An email from a source close to president Museveni’s state house reveals that, since October  2009  the Ugandan dictator’s people have been struggling to put together a real plan to deal with the accelerating anti-Museveni and anti-NRM feelings in Buganda. The people who seem to be the brains behind the plan include Museveni himself, John Nagenda, Tamale Mirundi and one Mafabi. Also involved in some meetings are Museveni’s half brother Salim Saleh (Caleb Akandwanako), David Tinyefuza, David Magara, Wabudeya, Kirunda Kivejinja, Moses Kigongo, Hope Mwesigye, Robert Kabushenga, Namayanja and others.

According to the email: “A lot of experiments have been made to see how to change Baganda either through fear or love. Nothing seems to work. For example, Museveni started a tour of Buganda after the Kayunga riots with plans to give out cash to key NRM people to bribe villagers. But the tour has been terrible from last year.  Whether it is in Butambala, Kyaggwe, Bugere  or Buddu, every place the president goes Baganda have been coming in small numbers and only demanding for the opening  of CBS.  Even when state house decided to show power by having mambas go with the president to Kyaggwe the people were not impressed and only put up more pictures of Kabaka Mutebi and Nnabagereka in their taxis and shops.”

The president’s people are sort of divided according to our source.  Tinyefuza, Janet Museveni,  Magara, Otafiire and sometimes Saleh, lead the group which wants to use straight force. This group pressured the president to force Kabaka Mutebi to come to the infamous “gun on your head” Entebbe meeting late last year, where the Lion of Buganda refused to be bought. The group also claims that Museveni did not go far enough in crashing the Kayunga disturbances. Salim Saleh is also on the second side with Kivenjinja, Kuteesa, Tamale Mirundi, Mwesigye, Nagenda and others. This “divide and conquer” group prefer to isolate Kabaka from Baganda by destroying Mmengo as an institution and confusing people until the 2011 elections are over.  This team believes that if the Europeans and the USA are happy with the elections, which Museveni is guaranteed to win, Buganda will have nowhere to start.  Museveni would very much like to use force but  he also knows that Baganda youths have become too strong to let him win on force while America and Europe are watching. For now he is siding with the second team.

Our source adds: “Recently a plan was kicked off for president Museveni and Salim Saleh to soften the tone on Buganda and show respect to Kabaka Mutebi and leave people like Mirundi, Nagenda, other Baganda and even Tinyefuza or Otafiire to be the bad guys. That is why Museveni went to Kayunga (Bugerere county) and said that the county can never leave Buganda. This is the man who has been calling the county Bunyala for 6 months and stopped the Kabaka  from going there without permission from his Sabanyala. The problem for state house is that again, most peasants had boycotted Museveni’s visit. The 400 or so people at the rally were 80% schoolchildren who were brought in by lorries. And that is why the crowd was never shown on any TV stations.

“Salim Saleh did not do any better when he went to Kalisizo (Buddu county) to speak the at the funeral rites (lumbe ceremony) of Tamale Mirundi’s father. Saleh used the opportunity to claim that he wished Buganda well and was involved in the tough job of bringing Kabaka Mutebi and Museveni to together. He even asked the crowd to pray hard for him. However, the peasants were not impressed at all. They insisted that if he wants their prayers he must fist deal with the problem of opening CBS. Chaos followed when Tamale Mirundi asked local NRM officials to stand up for introduction. First they seemed to be afraid to do so and when they did, people started to boo them and call them traitors. Then Tamale tried to let a senior NRM official from Kampala to say a few words. The people told him not to do so or they (the villagers) would walk away. That is when Tamale Mirundi turned to Saleh and said ‘Afande nawe obirabye, mu gombolola zino NRM telinaamu kalulu’ (‘As you can see the NRM has no votes in these sub-counties’).”

The email from our source also says that, as part of a state house propaganda kick off, John Nagenda started his bad guy activities with his New Vision column last Saturday. In his column, he trashed the Mmengo institution, suggested that it is irrelevant and claimed that it will die. Nagenda also arranged for the Banyankore owned Luganda daily paper Kamunye to print negative stories about Kabaka Mutebi. Kamunye is a sister paper to the Red Pepper which also recently printed another Nagenda planted story saying that the NRM government was going to take over Bulange. Red Pepper was originally sponsored by Salim Saleh.

