The Uganda government owned New Vision newspaper of January 2, 2009 reported that the Buganda Government has decided to avoid any future confrontation with Mr. Museveni’s government. The New Vision quotes the Katikkiro of Buganda, in his New Year message, telling the kingdom: “As for the relationship between Mengo and the central government, we should avoid any more confrontation because we are all Ugandans who must learn to amicably solve our differences.” The story is attributed to Josephine Maseruka and Eddie Ssejjoba.

According to the New Vision, Katikkiro Walusimbi made these statements at the annual New Year Nkuuka festival, which Kabaka Mutebi and Nnabagereka Nagginda attended. However, a Buganda Government source who attended the festival has told this reporter by phone that the New Vision is intentionally twisting words to send the message that Mengo has surrendered and Baganda nationalist must give up.

The source, who does not want his name disclosed to avoid retaliation, said: “As expected Walusimbi and a few other Mengo ministers said things that sounded like intended to please Museveni. In fact some of us were annoyed but decided to be polite. But they did not talk surrender, which is the message that the Uganda government is using New Vision to spread to non-Baganda and Baganda who live overseas. How can anyone sensible decide to avoid any future confrontation with a Museveni whose way of life is conflict and confrontation? How could Mengo avoid all confrontation when they still oppose the Regional Tier arrangement and Mr. Museveni’ s latest land laws? Are you not surprised that the Luganda Bukedde, which is also published by New Vision did not report what Walusimbi, Mayiga or Makubuya said?”

Click here to read the full New Vision story.

The host and live audience of last Saturday’s Mambo Baado, the popular town-hall style radio program on CBS Radio were quite embarrassed when rebuked by Betty Nambooze for discussing European football during a time of crisis in Buganda. Nambooze, who claimed to be coming straight from a hospital bed put the host, Ssozi Kaddu Mukasa, and his live audience to task to why they were pre-occupied with football scores at a time when Ssabasajja Kabaka Mutebi’s movements in his kingdom were being restricted by Mr. Museveni.

Nambooze, who looked both unwell and sad, told the listeners in Luganda, “Fellow Baganda, I am sick and I was in a hostpital bed, on IV drip, when I decided to switch on and listen to Mambo Baado. Obviously I expected the discussion to be about serious issues affecting Buganda such as the crisis that was created by those who barred Kabaka Mutebi from visiting his people in Buluuli, which is part of his kingdom. When I heard sports, I could not stay in bed.”

“How could you have chosen to make sports more important than the siege that Buganda and Kabaka are under?” Nambooze pointedly asked Kaddu Mukasa. The host claimed that it is the producers who chose the topic but many in the audience, who were now cheering Nambooze, seemed unconvinced. After Nambooze told the crowd that she was disappointed by the poor leadership shown on the Buluuli crisis but was returning to the hospital to have the drip reattached, the audience started to leave. It was not possible to establish by the time of this posting if the management of CBS could have intentionally chosen the topic of sport to appease Mr. Museveni.

In a related development, Katikkiro JB Walusimbi, spent the weekend conducting Rotary Club business. During the same time when Nambooze left a hospital bed to go and guide Buganda on the seriousness of Mr. Museveni’s decision to restrict Kabaka Mutebi’s freedom of movement in Buganda, Katikkiro Walusimbi was in Wobulenzi, Bulemeezi County, to open a new Rotary Club branch. At the ceremony, Katikkiro Walusimbi called upon the branch members to work very hard for the success of their organization and to promote volunteerism. He did discuss Mr. Museveni’s restrictions on Kabaka Mutebi’s on traveling to Nakasongola, less than 50 miles away from the ceremony venue.

Rotary Club International is a volunteer organization that is headquartered in the United States. Its popularity among both and the corrupt citizens of Uganda is largely due the opportunities it provides for local clubs to attract funds from wealth foreign clubs in Eu. Prominent members of Rotary in Uganda include former minister of health in Mr. Museveni’s government, Jim Muhwezi, who is infamous for misapprorating millions of dollars in public funds.

