{UAH} Uganda's first ever presidential debate throws unexpected spin-offs to Opposition!

Things are accelerating very comfortably in favour of  Uganda's Opposition, a group that won worldwide focus last Friday ( 15/01/2016) due to their heroic show-down which enlisted tremendous support and enthusiasm both locally and internationally. The Opposition is now harvesting big gains from Museveni's refusal to appear on his lectern in order to participate in what he is now equating to a school debate! Yet it was in that "school debate" that viewers all over the globe wanted to see how a president would perform before those other gallant debaters representing much of the opposition opinion and NRM disgruntled lot.. Bad news to Museveni because the debate enabled the world to discover a set of individuals who, with the backing of the ancient traditional parties which enjoy good  respect among Uganda's actors and sympathizers, proved that there was always hope for the nation to take off and off again, and that our Uganda wasn't a dead nation!  What Museveni would have debated with was this selected group of individuals who have been observing and following very closely his action and its ensuing policies. These are the people whom the struggle for change has brought together in one swing and who vow to fight one enemy : Museveni! The different members of the opposition personalities group variously accuse Museveni of having been someone responsible for youth unemployment, political aggression, a failing economy, all kinds of things related to dictatorship and the failure to stick to NRM's original principles, etc... In other words each personality has a slot to fit in the debate and the traditional political parties and their leading national gurus are solidly behind their activity. Therefore all of these heads stood to profit from the debate!

Museveni's shunning of the debate surprised much but without giving any excitement because here the nation had a leader reported not ready to share ideas with others but to impose his on them. And a debate of any kind has never been recorded either within NRM ranks or even at their presidium in Kyankwanzi. Therefore in this case Museveni would debate against nobody! And since he even called the exercice schoolish in impact, tending to remind of those debates at college dealing with such topics as :

1- Fire is better than water   
2- In a family a mother is more useful than a father

3- Is independence necessary or unnecessary?    ETC..

But Friday 15 January 2016 wasn't at all gimmicks to the nation which wanted to discover through the debate whether Musevani has thought of a successor to show to the masses at the time when the country is yearning for a sight of a visible successor to the ageing President. Museveni's absence settled this question! The debate showed that Uganda had potential to present a successor to Museveni! And the ensuing post-debate campaigns with huge crowds following the leading opposition candidates, Mbabazi and Besigye, and with opinion polls now showing the incumbent starting to fall below the 50% overall mark are are something to create worry and consternation in a particular camp! Surprising indeed! NRM stalwarts should feel concerned about the situation which sees someone who has already covered almost 2/3 of the districts in his campaign programme ( and is always moving in the country to promote his policies ) beginning to sink down so fast, weeks before the national poll!

What matters is to win the presidency and the oppositon groups and sympathizers are readily set for this! After the victory such questions as, for example, Mbabazi being president without MPs, and the opposition gifting NRM 91 seats, as I've read  in the Ugandan press, won't embarrass a nationally elected President. And we are in Africa where manoeuvres in form of ouvertures can work very successfully. Can a President in Africa really stand idle without MPs when he needs a ggod number of them to form his government and to nominate a good number of them to chair various Parliamentary committees, etc...? Immediately he is declared winner his compound will fill with cars bringing in MPs offering loyalty for a coalition, and others virtually showing their readiness to promote the new leader's policies in their areas! And how about their constituents who in the leader would like to see benefits for their areas? And how about the many independents who would definitely go through.... Don't they know where to belong in case.....! And there is that united opposition front ready to work together to combat rigging. And they will continue the task of nation building together! And the choice of the masses (who would have elected the president ) could it be overlooked?

Now, will there be violence if the opposition wins? This shallow option is always out of place in a democracy. No true compatriot can resort to such childishness! I'm sure even Museveni himself will hand over gracefully at an occasion where he would expect to garner points and glory and multitudes of good wishes and blessings for a well-deserved retirement.  He would stand to be remembered for the high echievemnts obtained under his leadership. And the new person will take over to let the nation and its history continue to march forward. Thinking in terms of  rigging an election or of violence in case of defeat is very improper. Let Uganda avoid all this in order to escape from what is now being seen in anticipation as a source of unending deadly future conflicts in the region caused by any wish to hold on power indefinitely. If the debate was commended in many leading world capitals, one of the reasons why, was the wish to dissipate this fear!

G.H.K.

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