Cuban President Raul Castro headed the official welcoming ceremony for Ugandan president and dictator,  General Yoweri Kaguta Museveni. During the ceremony held at the Revolution Palace in the Cuban capital, Raul and the Uganda warlord greeted their respective delegations and later held official talks.

Also present in the dialogue was Esteban Lazo Hernandez, VP of the Cuban Council of State and member of the Politburo of Cuba’s Communist Party.

Earlier, Museveni, who arrived on Monday in Havana for an official visit at the invitation of Raul Castro, laid a floral wreath before the statue of Cuban National Hero Jose Marti at Revolution Square.

This is the Ugandan dictator’s second trip to Cuba. He visited the Caribbean island nation in 1988, when he received the ‘Playa Giron’ (Bay of Pigs) Order. From Cuba, Museveni planned to fly to Washington DC by Wednesday, to hung around and plead with the USA White House for a chance to meet President Obama. Museveni is under pressure from his wife, Janet Kataha, to secure a meeting with Obama so that she can get a chance to meet the American president. According to sources in the Uganda foreign ministry, if Obama refuses to see him, Museveni is likely to stay as late as Saturday morning  before giving up.

Cuba and Uganda established diplomatic relations on May 9, 1974. Since the beginning of Cuba’s medical cooperation in Uganda in 1980, 179 Cuban health professionals have offered their services in that country. At present, a group of voluntary workers serve as professors at the Mbarara and Kyambogo universities.

A total of 131 professionals from Uganda have been trained in Cuba, and another 50, mostly from western Uganda, are now studying in the island nation.

Following the pattern of most dictator regimes coming to an end, Museveni and his collaborators in the armed occupation of Buganda are starting to behave like grasshoppers. Getting increasing paranoid, Museveni has become ruthless in dealing with real and imagined enemies. From Betty Nambooze to Kabaka Mutebi, he is willing to be reckless in the name of survival. And like grasshoppers, the NRM top brass are now so sacred that they are starting to cannibalize each other. This is what happened in the 1970’s as Amin’s Nubians and Kakwas started to fear their own shadows.

During the last 7 days alone, three key figures in the NRM system have escaped death or been killed in what most analysts agree to be, at best, highly suspicious circumstances. The architecture of the NRM occupation of Buganda through the arbitrary decentralization system, Jaberi Bidandi Ssali, narrowly escaped death when a speeding motorcycle ran his vehicle off the road in Bunyoro. Mysteriously, the motorcycle rider and his bike both disappeared. The police commander in the area, a Munyankore named Tumusiime, insisted that although they believed that there had been an accident, they could not do anything because all the important evidence had been carefully removed. A shaken Bidandi Ssali told the local press that he was sure that some people had tried to kill him.

The same Saturday, Brian Bukenya, the son of one of Museveni’s key collaborators in the NRM occupation of Buganda, vice president Gilbert Bukenya, dies in a freak. Brian Bukenya graduated in Law from the United Kingdom before joining the Uganda occupation army (UPDF) under pressure from his father. According to sources, the vice president who is obsessed with replacing Museveni if a chance arises, wanted his son to be in the army to emulate the president’s Muhoozi Kainerugaba. Although Museveni feigned approval, a source close to state house tell us that no one in Museveni’s akazu (secret Balaalo kitchen cabinet) was amused. Key akazu figures like Salim Saleh, Jovia Saleh, Janet Kataha Museveni, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, David Tinyefuza and Sam Kuteesa all saw Bukenya’s move as a challenge. The source adds that, although it is difficult to pin down the culprits, once Brian Bukenya and his father made clear that they were bent on getting him in the Sandhurst Military Academy, his fate was sealed.

Brian Bukenya, who was reportedly born out of an adulterous relationship that Bukenya had with a friend’s wife, died when the vehicle in which he was travelling from Kabamba to Kampala overturned.  Mysteriously, the driver, who survived, told police that after the accident he became unconscious and does not know how he got from the accident scene to his sister’s house in Kibuli, an hour’s drive away. The driver, Nathan Lwanga, also insists that he was speeding because the deceased, Brian Bukenya, told him to do so.

