Tracing the role of music in politics

A story is told from Gabon, a small former French colony facing the Atlantic Ocean with vast natural wealth, notably oil, but extremely poor.

The year was 1998 and its president Omar Bongo, one of the longest serving non-traditional leaders on the continent until his death in 2009, threw a bash for his birthday. Lingala maestro, Madilu System (real names Bialu Makiese) was the headline performer at the bash.
Waiters served expensive wines under the stunning lighting from a bravura of chandeliers as guests danced away the night.

Madilu performed to the pleasure of the already electrified guests led by president Bongo and his wife Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba, daughter of president Denis Sassou Nguesso of the neighbouring Republic of Congo.

In the song Bon Anniversaire, Madilu hailed Bongo as a democrat, who would win the general election months later. Indeed he won. Madilu performed at several other banquets for the president.

But he is not alone to sing praise or perform for a president.
Popular American songstress Mariah Carey came under fire in 2013 for accepting a Shs3.6 billion ($1m) fee to perform at a concert for Isabel dos Santos, daughter to one of Africa’s longest serving presidents, Angola’s José Eduardo dos Santos.

Fans, human rights groups and commentators made fuss out of the episode, scolding her for accepting “dictator money” and more especially not considering the Angolan government’s human rights record and corruption.

But it was not the first time. Earlier in 2009, she had received $1m to perform only four songs for Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, one of fallen Libyan president Muammar Gadhafi’s sons, an incident she later regretted.

She is among a dozen of celebrities who have been taunted for composing praise songs, performing, or wining and dining with some of the world’s most hated heads of states.
Critics argued this was show of support for tyrants and despotic governments to prolong their stay in power. “Candidat Na Biso Mobutu” (our candidate Mobutu) is placed high up the list as one of those.

The 35-minute song (released in two parts) was composed by celebrated Zairian Lingala maestro Franco Makiadi with his TPOK jazz band for Mobutu Sese Seko in 1984. Mobutu ruled Zaire ((present day DR Congo) for 32 years.

In the song, he asks who does not know Mobutu has done good things in Zaire, is anything wrong with Mobutu’s re-election?
A story is told that prior to that, he had had several run-ins with the government, which was one of Africa’s worst dictatorships from the mid-1970s to until it was toppled in 1997. But after the song, the relationship improved. In fact, when he died, the Mobutu government declared four days of national mourning.

‘Tubonga Naawe’ (We are with you) is a 2015 praise song for President Museveni that seemingly invokes such memories.
But the dozen artistes who recorded it have come under attack from all corners with lurid insults hurled at them and are being called names from “schemers” to “traitors”.

In fact, Facebook and Twitter were last weekend caught up in frenzy as critics, defenders, experts, fans and others alike took to the stage to react to the song which endorses President Museveni’s candidacy for a fifth term in power after ruling for 29 years.

Some comments cheeky, several abusive and others defensive.
The situation became even more impassioned when the artistes came out on their public Facebook pages to defend themselves or clarify about their involvement.

A day earlier, on Friday, President Museveni had launched the song during the premier of its video at a gala held at Speke Resort Munyonyo.

In the song they extol him, recount the achievements of his government--returning rule of law, creating an enabling environment for the artistry industry, modernising the economy, emancipating women, freedom of expression, and giving the country a sense of direction, and further pledge support for him during next year’s polls.

The hostility
The song features a dozen artistes, prominently Joseph Mayanja, aka Jose Chameleone, Juliana Kanyomozi, Moses Ssali, aka Bebe Cool, Irene Namubiru, Rehema Namakula, aka Rema, Douglas Mayanja, aka Weasel, Moses Ssekibogo, aka Moze Radio, Wilson Bugembe, and others.

Several critics online, besides taking exception with some of the country’s celebrated musicians, composing a praise song for the ruling NRM party chairman, also sneered at them for receiving money which some described as “bad” or “evil”.

Some artistes also went into overdrive, scolding colleagues for meeting the President and praising him instead of bringing to his attention the ills in the country. Others said it was the perfect moment for the artistes to bring up the subject of the need for the intellectual property right/copy right law to develop the industry and allow artistes enjoy from their sweat.

Attempts to talk to three of the prominent musicians featured in the song for this article proved futile. But all of them have since taken to Facebook to make a defence.

Juliana Kanyomozi, known for her serenading voice, in a post on Facebook last Sunday said: “Ndi munnauganda nga abalala bonna.” (I am Uganda like everyone else).

“It means we all have the same fundamental rights regardless of our positions in society, or political beliefs, or even life experiences. But there’s one thing that brings us together, and that’s humanity, obuntu…”

“There’s no need to use abusive, disrespectful, judgmental and insensitive language towards each other simply because of our different beliefs. That is not going to add any value to you or me. I may be a musician and public figure, but away from the glitz and glam, I’m also a human being just like everybody else.”