A source in the Uganda Media Centre, has told this reporter that one of the best known Baganda clan leaders is the main author of Namwatulira, a pro-Museveni propaganda column in a government owned newspaper. The same clan leader is reported to have been on Museveni’s payroll, on and off, for many years. The Namwatulira column is specifically designed to send subconscious level messages to Baganda to always be moderate and patient when dealing with Mr. Museveni. From time to time it pretends to speak against government decisions on Buganda while also consistently painting Mmengo as unreasonable. Indeed, over the past several months it has been softly promoting negotiations and reconciliation between President Museveni and Kabaka Mutebi.

According to the source, “This elder has a long history in the journalism field. The problem is that he is permanently faced with major financial problems due his show-off lifestyle. President Museveni noted these weaknesses in the early 1990s and recruited the gentleman elder to spy on Mmengo and Banda and to quietly push for government’s position on things like Butikiro and Regional Tier. His busiest and most profitable time was when Muliika was the Katikkiro. Because he is much discredited among ordinary Baganda, especially since Katikkiro Ssemwogerere left, writing Namwatulira is now his primary way to earn his state house income, via the government paper.”

In a move that could be the first indication that President Museveni of Uganda might be prepared to use physical force against the Kabaka of Buganda, on October 8, 2008, Uganda’s heavily armed anti-riot police ready with teargas stopped Kabaka Mutebi from visiting the Buluuli Ssaza (county) Headquarters in Nakasongola.  Kabaka Mutebi was scheduled to preside over the 46th Buganda Independence anniversary celebrations which this year had been planned for Buluuli County. Buluuli is one of Buganda’s 18 counties. And it is in Buluuli that, a few years ago, President Museveni created  an anti-Kabaka “new” kingdom headed by a “Sabaruli”. Museveni’s current Sabaruli is called Mwogezi Butamanya.

It is not clear when president Museveni gave the final order to stop Mutebi.  However, according to a Uganda  police source who spoke on condition that her name not be revealed, Mutebi  had to be blocked because President Museveni and his people were shocked by the huge crowds of Baganda and Baluuli which greeted Kabaka Mutebi in Kakooge and Migyera towns. And because of the unexpectedly strong extremely well received speeches which Mutebi made at Migyera. There, Mutebi warned his subjects, in a very tough tone, to keep a sharp eye on and reject those who want to create confusion and divide the people of Buganda. Telling them, “It is terrible that certain individuals are working hard to divide my people, after the impressive progress we have made towards unity.”

This reporter’s police source revealed that the possibility of stopping Kabaka Mutebi from celebrating Buganda’s independence in Buluuli has been discussed by Museveni and his men for a long time.  According to him, every passing year Mr. Museveni has been getting more frustrated that the crowds at Buganda’s October 8th independence celebrations  keep swelling and his own Uganda independence event on October 9th keeps shrinking.  That is why they agreed to help Butamanya and Mukasa Muruli, former Museveni’s minister, coach Baluuli youths to organize a fake demonstration against Mutebi’s presence in Buluuli. “Mukasa Muruli and the youths were supposed to make a lot of noise, even threaten Kabaka, to give the police a pretext to stop the ceremonies if it became necessary.“ The source identifies the key plotters to include Ruhakana Rugunda, Kale Kayihura , David Tinyefuza, Buganda, Alfred Bitwire, Magara of Rapid Response Unit and minister Freddie Ruhindi plus district chairman Wandira and  RDC Masekera.  Museveni and his state house staff have been frequent briefed consulted on strategy and key decisions.

In a statement, Mr. Museveni’s minister for security Dr Rugunda blames it all on Kabaka Mutebi. He claims that it is Katikkiro JB Walusimbi who first expressed fears about the safety of Kabaka Mutebi in Buluuli to government. Then he (Rugunda) had confirmed that the threat was real and serious and communicated it to Walusimbi. By press time, this reporter had not confirmed if Rugunda is, this time, telling the truth. The situation has been more confused by reports in a foreign owned, Uganda government censored local paper that JB Walusimbi along with Buganda Attorney General Apollo Mabuya met with Ruhakana Rugunda, Freddie Ruhindi and Kale Kayihura on Monday, where the Mmengo officials were ordered to call off Kabaka Mutebi’s trip to Buluuli.

