UGANDA: Caught between a rock and hard place - Museveni and the national dialogue

CAUGHT BETWEEN A ROCK AND HARD PLACE - MUSEVENI AND THE NATIONAL DIALOGUE

"We the People of Uganda
RECALLING Our history which has been characterised by political and constitutional instability;
RECOGNIZING our struggles against the forces of tyranny, oppression and exploitation;
COMMITTED to building a better future by establishing a socio-economic and political order through a popular and durable national Constitution based on the principles of unity, peace, equality, democracy, freedom, social justice and progress;
EXERCISING our sovereign and inalienable right to determine the form of governance for our country, and having fully participated in the Constitution-making process;
NOTING that a Constituent Assembly was established to represent us and to debate the Draft Constitution prepared by the Uganda Constitutional Commission and to adopt and enact a Constitution for Uganda:
DO HEREBY; in and through this constituent Assembly solemnly adopt, enact and give to ourselves and our posterity, this Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, this 22nd day of September, in the year 1995.
FOR GOD AND MY COUNTRY"

    Above, is the preamble of the 1995 Constitution which Museveni defiled and has continued to sodomize day and night.

"Our country is in the grip of a grave national crisis. This situation has become highly toxic and explosive. This toxic atmosphere has now infused all sectors and all levels of our national life. There is a need for a serious, genuine and well-prepared national dialogue to address this crisis."

     The opposition groups statement reads in part -  8/10/2018.

The Opposition has further  demanded for clarification on the agenda of the dialogue, composition of the participants, modalities of convening and arrangements of independent financing of the dialogue.  They also want the organisers to guarantee how the outcome of the dialogue will be implemented and a guarantee from government that it will first end acts of political repression, persecution and impunity and also show immediate guarantee of freedom of political activities.

Accordingly, the National Dialogue is an indictment of the Museveni regime.  Allowing it to be convened would be an admission that his 30 years mility dictatorship has plunged the country into a social, economic and political crisis.  For Museveni and his cohorts, this is 'the work of enemies, detractors,  the usual opposition falsehoods, and disorientation.'  The entire Museveni junta knows that the situation is highly volatile but is determined to continue using force to silence any form of dissent.

On the other hand, the National Dialogue is a better mitigating factor for the current stalemate.  Since if has no time scope, it comes in hand to divert the growing pressure by way of buying time against the much feared mass uprising.  As the opposition will be day dreaming over a peaceful transition, Museveni will be strengthening his repressive machinery.

The National Dialogue (ND) is a brain child of The Elders Forum of Uganda (TEFU) and the Inter-religious Council of Uganda (IRCU). It aims to secure a political consensus, a diversity consensus, a national values consensus, an economy that works for everybody, equal opportunity for all, quality service delivery consensus, a consensus if action to fight corruption and a consensus on implantation modalities.

The Elders Forum of Uganda (TEFU) which is comprised of 13 eminent Uganda elders was founded in 2010 to provide an impartial space for dialogue particularly during electoral seasons.  It is envisioned as a non-state platform providing a neutral space for citizens and political actors to exchange ideas and build consensus on issues of national importance. Launched on 2nd September, 2015 by Museveni at State House, he applauded the efforts of the Elders in promoting dialogue as a way of building consensus.
“Dialogue is very key for peace and unity in the country, hence the importance of this Elders Forum. Dialogue needed to be thorough, where all actors involved bring their issues to the table in a peaceful manner so as to achieve prosperity."

Founded in 2001, IRCU unites efforts of religious institutions to address issues of common concern. It is constituted by the Roman Catholic Church the Church of the Province of Uganda (Church Of Uganda-COU), the Uganda Orthodox Church (UOC), the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC), the Seventh-day Adventist Uganda Union (SDAUU), the Born Again Faith in Uganda (BAF) and the National Alliance of Pentecostal and Evangelical Churches in Uganda (NAPECU).

It works to achieve peace and harmony within Uganda. Its mission is to promote dialogue and harmonious co-existence amongst all faith groups and encourage the non-violent resolution of conflicts. It advocates good governance and national reconciliation, and promotes dialogue across faith groups through joint prayer activities and exchange visits.
IRCU works together with and coordinates inter-faith groups.
It strives to promote peaceful co-existence, moral and spiritual integrity, social-economic welfare and collaborative action through sharing knowledge and resources for the common good.

Funded by the Danish Embassy and UNDP respectively, the two organisations initiated a National Dialogue to address the country's impasse following the contestation of the February 2016 presidential elections. The National Dialogue seeks an agreement on national consensus to consolidate peace, democracy and inclusive development to achieve equal opportunity for all.

Its scope includes countrywide consultations that started in 2017. IRCU in particular sought to convene three meetings; one among citizens, the second one with different political parties and another between Dr Kizza Besigye and President Museveni.

The National Dialogue is scheduled to be launched by Museveni on 21st November, 2018 and is expected to culminate into a national conference in June 2019. It will evaluate what went wrong in the last 50 years. Quite a number of civil society organisations and political parties are supportive of the initiative.

Therefore, for Museveni and his cohorts, the National
Dialogue is a necessary evil.  Otherwise, it a total mockery for anyone to imagine that he/she can dialogue with Museveni.  Instead, the National Dialogue advocates should stay in the ready to dialogue a post Museveni transition management.  The current situation is beyond their capacity to handle. Moreover, the 1990 -1995 constitution making process had been enough national dialogue thus the preamble above.

Just kick out Museveni and restore constitutional order and the rest will sort out itself.

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM
change of guards