And on Tuesday, another major contributor to the NRM armed occupation of Buganda, Maj. Gen. James Kazini died in another bizarre case. According to the Uganda occupation police force, led by Rwandese Karyekezi Kayihura, Kazini was killed by his girlfriend who struck him with an iron bar. However, Brig. Elly Kayanja one of Museveni’s most ruthless security operators insists that the story is suspect. According to our source in the Uganda’s porous security community, Kazini’s confessed killer is an ISO operative. Kayanja headed ISO about 10 years ago before he went on to form the notorious Operation Wembley.

What remains unclear is the strength of Museveni’s hand in any of the three high profile deaths of NRM diehards.  Either way, the writing appears to be on the wall. The NRM occupation army is starting to eat its own limbs, beginning with Brian Bukenya and James Kazini. And Bidandi Ssali now has a new job – watching his back. Brig. Elly Kayanja confirmed that the grasshopper syndrome has taken root when told the Uganda local press that he advises all army officers, especially senior ones, to move with their pistols on the ready.

For several days this week, a letter has been circulating on Baganda Internet discussion lists, allegedly written by Peter Sematimba, offering the NRM advice on how to weaken CBS FM Radio.  The alleged letter, which was supposed to be highly confidential, is addressed to the minister for Security in the NRM occupation government, Amama Mbabazi. It refers to a previous discussion on the subject with David Mafabi of Museveni’s state house.

Our state house sources most familiar with the activities of David Mafabi were not aware of any specific contacts between Sematimba and Mafabi. However, they confirmed that,  since the Kayunga civil disturbances, Mafabi has gotten more involved in activities to subdue Baganda. The source said: “Since the Kayunga riots, even Museveni now knows that Kabaka Mutebi could take him down, if he had enough bright and brave people in Mmengo to support him (Mutebi).  Because state house staff know that Museveni was shaken,  each one is trying to show that they have the best idea about how to isolate the Kabaka, scare the few bright and loyal Mmengo officials, strenghthen JB Walusimbi and disorganize the Baganda youth and Diaspora movements. In this environment, it would not be surprising if two money hungry people like Sematimba and Mafabi cooked up juicy deal along the lines of this letter. But I have no information to confirm it.”

On Sematimba’s part, he declined to reply to our email message, sent to the address he uses for business, info@superfmstation.com, inquiring if he could confirm or deny the letter. Calls to his radio station numbers 041- 272777 / 0782-222885 also got a “Boss is not in office” response.

On reading the anti-Buganda letter, a leading Buganda analysts based in New York,  claimed that serious Baganda should only be happy when Buganda’s enemies are exposed like this. He explained: “Many so called intelligent Baganda are still subconsciously slaves to the belief that a foreigner like Museveni or Besigye will save them. Others are equally delusional by thinking that some fast talking Muganda president of Uganda, like Abedi Bwanika or Samuel Lubega or Frank Musisi will help. Such Baganda are either ignorant or afraid to face the fact that Museveni and his Banyankore and Rwandese kin have ransacked the Uganda experiment. It  is a failed state! So, what does Uganda have to offer to Buganda anymore?”

The analyst continued: “What would stop Bwanika or Musisi from becoming a Sematimba once he gets power? The more intelligent Baganda know that a Muganda president of Uganda will have to go anti-Buganda, in order to maintain support from the other groups, who are uniformly anti-Buganda. This letter by Sematimba, is good for demonstrating that, Mulondo, Nsibambi, Bukenya, Mulwaanyamuli, Katende, Sekandi and Tamale Mirundi were not the last to betray Buganda. More like Bwanika, Musisi and Lubega are coming, only they might even be worse than Muwanga. The only way out is independence for the Buganda Kingdom. Fortunately, the younger Baganda who are the majority seem to instinctively understand it and that is why they are 100% behind Kabaka Mutebi.”

The controversial letter is reproduced in full below:

TO: The Minister for Security

Cc; David Mafabi O/P

Date: 2^nd/October/09

 RE: INPUT ON THE IMPACT OF THE CLOSURE OF FMs AND THE WAY FORWARD.

     Honorable minister, we discussed with Mr David Mafabi (office of the president) regarding the closed Radio stations, and i raised several issues with him which I present to you and may as well share with the powers that be at an appropriate time.

 First, I wish to express my reservations for the Broadcasting council for not doing enough to forestall the mess in the electronic media especially the fm stations more so in view of what befell the country .

