So how shall we transform our nation?

In the 2011 general election, I made my maiden appearance on the ballot paper as a parliamentary candidate for Omoro County. At that time, Omoro was just a county/parliamentary constituency in Gulu District. Five years later, in 2016, thanks to the NRM high district fertility rate and politics of populism, a new district was carved out of Gulu. Omoro was subsequently born.

Campaigning in a rural parliamentary constituency in Uganda is one hell of an experience. The NRM regime has fundamentally, albeit negatively, halted the culture of political campaigns in Uganda. There are too many outrageous demands on the candidates. From salt, to soap, to alcohol, to medicine, to condolence funds, to school fees, to physical cash, etc. Interestingly, going by the laws of the land, offering these things to the electorate by a candidate is supposed to be illegal. The laws are, however, in the books, the practice is completely different.

The candidate who is able to buy or do the things listed above or pay the highest bribes to the electors will take the day. The candidate with the most brilliant ideas will almost always trail the one with the money. So there is a constant competition between money and ideas. More often than not, money takes the day and ideas lose. Certainly, a society that does not honour, respect or reward ideas is very unlikely to go up the ladder of socio-economic transformation. Nations thrive on ideas.

It is, therefore, imperative for a nation to create an environment that gives leaders the opportunity to think and put their ideas to practice. The leaders should in turn, create the necessary atmosphere for the citizens to think creatively and innovatively. This means that the State must deliberately and heavily invest in the health, education and social welfare of its citizens. When the people are healthy, well educated and live fairly decent lives, they are able to think well and big. The reverse is also true.

Naturally, when you have conditions of extreme poverty, ill health, low education and general deprivation as currently exists in our beloved nation, Uganda, thanks to Gen Museveni and his regime, there is no way citizens will think beyond bread and butter issues. The preoccupation of such a nation’s citizens will be merely to get by or survive. That is why the vast majority of Ugandans’ preoccupation, year-in-year-out, is looking for school fees, rent, transport and food.

There is absolutely no way such a population can think creatively, innovatively or even inventively. Consequently, the nation remains in the abyss of poverty, underdevelopment and backwardness. Usually and paradoxically, while the vast majority of the population is wallowing in the abyss of poverty and underdevelopment, the ruling elite is swimming in obscene luxury and ostentation, minding less about the future of the nation and its people.

In the end, the nation, as is the case with Uganda and most African countries, is mired in a boggy place, with little or no chance whatsoever of transforming herself into a modern, prosperous nation. Her most able bodied and intelligent human resources flee their motherland in search of better opportunities abroad, only to perish in thousands on the sea. Those who survive, end up as modern day slaves in Europe, America and Asia. Their rulers, on the other hand, won’t lose a few hours’ sleep over this.

When a country is ensnared in that kind of conundrum, it would be nothing but wishful thinking and or foolery, for her rulers to be talking about transformation. Gen Museveni and his regime can’t thus be talking about transforming Uganda. They simply can’t do it. The only gift that we should earnestly beseech Gen Museveni to give to the people of Uganda is peaceful transfer of power.
If we are able to rid Uganda of Museveni the man, his leadership culture and economic management style, then the people of Uganda will be in a better position to lay the foundations for our nation’s transformation.

The key ingredients for building the foundations for Uganda’s transformation will lie in fixing the governance questions, investing in health and education, promoting creative thinking and innovation as well as boosting the productive capacities of the people of Uganda.

Mr Mugabe is a member of the Alliance for National Transformation party
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