A reply to Odhiambo T. Oketch of Kamarock, Nairobi: By Sheme Chemangey Masaba

Monday, May 25, 2009

A reply to Odhiambo T. Oketch of Kamarock, Nairobi: By Sheme Chemangey Masaba

Dear Friend,
Migingo is only a one-acre barren rock that is not worth shedding anybody's blood, even before who owns it has been clarified. Kenya claims its ownership so does Uganda and both are not wrong because since independence our countries have not taken the trouble to authenticate their borders.
Migingo dispute should not have arisen if we had done so and I think it is a shock reminder that we should reexamine our colonial borders. 
Kenya and Uganda have been and are still friendly neighbors and our economies are so dependent on each other's that a war between us would destroy our two economies.
Some of you Kenyan brothers seem to be highly incensed by what you view as Museveni's expansionism to the extent that you blame your Commander-in-Chief,Mr Kibaki, for not using the army to drive out Ugandans from the disputed island. Interestingly, though, many other Kenyans view the Migingo saga as a storm in a teacup. They are right because that is what it is.
If Kenya sent in the troops, obviously Uganda would reinforce its presence on the island and a confrontation would ensue. Ugandans know what war means: indiscriminate destruction of life and property which words alone are not enough to describe. 
Fortunately, you Kenyans have not had to face such a situation, which is why you have a stable and a much more developed industrial base than ours. 
Uganda is your major trading partner in the area. In fact, the trade is in favor of Kenya because we import so much from you. A war and the usual propensity for mischief, especially the uprooting of the railways, by the Kenyan youth, like they did following the disputed presidential elections in December 2007, would destroy this trade and the repercussions would be felt as far as Southern Sudan, Eastern DRC, Rwanda and Burundi. 
I wish to remind you that many of us sought refuge in Kenya during the days of Amin Dada and we were warmly accepted. Following the December disputed elections in your country, many of your fellow citizens sought refuge in Uganda and, as you must be aware, they were openly welcomed.
There are Kenyans who have settled in Uganda and others hold employment in various sectors of our economy. Many Kenyan students attend our secondary schools and universities. 
Only last year Kenyan students at Makerere University almost rioted, protesting high fees. They did not see why they were being charged fees paid by foreign students. The government explained that until there was a common policy on East African students they would have to be treated as aliens and therefore pay the same fees paid by other foreign students. After all, our students in your universities pay much more than Kenyan students for their education.
Ugandans were amused but not annoyed to see foreigners ready to burn down Makerere University. Had Ugandan students in Nairobi or Dar es Salaam attempted to do that they would have been arrested, beaten up and expelled from the country. It did not happen in Uganda.
Some Kenyans, including your press, have also been accusing Uganda of annexing Kacheliba, an area that borders Karamoja of Uganda. Both the Pokot in Kenya and the Karamojong in Uganda are notorious cattle raiders and the presence of Ugandan army has actually reduced the spate of cattle rustling. Your information in this is clearly out of step with reality. 
We have been talking of an East African Community that would allow our people to cross borders unhindered and work wherever they happen to work and, if small issues like the Migingo affair can generate so much heat, then it is obvious that we are not ready for the federation. If we cannot sit and calmly resolve our disputes now, I cannot see how a federation will withstand frictions that are likely to arise. 
Migingo has clearly shown that East Africans need to do much more to cement social and economic ties before they attempt a political federation.

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