  As much as we have endeavored to set standards at Super fm, we have been let down by our competitors who either out of fear for positive competition or deliberately for failing fulfill the requisites of professional broadcasting.

 With regard to the three closed stations, its my belief that the major protagonists are CBS and AKABOOZI while SUUBI FM is a nonentity in this jigsaw. It’s my conviction that you critically focus with CBS and AKABOOZI given their burgeoning presence in the FM industry.

Both FMs are a sister act especially with regard to violating the ethical code of conduct as per the press and journalist act 1995 and electronic media statute 1996 as well as the broadcasting council guidelines put in place for the electronic media to adhere to.

 We at Super FM can use this time of relative normalcy before the closed FM stations  are re-opened to fix the situation both on behalf of Government and the party as well as check on the activities of the broadcasting council on their part.

  Action Plan

I request that through your office you create a special desk where you can identify NRM cadres who can ably articulate party/ Gov’t issues on the air waves.

If this is implemented, am ready to offer a weekly program preferably during the day in fulfillment of this mission.  This will help us mobilize.

 Honorable, we are aware of the imposing status of these two stations and the expected new sense of belonging upon re-opening I think that there is a need to covertly reduce their influence in the industry.

 The stations will re-open with a bang and every listener will naturally want to associate with them after all this time in suspension. Its against this that if  no advance counter measures are put in place the bubble will bust  and you might not achieve the goal of their closure.

  For instance you can do this by demanding that they unconditionally shuffle various presenters in unfamiliar programs, i.e. from presenters to newscasters and vice versa.

  By so doing, you can institute an “independent” survey to rate FM stations and am positive that  the programs will be rating low after some time or/ and even most of the presenters will be disenchanted by the new set up  and may end up thinking twice.

Through this scheme, we can make amends by promoting those stations that are on the same page with the system

(e.g Super FM) and by the time they re-organize it will be after months when we have steadily set off.

  Alternatively, like we discussed with Mr. Mafabi, we can sweet talk a couple of presenters and draw them to the realization of not risking their careers and instead switch to the operating radio such as Super FM.

Personally am targeting two from CBS FM and two from AKABOOZI. For the fact I know that the management of both stations cannot agree to sack their prized presenters for the sake of re-opening them because they form the basis of their popularity.

 But I can assure you that if we cunningly implement snatching them away, it cannot take long before these presenters are beaten into line with what we want.

We has suggested with Mr. Mafabi and Tamale Mirundi that I make a presentation on the above issues so that I can give you a more practical picture on the way forward on this matter for the continuity.

Sincerely

Peter Sematimba

On September 1, 2009, Ggwangamujje NY/NJ, Inc. announced Ttabamiruka ‘10, an International Baganda conference outside Buganda, to take place over the American Labor Day holiday of September 3-6, 2010 in New York, USA.  The venue and program will be posted on the conference website, www.ttabamiruka.com.

After two highly successful conferences in 2007 and 2008, Ggwangamujje was unable to hold Ttabamiruka ‘09 because of the global financial crisis.

The official theme of Ttabamiruka ‘10 has not been decided on yet. However, the Chairman of the past two Ttabamirukas, Mr. Edward Semambya, provided some insight into the conference plans. He stated that, “Kabaka Mutebi has done a great job of providing leadership and guidance to Baganda during extremely difficult times. The Baganda in the Diaspora would like to express their gratitude to him.

Mr. Semambya continued that, “although it is still too early to talk about the program and dignitaries, Ttabamiruka ‘10 will provide unprecedented international exposure for Kabaka Mutebi and our Kingdom.”

In the meantime, Uganda-style politics threaten to cause an implosion in UNAA, as the election race for the organization’s new leaders heats up. The leading candidate appears to be the Muganda incumbent, US Army soldier, Lt. Frank (Omusese) Musisi. His opponents are Moses Wilson and Flex Kabuye, both known to have close relationships with high profile NRM officials and Uganda embassy staff. Indeed, Kabuye is brother to Brig. Kayanja, who at one time led Mr. Museveni’s brutal and extra-judicial Operation Wembly against robberies. So, very much like in it does in Uganda, the NRM is supporting more than one candidates.