If Walusimbi and Makubuya met Ruhakana and Kayihura as reported, it is clear that their meeting was made irrelevant by Mutebi when he bravery decided to drive to Buluuli, in a convey of 40 motor vehicles, some carrying mattresses and other presents for his impoverished subjects. Most Baganda are strongly opposed to the frequent and often secret meetings that Katikkiro JB Walusimbi holds with President Museveni and his point people.

Betty Bakireke Nambooze has promised her listeners that the fight by her Civil Education Committee for Buganda’s land and human rights will soon be stepped up. She explained that the relative quiet that followed the illegal kidnap and captivity of herself, Lubega Sseggona and Peter Mayiga was only a tactical withdraw. The Civic Education Committee was appointed by Ssabasajja Kabaka, Muwenda Mutebi, with Nambooze as its chairman.

Nambooze made the remarks last Tuesday on the weekly CBS Radio FM talk show program Kiriza oba Gaana (Agree or Disagree). Earlier this week Buganda Post carried an exclusive report about the financial challenges the Nambooze and her committee were facing in continuing their work. During Kiriza oba Gaana, Nambooze said that they had made the tactical withdraw to give the Government campaign to sell the Land Act amendments fail by itself. She said (our translation), “We have given the other side a chance to sell their story but most people can see, no one is buying. So we are coming back soon to bring the truth to you again, and teach you what it really going on.”

Nambooze’s statements came only days after similar declarations by another Buganda official who was kidnapped and kept in captivity in August, 2008, Medard Lubega Sseggona (Lubega Sseggona Vows To Keep Fighting for Buganda). It is still not clear if there is any connection between the statements by the two popular Buganda rights advocates and the evidence that CBS Radio management is taking its orders from President Museveni’s government.

About a month earlier CBS Radio management and Katikkiro Walusimbi tried to discontinue Betty Nambooze’s programs, only to be stopped by Ssabasajja Kabaka himself. More recently, CBS management caved to the demands of Museveni’s minister, Amama Mbabazi, and refused to air live a program where his political opponents Jim Muhweezi and Kahinda Otafiire were to appear on September 28, 2008. Katikkiro Walusimbi has even appointed a special “internal censor” of CBS programs, Cambridge University trained Haj. Mustafa Mutyaba, to make sure that Mr. Museveni’s expectations are generally met by what is broadcast.

On August 6, 2008 Mr. Museveni’s government kidnapped Nambooze, together with Peter Mayiga, Buganda Minister of Information and Lubega Sseggona, Buganda Deputy Minister of Information. The three were illegally held for nearly a week until a judge ruled the detention to be illegal captivity. Originally the government claimed that the trio, together with others, had plotted to prosecute war against Uganda but when take to court, they were only charged with sedition.

Dear Maama,

Muliyo mutya nnyabo since we spoke on the phone. Ffe tuli bulungi. The holiday season is winding up and the pace at work is starting to pick up as the weather gets cooler and everyone runs out of vacation (leave) days.

The big thing that happened this week is that shocking story in the Red Pepper about some people planting a bomb at Bulange to get Namunswa. I don’t know if Kazibwe started bringing you printouts of Sekanyolya and Buganda Post. But we have read Buganda Post.com that the whole thing was probably a hoax by the government to create deniability for them selves in case violent events take place. Anyway please make sure to tell fellow Baganda about this evil game and warn them.

