In Uganda the obscene has supporters and beneficiaries

Beside Enrica Pinetti’s business exploits, Ugandans have seen more marvels, including something close to a State birthday celebration.

Not a play about Robert Mugabe’s famous birthdays in Zimbabwe, but a real life binge for Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, son of Uganda’s President Museveni.

Ugandans perpetually speculate about the next President. So, the birthday orgy, which saw many Kampala roads closed, excited Muhoozi’s fans and disgusted his critics, who all think that he might one day become Uganda’s ruler.

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Muhoozi, of course, cannot convert or eliminate all the disgusted.  In Haiti, Baby Doc lived with them under Papa Doc. In North Korea, successive Kims have had them.  The late Gaddafi’s sons lived in the same Libya with the disgusted. In the Philippines, Bongbong Marcos is belatedly facing them in a forthcoming election.

The disgusted point to the excess of privilege and impunity, the excess of arrogance, the excess of repression and the excess of ‘family’ in power. Since the excess of almost anything tends to invite disgust, most people can follow their reasoning.

The reasoning of Muhoozi’s fans is harder. Take Tamale Mirundi, the man who probably holds the world record for screaming about a lost job and cursing those he believes led President Museveni to sack him as his spokesman. Nine years of sustained hate-mongering on radio and television.

His arch-enemy: Andrew Mwenda, for whom Mirundi has invented extreme descriptions, vowing that their conflict as mortals would only be resolved in a fight to the death of one of them, whenever and wherever they met.

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Well, both men met at the birthday spree, but that mother of battles did not materialise. Did Mwenda independently, or on the instructions of a powerful third party, undermine Mirundi so many years ago? Or was Mwenda instructed by the President to undermine Mirundi so that the President could sack Mirundi?

We may never know. But President Museveni has somehow kept both in his camp. Mirundi, the former spokesman is now an advisor. And Mwenda…, well, he is still Andrew Mwenda.

It is strange but true, that Mwenda has woven weird arguments that seem to justify corruption and patronage under big African chiefs of Museveni’s mould.

For his part, Mirundi despises Museveni’s government, often reeling off its sins, and swearing never to work for it again. However, he is a government-paid presidential advisor and campaigns for Museveni to retain power! Next, he wants Museveni to pass power to the son. I have told you how hard it is to understand Muhoozi’s fans.

When Dr Besigye, Generals Muntu, Biralo and Tumukunde contested the presidency, Mirundi argued that Ugandans would see unfairness with another President from the western region. He now has to fabricate a correction in Muhoozi’s case.

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If Mwenda has dubiously benefitted from the NRM system, as Mirundi often alleges, Mirundi also may have targeted the NRM/State machinery as a dump for his booklets. 

However, these implacable enemies hover around Muhoozi as they cling to Museveni. 

Similarly, the family and fraternity tycoons who thrive on Museveni’s power were also birthday stars.

Assumed to be another Muhoozi fan, President Museveni reportedly said that he had handled the corrupt kindly, and Muhoozi would handle them ruthlessly. A birthday joke. 

Dangling anyone as a ruthless anti-corruption warrior will ensure that all the NRM bigwigs beg Museveni to stay in power.

But if Muhoozi wants the big job any time before 2041, he could assure them that rather than focusing on corruption, they should prepare for a period of magnificent birthdays. 

Mr Tacca is a novelist, socio-political commentator.
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