Musisi has positioned himself as the an anti-Museveni Muganda candidate, which has won him strong support from Baganda all over the USA. Kabuye, on the other hand, is playing the classic NRM style politics of money. For example, according to reports from Washington DC, he secretly sponsored a major Muganda musician and then tried to use the concert as a platform to campaign. Unfortunately for him the anti-NRM faction in Washington DC commandeered the stage and nsibambed him (denied him the microphone). According to Uganda diplomatic sources in the USA, various NRM elements have sent in a total of at least $90,000 to support Kabuye and Wilson. And the NRM government plans to bring is 20-50 officials from Ugnada, to vote as instructed.

It is too early to tell where these battles will end. First of all, although Musisi appears to have the most support, Wilson and Kabuye could do a last minute deal and join supporters to help the stronger NRM to win. Then there is the issue of Mrs. Museveni, who insists on being a key speaker at the UNAA conference.  Secondly, we can report that  Ambassador Kamunanwire has openly told Musisi that the if Mrs. Museveni is not allowed to speak, the NRM government will withhold the $20,000 that it had promised to give to UNAA, as it did last year. Furthermore, under pressure from Mrs. Museveni, several major Ugandan sponsors of UNAA (UIA, URA, BOU and others) have also indicated that they may not send any money.

One problem for Musisi is that, the UNAA conference may implode for financial reasons, even before the voting takes place.  According to unconfirmed reports, Musisi is desperately looking for a way to give in and allow Mrs. Museveni speak without looking like he has been bought by the NRM. Reportedly, he cannot afford to forgo the Museveni money. If the now very angry Janet Museveni decides to play true NRM politics of betrayal, however, the end of this story might be much more dramatic than what has happened so far.

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London, UK: Stop genocide in Buganda

Dear Buganda Post,

I could not believe it when I read about how Museveni is using Tamale Mirundi to spread violence in my home county Bugerere. That man Museveni may think that we who grew up on bibanja and don’t own land are going to support his genocide programme. I want to assure our Kabaka and the people of Buganda that the people doing these things are not the true people of Buganda, whether Baganda or Banyala. These are foreigners from Bugisu, Teso, Ankole and Sudan and many of them have come during Museveni’s rule. Some like the Sudanese he even brought on lorries.  Mind you, many of the youth of these people now use Baganda or Banyala names to make sure that their own communities are not blamed for anything.

But time will come when all these people have to answer in an international court for the war crimes and the genocide type things they have done in Buganda, Northern Uganda, Congo and southern Sudan. Please Kabaka Mutebi you just continue to be strong and lead us bravely out of this Uganda mess.

Wangala nnyo Kabaka waffe.

Sarah Musisi
Muganda of Banyala origins

No city, USA: Saluting Kabaka on Tamale’s Genocide Campaign

Dear Editor,

I salute Ssabasajja Kabaka wa Buganda for his courage for being able to say something against the campaign M7 is doing through Tamale Mirundi to promote the burning of land owners in Buganda.  Even shocking is the fact that the TOP radio where Museveni and Tamale Mirundi are spreading their genocidal messages is owned by so called Pastor Jackson Senyonga of Christian Life Centre. This is the same Senyonga who was arrested for fondling a 13 year-old girl during a flight in the USA. It seems that he got out of it but the deal was never publicized.

My question is what is Katikkiro Walusimbi doing, because he listens to Tamale Mirundi saying these things too? How can he just keep quiet about these crimes against humanity in Buganda to the point that Magulu Nnyondo himself has to speak? Abaganda babookya Katikkiro ali mu kugaba nsigo za bijanjaalo?

The way M7 and his people are behaving is typical of desperate people. Like a person who is drowning and dosen’t care who he goes under with him. Every Muganda should on the alert because these are dangerous people. Let us all follow behind our Kabaka and we shall overcome. Ekikute obudde kiributa.

Wangaala Ai Ssabasajja!

David Kasozi Nsamba
USA

Undisclosed Location: UNAA President vs. Janet Museveni and Ambassador Kamunanirwe

The current UNAA leadership has met stiff resistance from within most UNAA executive board members who have joined effort with the Uganda government officials to bring the current leadership down.  They can’t stand our current President, Lt. Musisi who is determined to revive UNAA to its past glory without the interference of the foreign Ugandan government. These are the facts.

What the Ugandans in North American are asking the Ugandan government is to concentrate on the affairs at home. It should stop imposing and directing itself on Ugandan North American Association, UNAA.  For your information the Ugandan Government official was informed officially by the UNAA Leadership that won’t be able at short notice of two weeks to change the program to accommodate the First Lady, Jennet Museveni to address the UNAA convention.  It is rather humiliating that this same government official through acquaintance got Ben Abe who is NOT part of the Organizing Committee to extend an invitation to the first Lady to address the Forum at UNAA convention. This is the worst that a foreign government can do to a non-profit organization like UNAA, equivalent to coercion and manipulation. See the attached document from the Ambassador giving orders!  I think it may be time for Ugandans in the U.S. to wake and stand up against this foreign government Intervention into the affairs of UNAA!  These are the facts.

Thanks for taking action

Peace Mujimba

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Pennsylvania, USA: Promotion of Impunity, Dictatorship and Genocide in Uganda

Dear Editor,

Permit me to express my disgust regarding the increasingly deteriorating political situation currently prevailing in Uganda, more particularly in my native country and nation Buganda. For more than 23 years now, we have been closely following the political development of events back home. While we initially anticipated that the ouster of dictators Idi Amin, Milton Obote and the Okellos; subsequently with coming to power of Yoweri Museveni would be the anti-dote of the terrible dictatorships and their attendant buffoonery that had afflicted Uganda since around 1965, we are sadly coming to the realization that Ugandans just got rid of one form of dictatorship only to replace it with another fascist dictatorship.

All Ugandans will remember that Yoweri Museveni gave the “rigging of elections” as one of the reasons for his taking to the Luwero jungles where many Baganda perished. Few will disagree, however, that on the contrary, Museveni went to the bushes for only self-aggrandizement. Three elections in Uganda have been widely reported as having been massively rigged by Mr. Museveni using the Electoral Commissions, the military and Police. Two of these elections (2001 & 2006) have been publically brought to the attention of the courts of Uganda by Dr. Kizza Besigye Kifefe where it was conclusively adjudicated that these elections were massively rigged. We all remember how with the aid of Mr. Edaward Ssekandi, Yoweri Museveni manipulated and bribed the 7th Parliament with $ 2500 so term limits could be lifted for him to become the life president he is today.

In the heat of 2006 elections, an aide to Yoweri Museveni, a one Lt. Ramadan Magara, shot eight Baganda at the royal gates of Bulange. Inspite of the people’s outcry to have this murderer be brought to justice, this soldier walked scot free for close to two years, all still in the service of the Ugandan strongman. While it is reported that Lt. Magara is now in Luzira, it is more than apparent that he will soon be out on the Kampala streets gunning down again innocent Ugandans. We must remember that he was almost acquitted with a ridiculous verdict of “manslaughter” rather homicide!

Quite recently before the murders of landlords by assumed peasants began in Buganda, the Ugandan strongman was reported to have been going around with a one Tamale Mirundi and a one Lt. Bamwine in Buganda encouraging peasants to form what have been referred to as Bibanja associations. It is through these associations that Baganda prominent men and women are now reportedly been murdered.
Like it happened in the neighboring Rwanda, Joseph Tamale Mirundi is being hosted by not so-respectable but religious-based FM radio stations. Three prominent ones have been names as being TOP Radio, Radio Star and Radio Bukedde. It is through these radios that genocidal messages are being spread out by Tamale Mirundi, Lt. Bamwine and a one Luutu.

The recent brutal murders and burning to ashes of eight Baganda landlords in Buganda at the instigation of Yoweri Museveni together with his aides such as Tamale Mirundi, Lt. Bamwine, Luutu, among others, must not go unpunished. I am calling upon the international human rights organizations to seriously begin investigations into this criminality and impunity. I am also calling upon all Ugandans in the Diaspora and back at home to increase their resistance against the prevailing fascism in Uganda. The world must not just look on as yet another dictator commits genocide in Buganda/Uganda. We cannot wait to see a million Baganda butchered Intarehamwe-style for us to wake up to the terrible pogrom that is beginning to manifest itself in Buganda.

Mrs. Tara Nankindu – Musoke
Pennsylvania – U.S.A

No City, USA: Response To Dr. Abe’s Invitation Of The First Lady

Bugandapost Editor:

Currently, there is a lot of politics being introduced in UNAA, a non-profit organization. It is critical that we expose what’s happening in UNAA. Please post my article regarding what’s happening in UNAA today.