Her critics even went to the extreme and dragged into the discussion the passing on of her son last year at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi.

In doing so, they said she should have been reminding the President about the broken state of the health system, hospitals running without drugs and medical attendants going with very little or no pay.

Bebe Cool responds
Still on Sunday, Bebe Cool, an unapologetic NRM supporter and always confrontational with critics, went: “I wish to remind, correct, and guide my fellow musicians/fans who have totally gone wrong on the issue of President Museveni dining with artistes and not talking about copyright.”

“You can’t invite a President to a wedding and start addressing him about politics or police coz [sic] then you run a risk of not hosting him again. If you want to address him about copyright then invite him for a copyright conference and I believe he will attend, but at an appropriate time.”
He added: “This moment is a moment to show him support.”

But like Bebe Cool indicated, cultural activist, journalist and social commentator Kalundi Serumaga agrees that artistes under attack did not have the mandate to bring to the attention of the head of State the rot in the country because they were not appointed in that regard.

“To criticise them anyhow is to forget about the bigger problems which they live with, [which] affect them and has made them survivors like politicians and many public figures in the country,” Serumaga says.

Making reference to former vice president Gilbert Bukenya who recently made a U-turn and pledged to support President Museveni for 2016, Mr Serumaga says: “If Bukenya can behave in that way, surely why not Chameleone?”

Chameleone on Friday took to his Facebook wall: “Let everybody be who they want to be. As much as I am a musician by profession, that doesn’t take away my rights as a Ugandan citizen. I am so respectful of your opinions. Do the same for me and every one.”

Star power vs freedom of choice
The power that celebrities and well-known people have in everyday life is phenomenal.

In the United States, Canada, the UK and France, pop stars are known for endorsing candidates of their choices. They sing at their rallies and usually move around on campaign trails.

But while this is so, Dr Sylvia Nannyonga-Tamusuza, an associate professor of music at Makerere University, thinks the criticism against the Tubonga artistes is misplaced.

“There could have been a number of issues to talk about, but that was not the forum,” she argues. “Much as dinners have nowadays been turned into forums for politics and raising this and that, the artistes sticking to the real issue of the day was not only respect to the person of the President, but also protocol.”

During the dinner, President Museveni implored the artistes to create a fund through which the government will support the music industry. He then committed Shs400 million to the fund.
Dr Nannyonga says: “Whenever there is money, certainly you are bound to witness all this criticisms.”

Could the reaction to Mariah Carey have been the same if she had performed in Angola for free?

Mr Serumaga, who closely follows the industry, says while the artistes (musicians and comedians) have a right to political inclination, just like everyone else, the poverty that has stained the Ugandan society has not left them behind.

“They have been doing worse things than taking money from the President, so this is just a small issue that should be analysed in the wider context of the status of the artistry industry,” he says.

Some musicians like Harriet Kisakye (RIP) sung at FDC rallies and always aligned with the party.

From music that speaks to society to praise songs
Once upon a time, there were songs that used to speak directly about the status of the Ugandan society; the broken hospitals, corruption, selfish politicians, police brutality, etc. Many people were quick to associate with the message in that type of music.

Such include Mathias Walukaga’s Bakoowu (people are tired), the 2012 kadongo kamu hit that paints images of what the Ugandan society looks like, but with some political innuendos.

Then Ronald Mayinja’s [formerly of Eagle’s Production] award winning Tuli Kubunkenke (we are under tension) released in 2005 in the run up to the 2006 elections. He was summoned several times by security agencies to clarify on the lyrics of the song which was said would likely to incite violence.

In 2007, Mayinja released Africa, another song about the hopeless state of the continent—plagued by corruption, hunger, dictators, diseases but yet with vast natural wealth.

In 2014, he released Tuwalana Nguzi (we are against corruption not the government) which were all received positively.
In that category is Bobi Wine’s Tugambire kku Jennifer, a composition against the Kampala Capital City Authority law enforcers’ brutality.

But Mayinja was a surprise act at the presidential dinner despite the fact he does not feature in Tubonga song. In fact, many of his fans online expressed disappointment with him. Some even claimed he is not doing well financially and was seeking redemption.

What crime?
So what crime did the artistes commit; to compose a praise song for the President, take money from him or the failure to preach him about the country’s status quo?

Edrisa Musuuza, aka Eddy Kenzo, who did not attend the dinner and has sung at DP rallies, said: “To have dinner with Mr President is not a problem to me, even okumuyimbiramu awo nasanyuka bambi sikibi (even singing for him is not bad at all.”

“But as you knelt down, you should have told him also that the police is undressing women.”

Veteran actor Andrew Benon Kibuuka, also the president of the Federation of Performing Artistes in Uganda (FPAU), told this newspaper early in the week that there was nothing wrong with the artistes dining with the President because “so many people have met the him and he has even offered much more.”

If for not falling for political manipulation, what else did the artistes do wrong?