{UAH} MUSEVENI AND KIPROTICH HAVE SOMETHING IN COMMON
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At the start of this year, few foresaw anything significant occurring
on the sports pitch with the exception of some eager predictions on
the soccer calendar. Uganda was slated for key engagements which went
down well eventually. Little else was hoped for.
Stephen Kiprotich was just another prison warder, albeit lucky; with a
gold medal back at home and some loose millions on account, as a
harvest from the London Olympics. He could have sworn all that
remained for him was moving up in the ranks of uniformed service
rather a milestone on the race track. Remember, his predecessor, John
Aki Bua, bagged only one medal in 1972 and that was that.
But then something unforeseen transpired and he returned from Moscow
with heroism. Close interaction with the world champion reveals he
least expected to emerge triumphant. All he did was glide along the
track, at some point feeling so drawn out but then every time he
looked about him, noticed nobody was doing any better. So he just kept
going and realized (rather late) that if he didn't win, he had himself
to blame. He chose to take the honours and is now man of the moment.
The greatest Ugandan in athletics, ever.
Striking the finish line is what made him a champion. Had he not
arrived or had he not adopted some dramatic footwork during the
course, the story would be different. Narrations of the final moments
reveal an interesting technique, involving zig sagging on the street
to shake off the last enduring competitor, Ethiopian's Lelisa Desisa.
Others had fallen off along the stretch.
On the day when Kiprotich was hosted at State House and later by
President Museveni at Rwakitura to celebrate his feat, I couldn't help
mark out a similarity between the two men while they were together.
The chief celebrant was rotund, graying and in plain, casual dress
while the champion was lean, youthful and uniformed (prison outfit).
Two Ugandan generations side by side! Then an intense similarity
emerged, from the nature of their careers.
Kiprotich specializes in long distance marathons as opposed to sprints
of the Usain Bolts. In sprinting, the runner dashes to the finish line
as fast as they can and for a short distance, most notable, 100meters.
It's really summary business but winners take home medals and cash for
that. On the other hand, a marathon is a lengthy, speedy hike spanning
astonishing distances. For the Kapchorwa boy, 42km was the challenge!
Ordinary humans (spectators) only cover that in the comfort of
motorized transport. It takes preparedness, endurance, fitness
(stamina), focus (vision), alertness and due regard for the
competition. Unfitness and miscalculation equal to failure.
In governance spheres, the analogy of Kiprotich applies perfectly to
President Museveni and his presence in the leadership arena. 27years
is a marathon! The opposite being the five-year sub-marathons provided
for constitutionally for one term or the maximum combined
sub-marathons of 10 years as practiced in many democracies. Serving
short stints is more of a dash formality to the finish line, intended
for the sprinter to finish while energy is still high. The open term
system which Museveni sails is more of a cross country run taking the
"runner" through valleys and hills, forested areas and dry patches,
diverse competition along the way, snaking through lines of
"spectators", some supportive and others abusive, but all the same
heading to a finish line. This is a classic example of human staying
power.
In either arena, it gets to a point when the "runner" feels they just
want to give up and return to their usual business, in this case,
prison superintending and cow herding. Staying on takes urging by
supporters as well conscious decision to upstage familiar rivals
weighed throughout the length of the race.
Towards the climax, novel techniques have to be employed to disorient
competitors away from glitter of gold. Museveni has overtime played
this game and isn't about to stop till all is said and done. He is the
Kiprotich of Ugandan politics! What remains to be seen is what sort of
medal he wins for Uganda at the end of it all.
Robert Atuhairwe
Published in Observer of Wednesday Sept. 4, 2013
--
"TRY TO GROW UP!"
--
UAH forum is devoted to matters of interest to Ugandans and Africans in general. Individuals are responsible for whatever they post on this forum.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com or Abbey Semuwemba at: abbeysemuwemba@gmail.com.
on the sports pitch with the exception of some eager predictions on
the soccer calendar. Uganda was slated for key engagements which went
down well eventually. Little else was hoped for.
Stephen Kiprotich was just another prison warder, albeit lucky; with a
gold medal back at home and some loose millions on account, as a
harvest from the London Olympics. He could have sworn all that
remained for him was moving up in the ranks of uniformed service
rather a milestone on the race track. Remember, his predecessor, John
Aki Bua, bagged only one medal in 1972 and that was that.
But then something unforeseen transpired and he returned from Moscow
with heroism. Close interaction with the world champion reveals he
least expected to emerge triumphant. All he did was glide along the
track, at some point feeling so drawn out but then every time he
looked about him, noticed nobody was doing any better. So he just kept
going and realized (rather late) that if he didn't win, he had himself
to blame. He chose to take the honours and is now man of the moment.
The greatest Ugandan in athletics, ever.
Striking the finish line is what made him a champion. Had he not
arrived or had he not adopted some dramatic footwork during the
course, the story would be different. Narrations of the final moments
reveal an interesting technique, involving zig sagging on the street
to shake off the last enduring competitor, Ethiopian's Lelisa Desisa.
Others had fallen off along the stretch.
On the day when Kiprotich was hosted at State House and later by
President Museveni at Rwakitura to celebrate his feat, I couldn't help
mark out a similarity between the two men while they were together.
The chief celebrant was rotund, graying and in plain, casual dress
while the champion was lean, youthful and uniformed (prison outfit).
Two Ugandan generations side by side! Then an intense similarity
emerged, from the nature of their careers.
Kiprotich specializes in long distance marathons as opposed to sprints
of the Usain Bolts. In sprinting, the runner dashes to the finish line
as fast as they can and for a short distance, most notable, 100meters.
It's really summary business but winners take home medals and cash for
that. On the other hand, a marathon is a lengthy, speedy hike spanning
astonishing distances. For the Kapchorwa boy, 42km was the challenge!
Ordinary humans (spectators) only cover that in the comfort of
motorized transport. It takes preparedness, endurance, fitness
(stamina), focus (vision), alertness and due regard for the
competition. Unfitness and miscalculation equal to failure.
In governance spheres, the analogy of Kiprotich applies perfectly to
President Museveni and his presence in the leadership arena. 27years
is a marathon! The opposite being the five-year sub-marathons provided
for constitutionally for one term or the maximum combined
sub-marathons of 10 years as practiced in many democracies. Serving
short stints is more of a dash formality to the finish line, intended
for the sprinter to finish while energy is still high. The open term
system which Museveni sails is more of a cross country run taking the
"runner" through valleys and hills, forested areas and dry patches,
diverse competition along the way, snaking through lines of
"spectators", some supportive and others abusive, but all the same
heading to a finish line. This is a classic example of human staying
power.
In either arena, it gets to a point when the "runner" feels they just
want to give up and return to their usual business, in this case,
prison superintending and cow herding. Staying on takes urging by
supporters as well conscious decision to upstage familiar rivals
weighed throughout the length of the race.
Towards the climax, novel techniques have to be employed to disorient
competitors away from glitter of gold. Museveni has overtime played
this game and isn't about to stop till all is said and done. He is the
Kiprotich of Ugandan politics! What remains to be seen is what sort of
medal he wins for Uganda at the end of it all.
Robert Atuhairwe
Published in Observer of Wednesday Sept. 4, 2013
--
"TRY TO GROW UP!"
--
UAH forum is devoted to matters of interest to Ugandans and Africans in general. Individuals are responsible for whatever they post on this forum.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com or Abbey Semuwemba at: abbeysemuwemba@gmail.com.
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