Namuganza and Nantaba: Who should Museveni beat with his stick?

It is an open-ended feud that has been ongoing for some time. It pits the State Minister for Lands, Persis Namuganza and her counterpart in the ICT ministry, Aidah Erios Nantaba. It seemed like some petty cat fight until Namuganza went native on national television and dismissed Nantaba as a ‘prostitute.’ For her part, Nantaba had at a meeting regarding land (also broadcast on television) claimed that Namuganza was not fit to be a minister, but an LC1.
The two are part of the Cabinet that has the herculean task of delivering Uganda into middle income status. Both ministers have had a close working relationship with President Museveni mainly because of their responsibilities in the Lands ministry. Under Museveni and NRM, land has become a very contentious issue. Nantaba was the State Minister for Lands before Namuganza took over.
Nantaba is remembered for her hands or should we say legs on approach. She would tour the land with the peasants who were under threat to get the facts right. On one occasion, to assure the apprehensive complainants on a piece of land that their matters would be put to the attention of the highest office in the land, she pulled out her phone and put the President on speaker phone bringing him to speed with the issues. Namuganza in her latest diatribe took issue with this and claimed she had behaved like a ‘comedian or a prostitute.’ The matter has become explosive that now the Cabinet has formed a sub-committee to try and solve it once and for all. Other people are calling on the appointing authority, who is the President, to handle the matter before it spirals out of control. You can imagine if the President has to come out, his hands will be full for he will be dealing with individuals with many similarities. Nantaba, born on December 20, 1979, is 37 years old while Namuganza born on October 5, 1984 is 32 years of age. So the President, who is a very considerate man, might have to understand their ambition.
He may need to factor in the competitive spirit that comes with the quest to prove their worth and satisfy those that hand them responsibilities. These all together are not bad things, though they could be the cause of their ‘bad behaviour.’ They both have a rural background. This comes with a lot of baggage. As girl-children, they must have had an enduring association with the land, which makes them very emotional and sensitive with land matters. They definitely must have traversed the bushes and forests stretching their arms and legs, pulling all their wits and energies together to deliver water and firewood for the pleasure of others.
Chances are also high that they encountered huge snakes, wild animals and, of course, men and naughty boys along the way as is the wont in rural settings. This should have instilled in them the courage and fearlessness that they exhibit. It is probably this boldness that drives their desire not to disappoint the appointing authority that ironically leads them onto a collision course with each other and many more.
So the President, who these days refers to himself as a grandfather, has to borrow an item from his Kinyankore cattle keeping culture to discipline the two - it is definitely a stick commonly known as enkoni. He once sang a song with that line mpenkoni (give me a stick.) The stick keeps the cows on the right path and disciplines them when they stray. Now if Mzee has to choose who to beat between Namuganza and Nantaba, he will be faced with two strong-willed leaders, the sort of leaders with quite a following that makes them so confident. (A prized following for which a politician like the President would give an arm and a leg.)
This confidence at times makes them behave like sacred cows that went through a cattle deep filled with power, which power went through their hooves and legs right up to their heads. If he beats one, it may seriously hurt the following that he has in her camp and give unfair advantage to the other and her followers. This may make the latter, gloat leading to the other camp responding in the same abusive manner or even worse.
Meaning his action will have solved nothing. So as a politician who wants to maximise his patronage system, he should either leave both of them to feud or he may just close his eyes and slaughter both of these sacred cows for the satisfaction of all to end the drama.

Nicholas Sengoba is a commentator on political and social issues. [email protected]
Twitter: @nsengoba