On something else. I hope Namu told you how the Ttabamiruka meeting of 2008 went. Maama, I cannot tell you how great this year’s meeting was. Absolutely you must come next year. It will be in Boston and your friend’s daughter might be one of the organizers, I don’t know yet. But in New Jersey, we made it very clear that we are “tired” of being afraid of Banamawanga in our own Buganda. I am sure that you will be happy to read our resolutions. One of them tells the whole world that we stand by Ssabasajja and drop all “butitiizi”. Your friend “madam teacher” Nambooze was a big hit even though some ministers in Mengo sabotaged her visa and she failed to come. But her video message showed what a brave woman she is. It made many of us cry. Kyanjo, Betty Kamya and Muliika really delivered. Museveni’s Nankabirwa and Tamale Mirundi were left speechless. That is why people even started discussing about setting a Buganda Government in exile, to focus on saving Kabaka Mutebi and Buganda who are victims of the cowardice and corruption of certain people you know at Mengo.

Tell Kazibwe to go to the web café and print you a copy of our resolutions from BugandaPost.Com.

I know that you will complain if I don’t say something about your “tall boyfriend” Obama. BO is doing very well now but he was really shaken by the excitement that vice president candidate Sarah Pelin brought to the Republican side. Pray for him because things change very first here. For example, in just a few days this huge economy of ours has gone into total panic and we don’t know where it will end. By the way both our neighbors have lost their Wall Street jobs. I hope you remember Schumer as well as the Rubinos. Even fellow Baganda whom you might know have been affected, please pray for them.

Let me stop here and wish you a great weekend. I might even call you on Sunday. Don’t forget the medicine as well as the Centrum. Tell Kazibwe and everyone else that we love them.

Tusabire nnyo Kabaka ne Buganda.

Loving son

JSM

On September 16, 2008, Uganda’s parliamentary committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises heard that the Uganda National Social Security Fund (NSSF) received title to about 50% of the land that it bought from Kampala businessman, Amos Nzeyi and security minister Amama Mbabazi. One John Busungu of Geomap Surveyors, who were contracted by NSSF to survey the land, testified to the committee that the land titles for Plot 12 and Plot 20, representing 249.94 acres out of a total 463.87 or just over 50%, were still in the names of Amos Nzeyi. Mbabazi and Nzeyi sold the land, located at Temangalo, Busiro County, at a whopping US $15,000 per acre.

The NSSF contracted Geomap Surveyors to survey the land prior to completing the deal. Musungu informed the committee that after surveying the land, he had warned the NSSF that the land was mostly a swamp. However, according to him, NSSF officials told him that the swamp and marsh was OK since they could serve as a green belt in their housing projects.

The controversial land sale by Nzeyi and Mbabazi to NSSF is under investigation by parliament because of allegations that it was rife with corruption and influence peddling, especially by influential Banyarwanda and Bakiga government officials. Mbabazi is a Mukiga from Rukungiri in Kigezi. According to the evidence presented so far, bidding for the land was not open, thus violating the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (PPDA) law. Ezra Suruma, another Mukiga, Minister of Finance and co-owner of a commercial bank with Mbabazi, is reported to have authorized suspension of the PPDA law.  A government valuer also reported claims that the land was grossly overvalued, especially since much of it is swamp and marshes.

In another twist, President Museveni jumped into the fray earlier this week. Museveni intervened to support Amos Nzeyi, referring to him as a private businessman who cannot be blamed for simply selling his property. One Kampala political analyst sees Museveni’s support for Nzeyi expected in these times of unlimited government arrogance. He told this reporter, “Museveni and Nzeyi go way back over 10 years when they worked together to cheat Ugandan share holder in the Pepsi Cola bottling company and take it over without investing anything. On that, add the fact that he is a Munyarwanda.”

Buganda Post has learnt that the United States Embassy in Uganda was not responsible for Betty Nambooze’s failure to travel to the USA and participate in Ttabamiruka ’08 on August 28, 2008. Nambooze and the USA Embassy visa officials were apparently victims of the visa scam which was setup by Mmengo officials, Ahmed Bamweyana and Kaddu. Buganda Post first broke the story of Bamweyana’s US visa scam on September 6, 2008 (see “Visa Scam Brewing at Mmengo”). Betty Nambooze is the chairman of Kabaka Mutebi’s Central Civic Committee, responsible for educating Baganda about thier land and civil rights.

