Besigye to Museveni: The NRM regime is a military dictatorship

Dr Kizza Besigye says President Museveni’s regime is a military dictatorship, which if not checked, will generate into a corrupt and decadent monster.

I thank Mr Museveni for the elaborate response to remarks I made; published in the 3rd February Sunday Monitor. I am grateful that he did not threaten to crush or put me 6 feet under, as sometimes happens. Reasoned arguments are, indeed, the rational way to deal with differing views.

I am also grateful because Mr Museveni’s response goes a long way to confirm central themes in my remarks for those who may have had doubt. My remarks covered two central themes; the role of the military in the NRM regime (prompted by recent utterances of coup threats) and the achievements of the NRM regime. In this response, I will only deal with whether the NRM regime is a military dictatorship.

Mr Museveni clearly states in his response that “An NRA/UPDF Military government, provided we had our own financial resources (we did not have to depend on the outside for money) would have moved much, much faster on the transformation of Uganda and Dr Besigye knows that very well”.

He laments that indiscipline by the political actors, saboteurs, or egocentric actors was allowed to cause “needless debates” that delayed progress, including industrialisation. The undisciplined political actors, saboteurs, and egocentric actors from his narrative are people in NRM or opposition parties that question his government’s policies or actions.

He cites (as many times before) the example of MPs who opposed the Bujagali dam project. I intend to comment on Bujagali’s delayed completion when dealing with NRM’s achievements.

For now, what’s important to note is that legitimate, necessary debate on policy and parliamentary oversight is regarded by Mr Museveni as subversive. Having views different from his is indiscipline and egocentric! This underpins how Mr Museveni relates to Parliament (and other institutions of State) up to now.

It is possible to have an efficient Military regime; that espouses good development policies, is disciplined and acts patriotically to spur development. In such a regime, however, citizens have very limited or no power and their rights and freedoms can be abused at will.

This is a Military dictatorship; it’s ability to spur development notwithstanding. In any case, this kind of regime will inevitably degenerate into a corrupt and decadent monster due to the absence of checks on it. This desired path of Mr Museveni could not be pursued because, as he admits, he didn’t have his own financial resources and “had to depend on the outside for money”. This, then, is what compelled him to opt for a civilian cover to the regime.

Even if the NRM military regime had all the money and was not inconvenienced by civilian “saboteurs”, it would not have transformed Uganda. This is because the leaders of the military regime have no ideological clarity and commitment; they are not patriotic or disciplined.

Without the “saboteurs”, Saleh would not have been forced to resign twice due to corruption; what has been witnessed in ghost-soldier scandals, procurement scams in UPDF etc, would have been the centre-stage of government. The privatisation of public companies scandal is well known; “Saboteurs” saved Dairy Corporation from being sold for $1 dollar by Mr Museveni; etc. 

Mr Museveni asserts, in his response, that “since 1986, NRA/UPDF ensures peace as well as stability and the civilians manage or mismanage the politics, the administration and the justice”.

He claimed to be answering me “for the young people who do not know our history”.

As part of informing the young people, can Mr Museveni deny the following or accept lying to them:
-  From 1986 to 1996, Lt. Gen. Museveni  was the President and head of government, Minister of Defence, Speaker of Uganda Parliament, and Operational Commander of the Defence Forces.

-  40% of the NRC Members (MPs) were NRA officers.

-  From 1986 - 1996, several serving NRA officers headed government ministries, departments of government, and Local governments.