[UAH] M7: IT WOULD BE A FATAL MISTAKE TO NAME SUCCESSOR

Mr. Justus Muhanguzi authored an article which appeared in Sunday
Pepper of June 30, 2013. He tackled the recurrent subject of
succession of the current President, arguing "No wrong in grooming a
successor."

Mr. Muhanguzi's proposition matches with the inclination of a sizeable
section of the general public which also comprises of formidable
opponents of the view. This article represents the rejoinder of the
latter camp, which so far boasts of the President's membership.
To-date, he finds it unnecessary, even abominable to name a successor.

There is a serious problem with requiring a sitting head-of-state to
anoint someone for the job. In the first instance, it's one way of
circumventing democracy. Naming one's successor doesn't end there. One
is required to groom, polish and literally hoist the lucky one to the
high table. In the few, commonly cited countries where this practice
applies, like Tanzania and South Africa, every anointed eventually
takes the big seat. This doesn't occur naturally. All other contenders
are minimized before the real contest. In essence, the incumbent is
the sole voter.

To achieve that, the Tanzanians and South Africans are either very
mature or too docile. Ugandans are too competitive for such boring
engagements. They want their election action-packed and exciting, with
anticipation of surprises at the end of the exercise. Hitherto unknown
figures have equal opportunity to lead. The history of revolutions has
moulded this mentality.

Moreover, today, all our political parties are still young. None of
them is a cultural party into which the voting generations were born.
Tanzania has CCM, South Africa has ANC while the United States runs on
the predominance of the Republican and Democratic parties. Monumental
parties make the process of transition easier and predictable.
Everybody knows such and such a party will take "the thing".
Therefore, the closer to the top one is, the higher their chances. No
abrupt heroes!

In Uganda, after 27years of Museveni, the terrain is teeming with
exuberant hopefuls including his hangers-on who have assimilated their
boss's ways. All hail from infant parties, some just a few years old,
while others like DP and UPC, are too disused to compare with the
established ANCs of this world. By naming a specific person to take
over, Museveni and his NRM would have granted their rivals time and
space to work out their plan, fashioned to hit a familiar target. The
strategies can get very murky indeed, including profiling the sordid
past of somebody and forging other distasteful dossiers to make the
"anointed one" a bad sale.

That's not the worst part. Our politics has wizards and witches
lurking all around. These will not think twice about shortening the
lifespan of the "anointed" if they feel threatened. It would be a
fatal disservice if Museveni named anyone as his chosen. Without
pronouncing himself, he has already put the lives of a number of his
close confidants in jeopardy just by the perception of eager but shy
contenders. Muhoozi!

Then there is Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi. The President and the guy
from Kanungu have been known as political twins in their struggles
till lately when it emerged that a wave may have sent them on
divergent paths. This was the work of a Mafioso camp which interpreted
the President's recorded approval of Mbabazi's astuteness and
lifestyle as a signal of impending anointment.

Previously, Museveni spoke well of the late Brig. Mayombo, describing
him as a forward thinker. In other words, a visionary. The rest is
history. At a funeral service for Mayombo at Kololo in 2007, the
President also praised now Gen. Kale Kayihura as being Mayombo-like.
Meaning; illustrious, forward-thinking, all-round! I am sure life
hasn't been rosy for the I.G.P since then despite rising from triumph
to triumph. This is happening before none is formally introduced as
the big man-to-be.

So for the sake of individual longevity, this succession talk should
be shelved. Afterall, there is no legal urgency for it. Vice President
Edward Ssekandi is alive and kicking should a sudden vacancy arise.
The main election season needs to retain its competitive flavor to
allow maturity of systems and lure lethargic voters.

Just as Museveni evolved over time, an observation which Mr. Muhanguzi
doesn't miss, someone somewhere is divinely slated to emulate him.
Conditions may be dissimilar but the destiny is identical.

The final resort for hankerers after a successor is to tempt the
President by nominating names of creditable individuals for him to
select from. And we are many!

Robert Atuhairwe
--
"TRY TO GROW UP!"