Museveni also says, in the statement released Monday that the demonization of the NRM by opposition with the help of the media has not stopped people from identifying with the NRM.
FULL STATEMENT:
Dear Countrymen and Countrywomen, especially the Bazukulu.
Again, I greet you. Thanks for responding to my two long messages on the social – media and mobile money taxes. I will send an additional message later.
Today, however, I would like to add to my message of 11thJuly 2018 when I congratulated the Ugandans and the NRM members in particular on their massive participation in the Women Council and LCI elections that took place on the 4th and the 10th of July 2018 respectively. There was, apparently, massive participation and the NRM won massively in both elections.
With the Women Councils’ elections, out of the total of 303, 460 positions, the NRM won a total of 256,100 positions, which is 84.5%, while the Independents, many of them NRM leaning but contesting the fairness of the NRM primaries, won 27,069 positions, constituting 8.9%; and the opposition Parties won a total of 20,291 positions constituting 6.6%. With the LCI elections, there are 54,713 villages that voted, out of a total of 60,774 villages. The NRM has won a total of 37,496 villages, constituting 69%, the Independents have won 11,685 villages, constituting 21% and many of them are NRM leaning; the opposition Parties won a total of 5,532 villages, constituting 10%.
This massive win by the NRM is in spite of very active and sustained media demonization of the NRM by the social media users, the enemy paper, the Monitor, some Radio and TV stations, not to forget some elements in the opposition Parties. Some of the elements have even gone to the extent of murdering Ugandans – Sheikhs, women, children, State officials like Kagezi and Kaweesi as well as ordinary villagers like the ones murdered on the New Year. All those liars, charlatans and criminals thought that by these methods, they would make the People hate the NRM or fear to associate with it. These liars, charlatans and criminals forget two things. One thing they forget is that Ugandans, especially the village people, are not fools and they are honest. They are not easy to deceive. When you go to Acholibur, just South of Kitgum, where a new long tarmac road, all the way from near Packwach, passes and you say the NRM Govt has done nothing, the villagers can easily tell who the liar is. That is the same story all over the country. Secondly, these liars, charlatans and criminals forget that there is God who sees everything.
When you deceive yourself by thinking that you will use the Radio, social- media, the Church etc to turn black into white and vice-versa, you should know that the Omnipotent, the Omniscient and the Omnipresent is there and will hold you accountable. In the last 58 years, since 1960, I have seen people here in Uganda squandering their opportunity by not being truthful to Uganda, to Africa, to God.
As Christians, our core belief is captured in the Creed of the Apostles. It goes as follows, for those who are not Christians:
“I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
He descended to the dead.
On the third day He rose again;
He ascended into heaven,
He is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.”
One God in Trinity, the resurrection of the dead as Jesus did after He was crucified by Pontius Pilate and eternal life are some of the core points.
Similarly, for politics, we in the NRM, believe in the four principles:
1. Patriotism (against sectarianism of religion or tribe or
gender chauvinism);
2. Pan-Africanism- the integration of Africa economically
and, where possible, also politically to create more
capable political units in global terms, so as to
address our prosperity and strategic security;
3. Social – economic transformation- transforming our
pre-capitalist society into a society of the middle class
and the skilled working class;
4. and democracy- ultimate power to the People, not just to the inter-mediaries; democracy of substance, not just form.
In order to implement the four principles, we have identified the 10 strategic bottlenecks: These are:
I. Ideological disorientation;
II. A weak State, especially the army, that needed strengthening;
III. Under-developed infrastructure (the railways, the roads, the electricity, the telephones, piped water, etc.);
IV. The underdevelopment of the human resource (lack of education and poor health for the population);
V. Interfering with the private sector (either by policy or by corruption);
VI. A fragmented African market on account of colonialism;
VII. Exporting unprocessed raw materials and, therefore, getting little money and losing jobs and lack of industrialization;
VIII. The underdevelopment of the services sector (hotels, banking, transport, insurance, tourism, etc);
IX. The underdevelopment of agriculture;
X. The attack on democracy.
All these strategic bottlenecks need to be resolved, more or less, concurrently. We are sure that we have distilled both the principles and identified the strategic bottlenecks correctly. That is why even their partial addressing produces dramatic results like the average of 7% rate of annual growth of the economy for the last 32 years. Now that we have identified and addressed all the bottlenecks, our rate of growth will be even more dramatic. No wonder some centres in the World are already saying that Uganda will be the fastest growing economy in the whole World by 2026. Stated above is our creed and the strategic action points that will help us to actualize our principles.
What is the creed of the other political parties and other groups, including the so called civil society, in relation to Uganda, to Africa and to our survival as the free peoples of Africa? These groups try to use the media to undermine the creed of the NRM and discredit its action points. What is their creed and why? Our creed and action points are in order to ensure the prosperity and strategic security of the Africans so as to ensure their survival as free people, as already stated above.
The good thing with modern politics is that we normally write down our plans. By writing down our plans, we preserve for posterity our correctness or our superficiality. By our own words, we condemn ourselves or vindicate ourselves.
Indeed, Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: “For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12: 25 and 37.
