Dear Tingasiga:
The Toronto Branch of the National Resistance Movement used to publish a monthly magazine called The Ugandan Newsletter, copies of which were distributed to NRM leaders in Uganda, including President Yoweri Museveni.
As I was reading through my archives of that newsletter, I came across an article that I wrote in Vol. 2, No. 11 which was published in November 1988. I was stunned by the extraordinary prescience of what I wrote 37 years ago, straight from the heart, with a goodwill towards my country, the NRM and President Yoweri Museveni that has not dimmed with time.
The title of that article was ‘On Leadership and defence of the masses: A discourse with Uganda’s leaders.’ I reproduce it verbatim, with the hope that it might be of interest to those who now seek to lead Uganda, and to their adoring supporters.
I wrote in 1988:
‘The collapse of Uganda was primarily due to lack of leadership. All our rulers until January 1986 shared a common mistrust of Ugandans and a pathological obsession with being in control. Their power was based on the military, on old colonial institutions and obscene use of patronage and bribery to their throngs of supporters. The masses were looked upon with suspicion and were considered the problem rather than the solution to Uganda’s predicament.
The success of the NRM/NRA between 1981 and 1986 was partly due to the leadership’s ability to mobilise mass support by articulating the broad sentiments of ordinary Ugandans. The key to Yoweri Museveni’s success to date (1988) has been the power he derives from the masses. Since the standard of living of most Ugandans has not yet improved, one cannot ascribe Museveni’s support to ‘good economic times.’ His ability to identify with and to speak on behalf of the ordinary man and woman is the secret of his popularity in Uganda.
The NRM leaders must therefore not lose sight of their power base. They must resist the temptation to be sucked into the bureaucracy and the old machinery of government at the expense of their interaction with the masses. Once settled in Kampala and Entebbe, there is a temptation to maintain control through coercion and intimidation. Thus, one begins to hear ministers, army officers and other leaders ‘warning’ the people, threatening to withdraw services and inevitably surrounding themselves with impenetrable walls of security and hangers on.
The NRM must guard against the KANU-syndrome. KANU’s efforts seem to be exclusively directed towards elections. The party seems to have no interest in mobilising, educating or transforming Kenyan society. KANU (Kenya African National Union) seems to be constantly engaged in a struggle against Kenyans.
The leaders of the NRM should regularly be in touch with the masses to learn from them and to work with them. Frantz Fanon said: ‘For if you think that you can manage a country without letting people interfere, if you think the people upset the game by their mere presence, whether they slow it down or whether by their mere ignorance they sabotage it, then you must have no hesitation: keep them out. Now, it so happens that when the people are invited to partake in the management of the country, they do not slow the movement down but on the contrary they speed it up. In an underdeveloped country, the party ought to be organised in such a fashion that it is not simply content with having contacts with the masses. The party is not an administration responsible for transmitting government orders. It is the energetic spokesman and incorruptible defender of the masses.’
A leader must demonstrate intellect and skill in organisation. He must be able to understand and respond to differing views. Whereas the truth may most often be with the majority, it is not always the case. Even one dissenting voice should be listened to carefully. A leader should not interpret criticism or dissent as lack of patriotism.
Not only must a leader not be corrupt, he must also be seen not to be corrupt. There can be no compromise on this one. The NRM leaders should launch an anti-corruption and anti-inefficiency campaign.
Many of our leaders might have to give up their lavish lifestyles. If a leader steals government time to do his private things or uses government vehicles to transport his relatives to a wedding, that is corruption. If a leader imports things into Uganda without paying the necessary taxes, he should not expect his subordinates to do otherwise.
The Bakiga say that ‘ekisiika kyasheenyuka, ebinya birabona ahokweshereka.’ [When a wall cracks, the lizards find a place to hide.] The English say that ‘a fish rots from the head down.’
The police, the intelligence services and the army must serve to protect the national interest and not just the interests of one individual or group. Members of these organisations are not above the law. That is in fact one of the reasons why the NRM/NRA was formed – to fight state sanctioned terrorism and to remove those who used public guns to intimidate and kill the very public that bought those guns.
We have a golden opportunity to rebuild our society and achieve sustainable peace and prosperity. But it is going to require special commitment and discipline by every Ugandan, and especially leaders rich with ideas and a sincere determination to effect change.
A leader should be accountable to the people. He is merely their representative. We the people are guilty of idolising our leaders and creating demigods. We idolised Milton Obote in the 1960s. When Idi Amin took over in 1971, he was called a saviour. Yusuf Lule, who led us for only 69 days and was never in charge of the country, was declared by some to have been the ‘best leader Uganda ever had.’
Idolising Museveni is the current fashion. Every utterance and action by Museveni is hailed, often without stopping to think about what he is saying or doing. This kind of thing creates a personality cult, hero-worship and all sorts of myths. Such hero worship creates fertile ground for dictatorship. I am sure Museveni despises people who flatter him and never point out the mistakes he makes. At least he should.
Now I happen to be a supporter of Museveni. But I refuse to be a blind supporter. Museveni is a mortal like the rest of us. The question is whether Uganda can create an institution of leadership, in this case the presidency, which will not die with the man.’