenever the going gets tough here. And because of that the bombastic Ugandan voter has made them pay the hefty political price at every round of polls.
Fourthly, when a juxtaposition is made between the NRM and the other players, one detects a marked difference; whereas the governing party will in due course have its national conference (that will among others stamp its presidential candidate) preceded by its other organs like the national executive committee and the central executive committee, such a sequence of meetings is largely unheard of in Uganda’s opposition parties.
Fifthly, the level of tribalism in Uganda’s opposition parties is unprecedented and it can’t permit the growth of democracy; those parties are tribally based. Whereas the UPC is largely a Lango affair, the NUP and DP have remained Buganda phenomena. Excruciatingly, during the last electoral cycle, many in those parties were heard carelessly throwing around tribal tantrums.
Lastly, when all parties are scale-weighted, the NRM has performed best by respecting the provisions of the PPOA which amongst others stipulate: the 30% women and youth representation throughout party governance committees, accountability for government funding and parties’ participation in IPOD etc. Some opposition oligarchs have even disavowed the IPOD umbrella by bleating that it’s a “Museveni controlled body.”
The Writer is an Ambassador
