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. “

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.