UGANDA: Museveni steps up youth demobilisation to salvage Muhoozi Project

MUSEVENI STEPS UP YOUTH DEMOBILISATION TO SALVAGE HIS MUHOOZI PROJECT

Muhoozi Project is a political scheme by Uganda's military dictator to have his son, Gen. Muhoozi inherit the presidency. The scheme is currently under threat from the emergence on the political scene of the more youthful Musician and Legislator, Bobi Wine who is more appealing to the youth constituency. Initially, Museveni had engaged an equally youthful socialite, Bryan White to counter the threat. Of recent Bryan White has been reinforced by the regime leaning Musician, Bebe Cool.

Following the display of Hon. Bobi Wine's mobilisation skills and public appeal during the Bugiri bye-elecrion where he trounced Museveni, the latter renewed his efforts to counter the former's growing influence. First, Bryan White in the company of socialite, Hassan Zari made a seven day tour of Aria. Under the cover of poverty eradication, an estimated seven billion shillings was dished out to locals and mostly the youth. Unfortunately, when it came to elections the following week, the locals out rightly rejected the Museveni backed regime candidate.

It is this anger and disappointment that accounts for the violence that erupted where Museveni's guards shot dead Bobi Wine's driver whom they mistook for Bobi Wine himself. It is in the same vein that Bobi Wine together with other legislators and ordinary opposition supporters were brutally arrested, tortured to near death and they were charged with treason in a military court.

Around the same time,  Museveni did manage to break away from his tight schedule to attend a music concert organised by local artiste Bebe Cool at Kololo Independence Grounds on one evening. A few days later, he attended a National Youth Council conference at Lugogo;

“I want the youth to wake up so that we develop our country in order to come out of poverty and joblessness,” he said. He advised them to follow the ideology and strategy of the National Resistance Movement (NRM), saying this would make it easy for them and him to work together.

He later presided over the International Youth Day in Mpigi where he said;

"We need capital and skills for the youths. All the other things are there."

The youths, through the National Youth Council, recognised him twice - first, for his role in establishing peace and security in the country as "one of the most respected leaders on the continent", and secondly for ensuring that youths are empowered.

Just yesterday, he was back at Kololo presideing over a public function involving over 4,000 youth who are living in the slums. He said;

“Those in the ghetto, if you want to get out of ghetto, listen to what NRM is telling you. I was in the ghetto, in Katwe, in 1968, fighting Obote and Amin."

Note: Because of his background in the slums, Bobi Wine is popularly known as the Gheto President.

Therefore, the current reemergence of demobilising the youth more especially in Kampala is meant to neutralize the influence of Hon. Bobi Wine while at the same time reasserting the political prospects of his (Museveni) son, Gen. Muhoozi.

INFORNATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM