Just Politics by Aaron Ng’ambi: Elections 2021; The Lessons for Zambia from Uganda
There is no question that Zambians have been extremely fortunate from the time our Republic was established up to now. The smooth transfer of power in 1991 from the United National Independence Party (UNIP) to the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) was not just unprecedented but laid a foundation for the democracy we have enjoyed. Unfortunately, our friends in the Eastern African country of Uganda have known a different reality for many years. There has never been a smooth transfer of power from one political party to another, or even from one head of state to the next. The only thing the people of Uganda have ever known are military coups from time to time. This trend was set in motion when Idi Amin Dada overthrew the elected government of President Milton Obote, but only to be removed from power as well by the 1986 military coup led by a young General Yoweri Kaguta Museveni. As a result of having such impressive credentials as a guerrilla fighter and having defeated Idi Amin Dada, the young general became the darling of the West, including the United States of America. In his rise to power, Yoweri Museveni promised sweeping changes in a country fatigued from military coups. Despite all the promises made 35 years ago, we can safely say that the general is still in power today and Uganda is still ruled by a military junta disguised as a democracy.
The January 14, 2021 election in Uganda has done nothing but expose the grave injustices of the Museveni regime. This country has gone through the so-called elections six times since the National Resistance Movement (NRM) of President Museveni came to power. And in all these elections, the opponents to the incumbent have suffered intimidation, arrests, and even death itself at the hands of security forces. The likes of Dr. Kizza Besigye, member and former leader of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) has had his share of beatings and brutal attacks from the regime over the years. And now, the famous musician turned politician Robert Kyagulanyi also known as Bobi Wine has offered the greatest challenge to President Museveni under exceedingly difficult circumstances. Therefore, because Zambia is headed for a general election on August 12th 2021, we believe that our people will do well to learn from the experiences and lessons from our friends in Uganda. But in order for us to do so, we need to draw parallels between what we have witnessed in Uganda and what is obtaining in Zambia. On June 17, 2020, in the case of Kalali Steven vs the Attorney General and Electoral Commission of Uganda, the Supreme Court of Uganda ruled that the electoral commission should begin the process of making sure that prisoners and Ugandans in the diaspora can vote. However, this was not implemented in the just ended elections of January 14, 2021 perhaps due to technical issues. The interesting contrast is that the Zambian government under President Edgar Lungu has gone ahead to empower the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to register thousands of prisoners across the country. In most advanced democracies, including the United States, the right to vote for prisoners or convicted felonies or anyone with a criminal record is very restricted. Could it be that the Patriotic Front government of President Lungu is trying to copy dirty tactics of the failed regime of Yoweri Museveni of Uganda? To some, this could be the only possible explanation for the rushed decision made by the ECZ to register those in prisons. Because the question of how campaigns are to be conducted in prisons during the elections has never been addressed by the commission, and this has led to skepticism among all stakeholders especially the opposition political parties.
In the just ended Ugandan general elections, we saw 10 independent candidates contest for the highest office of the land and four out of the 10 candidates were independent presidential candidates. This means that the four candidates did not belong to any political party for them to qualify as candidates for the presidency of Uganda. Coincidentally, this is a principle which is now provided for in the Zambian constitution as amended in 2016 and signed into law by President Lungu. This is another interesting common denominator between our system now and that of Uganda. Therefore, we expect to see some presidential candidates on the ballot come August 12, 2021 running as independents without being sponsored by any particular political party. To some, this is a good democratic development which should be encouraged, but others would argue that this piece of legislation would only encourage or provide for a crowded list of presidential candidates, of which some can be sponsored and used by the ruling party as surrogates to deflect attention from the legit opposition presidential candidates.
In a tragic event of November 18 and 19, 2020, the security forces of Uganda killed about 54 people to which President Museveni himself admitted though accuding 32 of those victims of attempting to attack the security force. He later on stated that the remaining 22 victims were innocent civilians caught in the crossfire. This is not only sad, but very regrettable because no country should become so desperate to the extent that life has to be lost in order for a nation to have elections. Unfortunately, considering the pace at which we are moving as a country, Zambia might as well find itself in a serious predicament during the elections this year. We have already lost a number of innocent civilians at the hands of the police under the PF government of President Lungu. This is scary because these police killings took place many months away from election day, and so as August 12, 2021 approaches, our people have the right to be concerned for their lives. We do not want to be the next Uganda. We have a reputation for being a peaceful nation and we hope that this government will honour that reputation as we go to the polls in August. The home affairs minister should ensure that the police will be professional in conducting their duties, and that they do not repeat the mistakes of the past. For example, the nation watched how the wife of Dr Chishimba Kambwili and his daughter were dragged by the police and almost undressed in public. This is exactly what happened to the wife of Bobi Wine as she was harassed and almost stripped naked by the security forces in full view of the public. This kind of disrespect for our mothers by useless policing methods should come to an end immediately.
The unsung hero of the Ugandan elections this year is none other than Dr. Kizza Besigye. This man has for many years endured the ruthlessness of his former boss and military leader. In fact, Besigye has been beaten and jailed many times but never gave up. However, in this election, he stepped aside amidst calls for him to still challenge Museveni once again. Dr. Besigye assured his FDC party members that they were in capable hands of his successor. And also, he went on to tell his supporters that he will be working on plan B while his party proceeds with plan A of challenging Museveni at the ballot. After 4 unsuccessful attempts of contesting against the dictator, the former physician of general Museveni paved the way for others to take centre-stage in the January 14, 2021 elections. To me this takes courage and selfless leadership to recognise that no single person has all the answers or solutions to a particular country’s problems.
Email; aaronngambi@yahoo.com