A source very close to Betty Nambooze explained the situation to Buganda Post as follows, “Once certain Mmengo officials confirmed that Ttabamiruka would take place in 2008, they spread the word around that Mr. Bamweyana and Mr. Kaddu were responsible for helping people to get USA visa to the conference. The emphasis was obviously on the visa, for which they charged 3,000 or more dollars. In the case of Nambooze, they went to her in Namirembe hospital, shortly after release from Government captivity, and volunteered to complete and submit a visa application on her behalf. The unsuspecting Nambooze quickly agreed because she thought that Bamweyana was one the Buganda government officials who were close to the Kabaka. And both Bamweyana and Kaddu assured her that they were working in coordination with the Ttabamiruka organizers.

Nambooze did not find out that there was no connection between Bamweyana and Ttabamiruka until around August 15, 2008, when the conference organizers told her that they could not understand why she was involved with Bamweyana and Kaddu at all. She quickly confronted Bamweyana and Kaddu, who admitted that they were not representing Ttabamiruka but just helping. They informed Nambooze that she could go for a special visa interview on Monday the 18th. Bamweyana and Kaddu took Nambooze to the USA embassy for the interview as promised but they also brought along about 13 other people who had paid their US $3,000. What happened at the embassy was pure confusion, as the embassy officials seemed to be clearly unprepared for the big number of people, with so many stories.  It is not clear why and how but it seemed that Bamweyana and Kaddu somehow had some control on how things took place. And in the end, Nambooze, who was the expected major speaker at Ttabamiruka ’08, was denied a visa. Yet, some phony applicants, claiming to be presenters, etc., got visa but never even went to the Ttabamiruka conference.”

On Nambooze’s part, she confirmed by telephone that the story about her and the USA embassy being coned is true in its facts. However, she clarified that she was not asked for $3,000 or other money herself, a sign that the con artists probably had mixed interests. She also indicated that she was not in any way involved in writing letters to American senators, if such letters were ever written.

Currently available information suggests that the USA embassy did not knowingly participate in the $3,000 per visa scam and the improper denial of Nambooze’s visa application. If anything, they were probably victims of the scam themselves since it could embarass them. Buganda Post was informed that after learning of Nambooze’s visa denial, the Ttabamiruka organizers spoke to their New Jersey senator, who wrote a letter the USA Ambassador to Uganda, Steven Browning (shown in picture), requesting assistance for Nambooze. It appears though that the senator’s letter might have arrived too late to help. Ahmed Bamweyana and Kaddu seem to have successfully stopped Nambooze’s trip, fooled the US Embassy, pleased the Mr. Museveni’s State House and made at least $30,000 in the process.

From the time Buganda rejected Mr. Museveni’s plan to introduce the Regional Tier system and an elected Katikkiro in the kingdom, the Ugandan president has orchestrated a multi pronged “scorched earth” campaign to destroy Buganda. The writing is on the wall for all with eyes to see.

First, Mr. Museveni is reported to have invested millions of United States dollars in getting rid of Katikkiro Muliika, mostly in bribes to current and former Mmengo officials and a few clan leaders to undermine Muliika.  Then he opened the Land Act amendment onslaught, combined with the ferrying of thousands of armed Balaalo and foreigners onto Buganda’s native public lands (9,000 square miles). He even went ahead started publishing an official government  map of Uganda which name Kigezi, Bunyoro, Acholi, Busoga, etc. but identify Buganda as “central region”.  This column has reliably learnt that Mr. Museveni’s extensive network among Buganda opinion leaders also helped him to covertly get Engr. J. B. Walusimbi become Katikkiro. So, it is not by accident that Engr. Walusimbi’s appointment was much praised by Museveni, his vice president Bukenya and his prime minster Nsibambi or that Museveni strongly supports Walusimbi’s unpopular plans for Kabaka/Museveni negotiations and for mortgaging Kabaka’s Lubiri to dubious Ugandan and foreign investors.