Ugandans Beware

Initially, official delegations from Uganda Government were invited to attend UNAA conventions in an effort to drum-up investment opportunities for Uganda. Today, the attendance and participation of official delegations from Uganda Government at UNAA Conventions has become almost an established rule, thereby becoming a violation of the principles under which UNAA is supposed to be run.

Case in point is Dr. Abe’s decision to sidestep the organization’s leadership and extend an invitation to the First Lady, who is also a high level NRM politician. It is not only wrong, it is regrettable. UNAA membership includes hundreds of refugees from Uganda. These refugees were forced into exile by the same people you are now asking them to applaud and embrace.  This is not only hypocritical, but also contradicts the basis for their applications for political asylum in the US.

The government of Uganda’s insistence on inserting the First Lady (a high level NRM politician in Uganda), into the UNAA Convention, is a direct violation of the principles governing UNAA, a no-profit organization.

It is therefore imperative for UNAA membership to make a stand against such actions that violate the very core of our organization. Fellow Ugandans and well wishers, the harsh realities that our brothers and sisters in Northern Uganda have endured for the last twenty years have remained buried under layers of a campaign of deception and disinformation, orchestrated by the same hypocrites who are now claiming to be the saviors of Northern Uganda (or is it the newly found oil in Northern Uganda).

In their efforts to control Ugandans in the Diaspora, they have infiltrated UNAA organization in order to introduce their politics of division and deception. These acts have far reaching consequences, with the potential of causing irreparable damage to the organization.

It is time for UNAA membership to stand up and deny Uganda politicians on open door to UNAA platform. Brothers and sisters, we must join hands in our effort to reclaim UNAA’s integrity. We cannot afford to be bystanders, but rather active participants. Together in our diverse political, ethnic, religious, professional, and other background, must unite to demand for conditions that will guarantee our freedom without any manipulation or intimidation both in Uganda and the Diaspora.

By John Mayanja          

There are signs that a still unknown group could be getting training and carrying out terror operations in Buddu county, reportedly in demand for Buganda Federo.  Since January 2009, the group has harassed or killed over 50 people around Kyanamukaaka, Kyesiiga, Kiziba, Mutondo, Bisanje and surrounding areas in Kabaka’s Buddu county.  According to local residents, the group previously dropped leaflets in the area warning area MP and Museveni confidant, Edward Sekandi, to resign as MP and speaker of parliament if he cannot support Federo for Buganda. According to reports, the victims tend to be either Banyankore or Banyarwanda, even though some use Kiganda names.

The affected areas are generally along the Masaka to Mutukula road.  Since 2006, these areas have reportedly seen an influx of money, believed to be from either Uganda government or Rwandese sources, to enable Banyarwanda to buy huge pieces of local land. In mid 2008, violence broke out when a Rwandese national bought 1.5 square miles of settled land from a Muganda and started evicting Baganda bibanja (plot) holders, making them homeless. There is a high level of frustration and anger among Baganda, especially unemployed youths, about what they see as neglect and victimization by Mr. Museveni’s government in favor of foreigners.

Both the commander of Uganda police, Kale Kayihura, himself a Munyarwanda, and Edward Sekandi, the area MP, told the government New Vision newspaper on July 10, 2009 that the night killings are the work of criminal thugs. However, neither of them could explain why in many cases the killers, who mostly use machetes (pangas) leave behind easy to carry expensive property.

According to a source close to Mr. Museveni’s state house, the president first received intelligence reports over 1 year ago that Baganda might start an insurgency against government.  The source claimed: “Except if he is pretending and it is his own terror operation, president Museveni seems to be confused about how to face Baganda armed groups on Buganda territory. Given the extreme levels of corruption in the security organizations the intelligence reaching the President, especially about the loyalty of Baganda NRMs is often faulty and misleading. For example, it appears that many local Baganda in Masaka have a lot of information, which they are not sharing with the local DISO or police because they strongly disagree with Museveni on land and Kabaka issues. Some of these NRM officials are the ones who call Mambo Baado on CBS Radio and say, ‘Tukooye abasajja!’ (‘We are fed up with these people!’). Others also feel that Museveni is going and they now want to keep their distance”.

