Museveni’s ululations on torture are suspect

For years, I have argued that Mr Yoweri (also now Tibuhaburwa) Museveni is many things some people do not know, or see nor is he necessarily many things that others perceive him to be. I have suggested, for instance, that he is – amongst others – a cheeky regional comedian with a perfect national platform, Uganda.

For many reasons, including exigency of time, I have rarely ‘waited’ for hours to listen to his sometimes-rumbles’-repeats and or apparently deliberate-erroneous historical accounts often; very irritatingly, boring basic classroom-styles which possibly fit ‘qualified’ teachers instead. 

But as I got more into the burdens of responsibility around the future of Uganda and less about the NRA-created contemporary quagmire, wisdom instructed that I reviewed my approach, including paying more attention to what I would normally consider basics or, outrightly dismiss. I immediately acquired copies of the two versions (or is it editions) of Sowing the Mustard Seeds, both now fully settled in my library.

So having ‘missed’ last week’s speech (thanks to Umeme meanness) but, credit to a young scribe, I sought the help of YouTube to catch up with what others now call ‘vintage Museveni’.  He did not disappoint.

Punched by his usual Runyankole-classical-concepts, Mr Museveni rejected and abhorred torture by his pet, NRA, and I wondered; is this the same Museveni who once told the BBC that he does not know the meaning of or, had ‘never heard the word torture’? I ask this because the context of this speech seems to have taken many Ugandans by surprise. What is it and, why now?

Is it really true that Museveni’s NRA never killed or tortured any Ugandans in Luweero and that all the skulls were the skilful works of UNLA? What about the Mukura massacres in Teso; now a destination-of-choice for ‘new cadres’? What about the Kayunga killings in 2009, 10 years after Mukura? And Kasese killings in 2006? In Tororo and greater Bukedi, what about the killings in Paya, Iyolwa, Mulanda to mention but a few? 

Okay, if these are ‘minor’ I suggest that Mr Museveni reviews the extraordinary documentary by Australian filmmaker and producer Ebony Butler, A Brilliant Genocide that maps the NRA atrocities in northern and eastern Uganda. In the documentary, still-serving NRA commanders give sharp and extremely harrowing accounts of nothing-but-shameful criminality akin to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

As these facts got a little heavier for me and, before I could abandon the viewing on YouTube, Mr Museveni produced letters that he allegedly wrote to his army commander and copied to the Inspector General of Police on May 15, 2017, and another he called ‘educational letter’ of, was it February or March this year? My question then is: were these letters directives’ or, merely educational materials sent to spoilt-little-boys to check them? If directives, did the army and police chiefs disobey orders from their commander-in-chief or, where has Mr Museveni been all this time?

If the 2017 letter was a directive, how come this country wasted the lives of 54 Ugandans in November 2020, or was it because of his contradictions that security forces only kill in ‘isolated’ instances which in itself are total insults to grieving Ugandans. No death is ‘isolated’ death. 

Struggling to log out as I could not continue, Mr Museveni said “indiscriminate use of force is terrorism” so I wondered, have NRA security forces been involved in domestic terrorism against its own people? 

Mr Museveni, you told Ugandans decades ago that you would leave power once you ‘professionalised’ the army; haven’t you? You suggested you would do the same to the police – appointing soldiers – as IGPs, has it worked?

Whatever the grounds for your recent speech, the truth still lies under-the-belly while the jury is out, but will Ugandans get it? They decide.

The writer is a pan-Africanist and former columnist with New African Magazine

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