But probably the most dangerous aspect of Mr. Museveni’s 2 year anti Buganda campaign is his use of government resources to build anti-Buganda feelings, even hatred, among other Uganda communities. For about 5 years he has used Mukasa Muruli, Atwooki Kasirivu, Kahinda Otafiire, David Tinyefuza,  Ofwono Opondo and other agents to fan hatred, which, if ignored could lead anti-Baganda genocide. He has created artificial kingdoms within Buganda to undermine Kabaka Mutebi. And more recently, he seems to be constructing a Bunyoro-Busoga-Ankole axis to fight Buganda (See “Some Basoga Scared of Museveni’s Cows“).

So, the question is, could Mr. Museveni’s 2 year campaign to demonize Baganda and make them vulnerable to genocidal attacks have a positive side?  The answer is, yes. First, and most important, Kabaka Mutebi can no longer be misled by compromised officials at Mmengo that Mr. Museveni loves Buganda, as it happened with Regional Tier deal. Second, tens of thousands of Baganda youth who now have little else to lose are now fully committed to protecting Buganda. And the more intelligent among Baganda in the diaspora are also fired up to invest in the future of their motherland.

Thanks to Mr. Museveni’s relentless effort to push Buganda against the wall it is also now evident that Baganda, starting with those living overseas, are starting to define their own agenda for the future. And this agenda is no longer about Federo, LC 5 or Regional Tier. It is about fundamental human rights for to self-determination.

This columnist argues that without Mr. Museveni’s intense 2 year campaign against Buganda, historical milestones like the massive Bulange demonstrations against the arrest of Nambooze, Mayiga and Lubega or the resolutions passed by Baganda at Ttabamiruka ’08 would not have come to pass.  Born out of Mr. Museveni’s program to destroy Buganda is the new Muganda: bold, fed up, loyal to Kabaka, proud of clan and ready to accept nothing but freedom to self-determination. This Muganda is walking around in Kampala, Masaka and Nagalama by the thousands. And the same Muganda recently attended Ttabamiruka ’08 by the hundreds and resolved that Baganda must never beg for anything from Mr. Museveni again. Sounds like a positive side to me.

In addition to giving the late Kyabazinga of Busoga Henry Mulooki a state funeral and declaring a public holiday in his honor, President Museveni has dished out at least 11 cows to each of the eleven hereditary Busoga chiefdoms: Bugabula, Bulamogi, Kigulu, Luuka, Bukono, Busiki, Bugweri, Bukooli, Bunya, Bunyole and Butembe. Mr. Museveni “generosity” has excited many Basoga, who now are among the poorest and most backward populations in Uganda. At the same time, it has upset the more educated ones who, like most political analysts in Uganda, see it as a transparent case of mass bribery and arrogance.

One banker, a staunch supporter of FDC’s Abdu Kantuntu (MP for Bugweri), told this reporter that many educated Basoga in his circles are outraged that, after impoverishing Basoga to the bone, President Museveni is exploiting the death of their leader to dupe them into supporting his schemes. The engineer accused Mr. Museveni of using Mulooki’s death as an excuse to bribe heavily in Busoga,  ahead of the 2011 elections.  He also alleged that Museveni also has a program, spearheaded by Kirunda Kivejinja, to get  a new Kyabazinga who is willing to work with Bunyoro two create a Bunyoro-Ankole-Busoga axis against Buganda. “If you listen to the Government controlled media you will soon start hearing about Basoga and Banyoro being the same people. All in the name intimidating Buganda”, the banker claimed.

The late Kyabazinga of Busoga who died on September 1, 2008, was given a state funeral  by President Museveni.  And the date of the funeral, Monday September 8, 2008 was declared a public holiday at a short notice, inconveniencing scores of business and citizens. These actions seemed illogical to many Ugandans this reporter spoke to because the Kyabazinga was not a national leader and Mr. Museveni is on record, many times, saying that African traditional leaders are of little value.