LCI victory for NRM might not necessarily mean the party is popular

What you need to know:

  • Isolated. While the MPs will be protected from unknown perpetrators, they will increasingly be isolated and distanced from the public.
  • And ultimately, the wananchi will continue being exposed and living in fear.

The ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party swept the Local Council I elections this week. The NRM secretariat was quick to embrace the victory, claiming that the popularity of the party continues to grow despite heavy criticism from Opposition politicians.
Under normal circumstances, winning elections would automatically be attributed to rising popularity. But many people acknowledge that there is increased fear among Ugandans over insecurity, therefore making it difficult to explain the recent NRM party LC1 victory by way of popularity.

Behind target
During the NRM Manifesto Week in May, it was reported that two years into the implementation of the NRM manifesto, completion was at only 38.2 per cent on deliverables against projections of 80 per cent. Corruption was singled out as one of the reasons for failure of deliverables.
Two months later, behind corruption is a steady build-up of fear streaming among Ugandans. The recent wave of women murders, kidnaps and assassinations, including the most recent of Arua Municipality MP Ibrahim Abiriga, are examples of things that worry Ugandans.
The implications are that most Ugandans living in fear feel politically disillusioned. Therefore, although on the surface the LCI victories mean popularity for the NRM, it could however in reality be a false impression.

Politics of fear
In the US, the 2015 Republican primary elections coincided with November terror attacks in Paris, France. President Donald Trump pointed to Paris as proof that his warnings about terrorists were justified, and voters flocked to him, boosting and solidifying his lead in the final stretch for Republican flag bearer.

Trump’s standing in the polls rose about seven percentage points in the aftermath of the attacks. According to Conservative Party author Reed Galen, “Trump summons fear in the conventional way, by describing it in concrete terms the magnitude of threats the American people imminently face. But also, in a more unusual manoeuvre, summons fear in the abstract threatening our very way of life, invoking fear in concrete and abstract ways.”
“More than most politicians, Trump grasps and channels the fear surging through the electorate. Trump’s particular political appeal, a unique political force in which fear seems to be the key, reordering and destabilising the electoral landscape.”

In Uganda, as part of new measures to curb security, President Museveni has directed the minister of Finance to immediately purchase new four-wheel drive pickup vehicles for 462 MPs.
While the MPs will be protected from unknown perpetrators, they will increasingly be isolated and distanced from the public. And ultimately, the wananchi will continue being exposed and living in fear.