UGANDA: Museveni's SACCOS vs. Kabaka's Cooperative Unions

MUSEVENI'S SACCOS Vs KABAKA'S COOPERATIVE UNIONS

CHANGE OF GUARDS - The Baganda tribe of central Uganda has been instrumental in the shaping of the present-day Uganda. They not only helped colonialism to take root, aided the spread of Western civilisation but bore the brunt of the struggle against colonialism. When the early post independence government threatened their cherished Buganda Kingdom, they initially threw their weight behind the Iddi Amin regime. For eight years of the Iddi Amin regime, those opposed to the same regime developed a serious dislike for the Baganda. The release from detention by Iddi Amin of a Muganda leader of the dominant DP, Ben Kiwanuka and his subsequent appointment as Chief Justice coupled by the return of the remains of their king helped rally the Baganda behind Iddi Amin. To the exiles and their backers, this was treacherous, and no wonder Ben Kiwanuka was kidnapped and disappeared to this day.

As those who dislodged Iddi Amin from power launched their push, they had in mind that deposed President Obote was a necessary evil among the Baganda. That’s why he had to remain behind in Tanzania for the next one year as two figurehead Baganda Presidents warmed the seat.

When Obote assumed the presidency in 1980, self seeking politicians including Museveni invoked the event of 1966 when the Obote I government abolished Kingdoms after attacking the Kabaka and sending him to exile. Museveni moved very fast to exploit this historical animosity between Obote and the Baganda to pursue his childhood ambition of gaining the presidency of Uganda.

First, he neutralised the Yusuf Lule armed group by tricking them into an alliance. He then moved against the armed group of Andrew Kayiira which be destroyed by way of operational betrayal. In the same regard, he had strategically opted to establish his bases on Buganda soil. When the going got tougher, he moved to dupe the Baganda by promising to reinstate their monarchy in return for supporting his sectarian war.

When he took over power he moved very fast to ally with the dominant Baganda political party, the DP. Shortly after, he discarded the DP but instead lured the Baganda by reinstating their monarchy. After consolidating his hold on power, he moved to systematically destroy Buganda's influence. First, he gradually eliminated the dominant Bush War Baganda soldiers. Then he embarked on systematically destroying Buganda's economic base - land and agricultural products.

Buganda's traditional cash crops like Coffee, cotton and Bananas were systematically destroyed. Consequently, Buganda's rural households were hit by untold poverty which has made it easy for 'Museveni's people' to be able to buy off Baganda's redundant land. Finally, he embarked on undermining the authority of the Buganda Kingdom in order to detach it away from the subjects. It is the same regard that Museveni moved to declare Kampala City as being outside Buganda. Kampala city generates over 60% of the GDP. This has been the center of friction between Museveni and Mengo.

It is against the same background that Museveni is bent on hoodwinking Ugandans through his cash handouts dubbed SACCOS (microfinance) whose sole aim is to keep the population in perpetual poverty. In the same regard, when Baganda attempted to wakeup over land grabbing, he hoodwinked them by putting in place the toothless Land Probe Committee. In furtherance of the same design, he is plotting to restrict the Baganda from growing coffee.

During his recent 26th Coronation Anniversary, the Kabaka of Buganda resolutely declared the revival of cooperative unions in Buganda Kingdom. Therefore, the stage is set for the clash of the titans - Museveni's SACCOS versus the Kabaka's Cooperative Unions.

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM