President Museveni’s NRM occupation government is starting to feel the cost of keeping the kingdom of Buganda in a virtual state of emergency. Since early September 2009, Museveni has spent billions of Uganda Shillings in resources to destabilize Kabaka Mutebi, monitor and block Baganda radio and phone communications, block unfriendly Internet addresses, fund pro-Region Tier forces in Mmengo and redeploy at least 65% of all Uganda’s police and army in Buganda.  The panic expenditure, together with the accompanying graft by those managing the funds has left the occupation NRM government in a financial fix. To cope, Museveni is reportedly, raiding certain government institutions, where aid donors cannot easily trace misuse of funds.

Our source in Uganda’s ministry of Finance has told us that the list of organizations that the NRM government is raiding include Bank of Uganda (BOU), National Social Secrity Fund (NSSF), NAADS and the President’s patriotism development fund. The source said: “BOU is easy because, the governor, Emmanuel Mutebire and the secretary to treasury, Chris Kassami are both veteran embezzlers. And they now have younger leutenants in Naome Nassasira and Keith Muhakanizi to oversee the thefts. The NSSF could have been more complicated because it has been in the papers too much. That is why they appointed a brand new board, with a solid number of thieves, to ensure full cooperation when government raids the organization. Even UPE will not be spared. There are plans to reallocate huge sums of money from students and combine those moneys with billions from Museveni’s patriotism development fund  to massively recruit ‘patriotic’ teachers as a backbone of a new spy network within Buganda. The reason they are looking at NAADS is because they have successfully used it in the past to bribe LCs and settle Balaalo and other foreigners in Buganda, without donor interference.”

On a related note, our ministry of Finance source points out that at least 30-40% of the money being spent to maintain the Buganda occupation is stolen by the implementers and NRM politicians. According the the source: “Because of the secrecy, there is no accountability and everyone involved in the illegal financial raids make sure to keep some. Even Museveni and his family are actively chasing the patriotism fund. It is like everyone is trying to get what they can before the next Baganda riots break out. “

According a Bank of Uganda (BOU) source, the value of Uganda Shilling against the US Dollar is expected to continue a steady slide downward for a while. A banking officer in the Operations Division of BOU told this reporter on condition of anonymity that there are three major reasons for the misfortunes of the Shilling.

The bank officer said: “First is the global financial crisis which, unfortunately, both the BOU governor and ministry of finance (MOF) chose to joke about early this year. However, it has caused the funds remitted by Ugandans abroad, especially Baganda, doing kyeeyo to fall drastically as work becomes harder to get.  Similarly, local NGO’s and church pastors are experiencing a tough time fundraising in the USA and Europe. Many of them are collapsing or firing employees as the dollars dry up.

“The second major reason is that our exports are not seriously growing in dollar terms. Even the  recent increase in exports to Southern Sudan seem appears to have been a bubble because the Sudanese central government is now limiting the supply of dollars to the South due to political tensions.  The dollar shortage in Sudan has in turn reduced the dollars which corrupt Southern officials have been bringing into Uganda to bank or buy mansions and Buganda land.”

The third reason that the banking officer gave is Uganda official corruption and greed. He pointed out that: “Mr. Museveni’s  state house has squandered tens of millions of dollars on deals like the presidential jet, grants to fake investors like Basajjabalaba and numerous so called ‘classified’ withdraws.  When other government officials see how Mr. Museveni’s state house is stealing, they can only emulate. Over time, this unending corruption has scared the more serious investors from the local stock exchange and our government securities. In fact the weak securities markets are only surviving on laundered money which the owners are still afraid to send out of Uganda.”

The BOU employee warned that the value of the Shilling was likely to continue falling for sometime. He explained: “I think that the donors are likely to cut aid to Uganda before they  increase it, because the political situation is likely to get much worse as the 2011 elections approach.  Both the domestic and external debts are likely to get worse because Mr. Museveni is creating more districts even as we speak. He is also preparing to grow army, police and other imports before the elections.  And our FOREX reserves are not enough to allow Mutebire to support the Shilling by selling dollars.  Maybe for a few weeks.”

Below are the US Dollar exchange rates for since January (on the 20th of each month): 

It is now apparent that Uganda’s president Museveni and a few of his richest top government officials have lost touch with the reality, the biting poverty which Baganda and the rest of the Uganda population are suffering. Over the last two weeks Mr. Museveni and his Central Bank governor, Tumusiime Mutebire arrogantly bragged about how well Uganda is doing economically. They made these statements even as the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBS) and Museveni’s ministry of Disaster Preparedness issued official reports which pointed to a miserable economic and social situation. The UBS supplies statistical data  to Bank of Uganda.

According to the UBS November 2008 Economic Statistics Report: “The annual headline inflation rate for the year ending November 2008 went up to 14.9% from 14.5% in October.  Food inflation rose to 30.3% in November from 29.2% the previous month.” See for more TBD for inflation.

A National Food Security Report presented by Mr. Museveni’s own  ministry of Disaster Preparedness to MPs, ministers and donor representatives on November 26, 2008 says:  “In Karamoja, about 407,543 people require aid, while in Acholi sub-region, about one million are facing starvation…  The food shortage follows poor harvests due to a prolonged dry spell and reduction in livestock due to disease, inadequate pasture, scarcity of water and rustling… The main causes of food insecurity were environmental degradation, inter-clan conflicts, poor government policies and inadequate local government resources…  Other areas that are facing food shortage include Teso, Elgon, Lango and West Nile regions.”

Unaffected by and oblivious to the inflation pains caused by high oil prices and a weaker Uganda Shilling or the hardships that the ordinary Ugandans are facing,  Governor Emmanuel Mutebire told the 3rd National Public Dialogue on Impacts of the Global Financial Crisis: “The current economic crisis that has plunged the west into panic will not affect Uganda’s economy as most analysts have predicted. The immediate impact of the financial turmoil in the western world (on Uganda) is almost zero.”

And a seemingly incoherent Museveni, told members of  the African Parliamentary Union at Speke Hotel, Munyonyo  on November 29, 2008: “If the world is now desperate for food,  that is good for Africa. Certainly, it is good for Uganda. Europeans were not allowing us to sell them food because they had protectionism…  They put taxes and protectionist measures like subsiding their farmers within Europe,… In Uganda, we are ready.”

The contradictions between filthy rich Museveni and Mutebi and their professional employees in UBS and Disaster Preparedness points to one thing;  President Museveni, governor Mutebi and their type are totally out of touch with the economic realities in Uganda.  Clearly, even Museveni isn’t sure what is going on in Uganda.

Under international law, an agreement is legal only if the associated transaction is legal. On Tuesday October 28, 2008, President Mwai Kibaki dragged Kenya into Museveni’s long illegal campaign to give away Buganda land without authorization from Parliament, City Council or Baganda. Kibaki and Museveni signed a protocol that would give the Kitante Courts land on Yusuf Lule Avenue to the Republic of Kenya. However a prominent Ugandan historian told us that the public land in Mulago area, including the piece that Museveni gave away to Kenya, is owned by Buganda and only under lease to Kampala City Council, according to agreements made in the 1950s and before. The Kitante Courts land is currently occupied by President Museveni’s notorious and dreaded Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) organization.

If Kenya takes up Museveni’s offer, then she will be joining what many Baganda believe to be Mr. Museveni’s conspiracy to import and offer stolen Buganda land to so many foreigners that Baganda are overwhelmed and rendered too weak to fight back. Only last year, Museveni tried to take the Kitante Courts land for himself and his family by gifting it to one of his closest business associates, Sudhir Ruparelia but he dropped the transaction after it became too controversial. Mr. Museveni not only insists that Kampala is not part of Buganda but he is also pushing plans to expand it by at least 5 times in area.

A Muganda international law expert that we contacted explained that the legality of this transaction is tricky but it also smells corruption. “The smart thing for Buganda and others who may have an interest in this land to do would be to publicly register their opposition to the transaction. In particular they should petition the Kenyan government to desist from concluding this transaction ‘because the involved is stolen native lands’. And copies should be given to the UN Secretary General, members of the UN Security Council, Tanzania, etc. The question is, do Walusimbi and Makubuya have the spine to risk annoying Museveni?”

Kenya and Uganda are among the most corrupt countries in the world, according to Transparency International. Both Mwai Kibaki and Yoweri Museveni remain presidents in their respective countries thanks to massive election fraud that was proven in courts of law. And the presidents of the two countries, especially Uganda, are known to be surrounded by legendary corrupt officials. In Uganda, Mr. Museveni’s closest confidant, Patrick Amama Mbabazi is in the middle of a special investigation by Parliament where overwhelming evidence has emerged that he illegally sold his land to Uganda’s National Social Security fund so he could strengthen his own personal bank. Yes, his personal bank where his partners include the Governor of Uganda’s central bank Tumusiime Mutebire and the minister of finance Ezra Suruma.

There are not enough details on Museveni’s Kenya land giveaway yet to indicate if Mr. Museveni and Mr. Kibaki will personally benefit from the multimillion dollar transaction. It is also not clear if Kenya’s Prime Minister, Oginga Odinga, known to be friendly to Buganda, supports the controversial deal despite its potential to alienate Baganda round the world.

Kenya’s Government can be reached via the following government officials: gowuor@mfa.go.ke  or mnyambura@mfa.go.ke or jbahemuka@mfa.go.ke. or kenrep@mweb.co.za.