President Uhuru Kenyatta and Chief of Defence Forces General Julius
Karangi during the Mashujaa Day Celebration 2013 at the Nyayo National
Stadium in Nairobi on October 20, 2013. President Kenyatta hit out
strongly at Western nations over the International Criminal Court
indictments. PHOTO/SALATON NJAU
By Yasiin Mugerwa The Citizen Correspondent
Posted Tuesday, October 22 2013 at 10:58
Posted Tuesday, October 22 2013 at 10:58
In Summary
Analysts think that campaign manifestos are not
entirely the basis for the many illiterate and poor voters to make
decisions because in the face of poverty, poor health facilities and
unemployment, these voters are always swayed by peripheral issues and
the fear of the unknown.
Kampala. Even in the face of tempting policies,
political analysts acknowledge that due to poor voter education,
allegations of vote rigging and high illiteracy levels, campaigns and
elections in Uganda are not normally focused on one’s agenda for the
nation. Instead, they are run on trivial matters, empty and unrealistic
promises such as a car assembly plant in Teso sub-region.
Analysts think that campaign manifestos are not
entirely the basis for the many illiterate and poor voters to make
decisions because in the face of poverty, poor health facilities and
unemployment, these voters are always swayed by peripheral issues and
the fear of the unknown.
According to Mr Nicholas Opio, a political and
legal analyst, the issues that might affect manifestos drafting and not
the voting patterns in 2016 will certainly be the social services -
roads, schools, hospitals and energy.
He says a lot of rubber rousing will also be made
about the youth because more than ever before, the demographics of the
voting population are drifting towards young voters.
“If they can be enticed to go to the ballot, they
will change the course of the election,” Mr Opio says, adding that on
regional issues, the oil-rich areas will most definitely make the case
for oil revenue sharing and attendant vagaries that come with the
industry such as displacement and environmental degradation.
There is still the question of accountability,
reconciliation and reintegration in the country. These will be key
messages, but perhaps not more important is the question of land
resources and reparations of war victims in Kasese, northern and eastern
parts, among other areas.
The eastern and Buganda question will re-emerge
with an undertone of having at least a Muganda or easterner for
President coupled with religious and cultural undertones particularly
the Catholic and Pentecostal faiths. Although these will come up, they
are unlikely to affect the elections. What might be more central and
attract attention is the role of the armed forces, especially police and
the army in elections and partisan politics.
According to the director of Anti-Corruption
Coalition Uganda, Ms Cissy Kagaba, security will only be used as means
of intimidation and insecurity during the campaigns. She says in
previous elections, violence has been meted out on the public and some
opposition candidates.
“In areas that have been affected by insecurity,
we are likely to see some presidential candidates use that as a
precursor for garnering support,” she says.
There has been a lot of secrecy and corruption in
the oil sector hence heighted suspicion among the members of the public,
something that the opposition and independents could ride on and remind
voters that the government has failed to fight graft.
President Museveni will try to use the Ebyaffe
agreement to woe voters in Buganda but Ms Kagaba says although the MoU
with the kingdom looks like bad news to the opposition, winning votes in
the region, will depend on whether the head of state holds on to the
deal.
Mr Crispy Kaheru, the coordinator of the Citizens’
Coalition for Electoral Democracy in Uganda, says the campaign
platforms of the 2016 candidates must be a reflection of the issues that
are affecting citizens by respective demographics, including gender,
age, employment status, mobility, disabilities and location.
Unlike in previous elections, Mr Kaheru says: “candidates should
be able to invest in thorough research on specific issues that affect
the citizenry and then articulate them.”
For instance, during the 2011 elections, Mr Kaheru
says presidential candidates did little research in terms of the core
issues that affect Ugandans but fortunately, civil society generated a
scientific record of the aspirations and demands of citizens by region
and interest group.
Key demands related to the need to decisively deal
with the rampant corruption, poverty, declining fortunes of
agriculture, environmental degradation, low levels of civic
consciousness, among others.
Mr Kaheru says the concerns of the public have not
shifted significantly because not many successful candidates embraced
the issues in the Citizen Manifesto.
“While from the economic lenses we see issues of
unemployment, corruption, low investment gaining greater ground, there
are growing concerns about the continuously weakening political and
state institutions,” he says.
“The 2016 election should be about nothing less than calls for complete political reforms,” the rights activist adds.
According to Mr Kaheru, many people have argued
that if the political superstructure was working right, the country
would not be in this economic and social state.
President Museveni and his supporters insist the
country has achieved the minimum economic recovery the government set
out to achieve in 1986.
Referring to the Bible, Information minister Rose
Namayanja says: “In Ecclesiastes, there is time for everything. In
leadership, there is time for politics and time to deliver and fulfill
our manifesto.”
SOURCE: THE CITIZEN
SOURCE: THE CITIZEN