In spite of the hate campaign by the anti- NRM groups, the People know the truth as already said. That is how the People recently shocked the opportunists.
China, today, is the 2nd biggest economy in the whole world. This was due to the clarity of thinking of its leaders, starting with Chairman Mao Tse Tung, all the way to Deng Xiaoping.
Quite early, Mao Tse Tung, although a communist, enunciated the unity of the 4 classes: the National bourgeoisie, the peasants, the proletariat and the urban petite bourgeoisie that were seen as playing a positive role in the growth of China.
To be excluded from this alliance were the land lords and the comprador (agent) bourgeoisie. The latter two were parasitic and not adding anything to the prosperity of the country. On the contrary, they were the agents of foreign interests. The land lords were parasites because they were scheming off part of the sweat of the peasants for themselves selfishly and were undermining production. Yet, the national bourgeoisie, although capitalist, were adding to the wealth of the country. The workers (the proletariat) were adding to the wealth of the country through their labour. The Comprador bourgeoisie were the greatest enemies of China because they were sellers of imported goods and were, most of the time, acting in the interests of foreigners who did not want China to stand up. In our own situation, who are the Comprador bourgeoisie and who are the national bourgeoisie? Certainly, the Commission agents and the importers of foreign goods are the Comprador bourgeoisie. How about the national bourgeoisie? Certainly, the Mulwanas (milk and plastics), the Mahdivanis (sugar, tea, steel, tourism), Mr. Lv Wei Dong of Guangzhou Dongsong Energy Group (steel, fertilizers, glass etc), the big farmers like myself , the scientists (the Murangas, the Kyamuhangires, the Musasizis, the Tickodris etc) are either part of the national bourgeoisie or part of the petty bourgeoisie with a potential for growth.
The peasants, although not part of the national bourgeoisie, contribute greatly to the wealth of the country by producing their own food and, in quite a number of cases, producing food for others (maize, bananas, milk, potatoes, cassava, beans etc ) and also other commercial crops such as beverages (coffee, tea, cocoa etc). Practically, the national bourgeoisie, the patriotic petty bourgeoisie, the equivalent of the proletariat and the peasants, are engaged in activities that add to the wealth of the country.
When we talk of the national bourgeoisie, do not think only in racial terms. You actually have black Ugandans who are playing a comprador role, while, on the other hand, you have non-black Ugandans, or even foreigners playing the patriotic role of the national bourgeoisie of manufacturing goods here and, therefore, enhancing the dependence of Uganda and not enhancing her independence on foreign interests. It is not the colour that matters but the category of the activities one is engaged in.
Before we leave the issue of the comprador bourgeoisie, I cannot forget two points. No.1, the importer’s portion of the comprador bourgeoisie, at least, atone for their sins by paying taxes: Customs duty (25% or more for the whole of East Africa), Excise duty and, eventually, other consumer taxes. The import taxes alone, bring in Ug. Sh 5.234 trillion per year. Being an importer of whatever category of jobs, you do not have to suffer eternal damnation in the African court of patriotism. As long as you are conscious of the needs for the battle of national salvation, you can start off as an importer, accumulate enough capital taking advantage of our purchasing power, when you are ready, you go into manufacturing or other energy conserving activities e.g. hotels. Dangote in Nigeria, apparently, started off as a cement importer. He, eventually, became a big cement manufacturer in Nigeria and other African countries. When I visited South Korea, I was informed of Samsung. In the 1930s, this gentleman was importing textiles in Korea. He, eventually, became a big electronics company, manufacturing TVs, radios, computers etc. Even some of our own importers, especially the non-Africans, are following this path. There is, for instance, Tirupati. He was so poor when he came here that he used to sleep in the Temple of the Hindus but he was a hawker (Mutembeyi) during the day- selling imported items. He is now a big housing properties’ owner.
There is another young man that I met recently. He has been importing some products into Uganda for about 20 years. He is now assembling TVs here and manufactures electric pasis (flat irons) here. There is, therefore, a path to salvation for the comprador bourgeoisie that are in imports.
Politically and ideologically, the parasitic groups use sectarianism of religion or tribes or promote gender chauvinism (looking down upon women, neglecting the youth). The pro- national groups counter with the four principles: nationalism, Pan-Africanism, social- economic transformation and real democracy of the masses like we saw recently in the Women and LCI elections.
The venom of the unfair media and social- media attacks on the NRM exposes the intentions of some of these groups.
It is also important for the NRM leaders to understand all this and help as many of our youth to enter the productive sectors of the economy: Commercial agriculture; manufacturing (big and small); some of the services that build our energies, not those that cause us unjustified haemorrhage and ICT services that promote the growth of our economy- not those that cause us haemorrhage. It is clear, for instance, that Games betting, using machines that are owned by foreigners, social- media conversations, using foreign owned telephone companies and imports of non- essential goods (whiskies, luxury cars, human hair etc) or even essential goods that can be made here (furniture, shoes, textiles, carpets, curtains, soaps, some food items etc) are part of the Comprador activities. These haemorrhage causers must be understood and phased out by policy actions such as the Buy Uganda, Build Uganda (BUBU).