A  New York based Muganda analyst and thought leader thinks that Baganda need more information before getting excited about this so called Baganda insurgency for Federo. He explained: “First, the tactic of terrorizing civilians in the area which is supposed to benefits from a new war has Museveni’s fingerprints all over. Many Luwero veterans have publicly admitted that the NRA used staged ‘Obote murders’ in Bulemeezi and north Kyadondo to recruit unsuspecting relatives to fight for Museveni. Therefore, I would not be shocked if this is an NRM group created to terrorize Baganda in Buddu and to trap potential volunteers. But even if it is not Museveni, one still has to ask if this could not be Acholis, Rwandese or anti-Museveni Balaalo trying to once again ‘use’ Baganda as stepping stones.”

The analyst added: “Remember that in 1995 Museveni started a policy of cutting down all forests in Buganda, even Mabira. The job to carry out the policy was assigned to Bakiga to be supervised by Kahinda Otafiire and Salim Saleh. Most Ugandans mistakenly believed that the objective was just to make money from timber. Yes, Kahinda Otafiire, Saleh and even Mrs. Janet Museveni made millions of dollars from timber but to Yoweri Museveni, the key thing was to wipe out all possible training grounds for anti-NRM forces in Buganda. Why did Museveni leave the forests in southern Buddu untouched? If he did it intentionally for future covert operations or as a possible escape route, then there is a 75% chance that the Buddu insurgency is a Museveni ‘kiwaani’ (fake) to terrorize Baganda and trap his potential enemies. If it is not, we will find out soon enough.”

We can exclusively report that the March 2009 appointment of President Museveni’s wife, Janet Kataha, to the post of Minister of State for Karamoja was never about politics. And some of the attacks against the appointment have been done by state agents to confuse Ugandans and foreign donors alike. According a source close to Mr. Museveni’s state house and familiar with the Uganda Geological Surveys and Mines department, Uganda’s strongman appointed his wife for purely economic reasons; to secure direct family involvement in the exploitation of the huge Karamoja gold deposits. On March 9, 2009 Museveni explained his wife’s ministerial appointment to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) with: “Since many of our elite ministers did not want to work in Karamoja, I asked Janet to help me develop one of the backward areas of our country.”

Our source, who requested anonymity to protect her family’s lives, wrote in an email that: “On January 17, 2009 Uganda’s first family was excited that the latest mineral survey report showed so much more gold potential in Karamoja than initially thought. The first step was to order Tuhumwire to remove Karamoja from the mineral report. [Writer’s note: Joshua Tuhumwire, who of the same ethnicity as Mr. and Mrs. Museveni, is the commissioner for geological surveys and mines].  After heated discussions, the family agreed that one of them had to be minister for Karamoja if they were to control that gold without much suspicion. Appointing the first lady minister for Karamoja was seen as the perfect solution because (1) it reduced the tension in the family and (2) as, MP her appointment would help keep Ugandans and donors focused on the political angle.”

Our source’s email further says that it was expected that, in the position of presidential advisor on defense matters, Mr. Museveni’s half-brother Salim Saleh will oversee implementation of secret arrangements to  put a security blanket over the Kaboong area, which the biggest prospects for gold deposits. Her email also points out that, “When the first lady visited Karamoja the place which received her highest attention was Kaboong, clear sign that she is 100% confident that Ugandan’s are not bright enough to see below the covers.”

The president’s family has been involved in Karamoja gold mining since the early 1990’s. According the Uganda parliament records (Ansard), in 1995 Mr. Museveni told Ugandan national assembly that:  “In Karamoja, six occurrences of gold have been identified and a Uganda registered company, Branch Energy Uganda Limited is going to spend US$7 million during the next two years on prospecting and development. Another company, Anglo-Sudan Corporation is prospecting for gold in the Mityana/Mubende area.” What Mr. Museveni did not mention, which became public information by 1996, is that Branch Energy Uganda Limited was owned by his half-brother Salim Saleh Akandwanaho, in partnership with infamous Branch Energy of South Africa.

Uganda’s subsequent invasion of Congo, a much bigger source of gold and other minerals, and negative publicity about  the Branch Energy companies seem to have convinced  the Museveni family and their  kinsmen to cut back their gold prospecting and mining in Karamoja. Today, the Uganda ruling class does not have access to Congo gold but the mineral trading and shipment network the developed remains intact.