Why it is important to know what political parties, leaders stand for
Africa is currently about the only continent that wholly fits in the description of least developed countries, or what is euphemistically referred to as developing countries. Literally speaking, one wonders whether these countries are developing when poverty, disease, illiteracy, unemployment, etc. are rising by the day.
Other continents have since moved up the ladder of socio-economic development; Western Europe, Australia, North America the Oceania and the Antarctica. Asia and Latin America are also moving very fast to join the club of developed countries. This will most likely leave Africa alone in the rung of lowly developed continent. But why has Africa lagged behind in as far as uplifting of the socio-economic status of the human race is concerned?
The answer lies squarely in leadership or lack of thereof. Incidentally, when we are talking about leadership here, we don’t mean any type. We mean visionary and transformational leadership.
By the way, African countries, including Uganda, have not lacked leaders in terms of people occupying positions of responsibility and authority since independence. What Africa has lacked are leaders with a clear sense of mission and vision and the means through which to actualise the ideals encapsulated in the vision. The means through which the vision can be realised are, of course, strong political, government and state institutions. Otherwise, a country may be endowed with all sorts of wealth, but remains perpetually impoverished. That is the case of Africa.
The good news, however, is that the consciousness level of the African people, especially the youth, about the correlation between good leadership and development is incrementally rising. Many young Africans are beginning to ask their rulers the tough questions. In many countries in Africa, young people are involving themselves in civic action aimed at changing the status quo. This, we hope, will cumulatively build into a social force that will inevitably shuffle out the old order.
But changing government alone is not enough. As Alliance for National Transformation national coordinator, Gen Mugisha Muntu, likes putting it, you cannot give what you don’t have. Certainly, Africa and Uganda have seen several changes of government, without changes in the material welfare of the citizens. This is largely attributable to leaders’ lack of vision and the will to bring about positive change and development in the countries that they lead. Therefore, political organisations and leaders need to be closely interrogated to know the vision that they have for the country.
Leading a country is like driving a car or piloting a plane full of passengers to a particular destination. One has got to know the destination clearly and the route through which they will deliver the passengers to that destination. One has got also to be on top of their game. They need to understand the mechanics very well and have the requisite skills, lest one plunges the country into grave mistakes. It is not a desirable situation to have a driver or pilot who is unsure about the destination as well as the route.
In other words, given Africa’s experience with bad leaders, whoever shows interest in leading a country must clearly articulate their vision for the country to the electorate. It is against that background that the people will choose the leader that they believe can deliver them to the destination of their choice. Otherwise, how will the electorate get to know the leader that they believe can deliver the things that they aspire for?
That NRM has messed up our country is no longer a newsworthy subject. Ugandans have got, therefore, to be thinking more seriously and critically about the post-Museveni era. We can’t forever be crying over spilt milk. We must, thus, invest time, effort and resources in building a new and better country for our children and grandchildren.
As a country, we need to do everything possible to stop another Museveni from emerging, but most importantly, we need to cut the roots of Musevenism and Musevenomics in our nation. That is why it is imperative to know what political organisations and political leaders aspiring for political office stand for.
Mr Mugabe is a member of the Alliance for National Transformation party
[email protected]