The so called civil society that are funded by foreigners, including foreign Governments, are definitely part of the Comprador bourgeoisie that should not be allowed to meddle in our politics. They have, however, been heavily involved in our politics, even daring to fund local traitors to try and disorient our political direction.
Following the colonization of Uganda in 1900, a parasitic class of landlords was created by the British in their scheme to have local agents here. Nevertheless, even the British, by 1924-8, had realized the parasitism of the group they had created. They decided to tame the group with Busuulu and Nvujjo Decree of 1928. Amin abolished that law in his crude ways without, of course, dialogue. When our time came to comment on that law in 1994, I advised our People to go for a win-win way: do not allow the eviction of peasants but do not dispossess the land lords without compensation and negotiations. However, some of those elements, propelled by incredible blindness, do not care or appreciate our calculated and balanced solution. They collude with corrupt Magistrates, Policemen etc and evict our people, the very people that sacrificed so much for the recovery of Uganda in the form of the Luwero Triangle war and other struggles. At the same time, using the media, some of those groups demonize the NRM, hoping that it will collapse and leave the political scene so that they can re-impose their parasitic system.
On account of the lack of vigour on the NRM side, our youth are bombarded with wrong ideas on the social- media, the TV’s and the Newspapers.
As already said, the NRM leaders should not allow idleness among our youth or allow them to be used by the comprador interests in the form of the pseudo- Civil Society. They should all be assisted to go into the four sectors: commercial Agriculture; factories (big and small); energy conserving or energy enhancing services, not the haemorrhage causing ones; and ICT , always remembering the energy conserving or energy enhancing and avoiding the haemorrhage.
The NRM has already succeeded in establishing the stability that Uganda lacked so as to bring out its huge potential that is already crystallizing. What is this huge potential that is crystallizing?
1. First of all, the growing purchasing power of the Ugandans which today stands at US$ 95.45 billions. In the recent past, US$ 7 billion of this was being spent on imports per annum. Recently, on account of some import substitution measures, this has declined to US$ 5 bn. This should be reduced further by exhausting the list of products that can be produced here so that we do not have to import them- reduce the haemorrhage to the unavoidable. At the same time, we should enhance our export potential so that we attract more blood from outside. The purchasing power is by Ugandans spending money from their pockets. We are advising them to spend that money on products produced within Uganda so that we keep the money here but also create jobs for our children instead of just creating jobs for others by importing more than we need to do.
2. The NRM has discovered for the Ugandans the huge and large spectrum of the natural resources of Uganda. On top of the agriculture potential which does not need amplification, we have expanded the telephone network, generated more electricity, availed more safe water, built more health centres, built more Schools, discovered your petroleum and gas, discovered iron ore deposits of the haematite and the magnetite types of 200million tonnes, the phosphate deposits of 230 million tonnes, the limestone deposits of 300million tonnes, the aluminium clays of 3 billion tonnes, huge deposits of uranium etc etc.
3. Thirdly, we have correctly identified the 10 strategic bottlenecks that had bedevilled the growth of African countries, Uganda included. One of the bottlenecks was undermining the private sector which is the greatest engine of growth.
4. By building a strong Army, we have been able to guarantee security in Uganda from corner to corner, for the first time in 500 years.
5. Planning and arranging with our African brothers and sisters to have the common market of the whole of Africa and the political Federation of East Africa to ensure our prosperity and our strategic security.
The vicious media campaign has been against these aims and achievements. The parasites, however, misjudged Ugandans. They under-estimate their ability to see for themselves. That is why I congratulate the Ugandans on their great show in the recent Women and LCI elections.
The people have clearly demonstrated their resistance to the schemes of the liars, charlatans, murderers and parasites. If you can, please, learn.
The two legs of the Resistance of Uganda were and are: the National Resistance Army (later UPDF) and the Resistance Councils (the RCs- later LCIs ). After these two branches of the Resistance defeating the dictatorships, we handed power and influence, mainly on account of speaking English and education to the elites: the MPs on the basis of Education, the Ministers, the Local Govt leaders, Judges, etc.
It is a serious mistake and miscalculation for the different layers of what should be our partners to think that they can, instead of partnership with the primary authors of the change, overran the Country in the interests of the parasitic interests- internal or external.
It is not only the activities of the enemy that undermine the NRM. Even some of the NRM leaders engage in seeking commissions (bribes) from business people, do not render Govt service without getting bribes or fail to detect and act against these evils. I call on Ugandans to expose these evils by ringing the telephone numbers my office will soon provide to them through the media. We acted against officials in the Ministry of Finance that were suspected of bribe taking and other high profile cases that you know. Corruption can and will be defeated. The LCIs must be shielded from this corruption. Quickly, the Ministry of Local Govt needs to centrally issue LCI stamps and, possibly, receipt books with counter-foils so that the actions of the village authorities are properly recorded. Let us discuss, led by Local Govt, how all this can be best done. The Cabinet needs to issue written guidelines to the LCI Chairpersons as to the dos and don’ts of those structures.
Thank you.
Signed:
Yoweri Kaguta Museveni
Gen. (rtd).