Elias Biryabarema Weblog: Ugandans Are Zombies: Look What’s In The Newspapers!

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Ugandans Are Zombies: Look What’s In The Newspapers!

ELIAS BIRYABAREMA

Kampala--A question is often asked: why are Ugandans a passive people? Endless embezzlement scandals. Endless headlines, all that is swallowed up and life goes on. Not a finger raised. Gruesome torture by state agents is exposed, human rights are trampled, peaceful democracy rallies brutally broken up: Ugandans are unruffled.
History zooms past us. We watch it. We look the other way.

What is it about us that tethers us to our stations, makes us docile and disables our spirit to protest injustice and squarer up to our adversaries?

The answer to that question is in the sort of newspapers that we consume daily. The media is supposed to report on the world around us, place us in a firmer understanding of it and urge us to work to make it better, right? Well, if that’s the case then Uganda’s newspapers have misfired all along and are way off the mark!

Working in the media, I am supplied a free copy of a daily newspaper. However on weekends, I, without fail, buy myself copies of Daily Monitor and other papers when my budget can allow.

If I had a thousand shillings in my pocket for the day and I was presented with a stark choice of a lunch meal and a newspaper, I am not sure I would not agree to starve and feed my mind instead. That’s how deep I love newspapers: I live and depend on them, they nourish and keep me going. And that has nothing to do with my media work, were I a doctor, I would still be just as fanatical about stuff of news. Every day when I wake up I yearn and seek to have a tighter grasp of my world and how it shapes my destiny and what I can do to influence the course of things for a better future both for me and mankind.

This is pretty much the routine of every average citizen. Every day people wake up, curious, yearning, and eager to know what happened yesterday and what to make of it, how it will affect their lives and their world. Every sunrise should bring new knowledge, by sunset every one aspires to know more than he did when pulled out of his bed.

Newspapers have a duty to satisfy a big part of this human yearning.
And yet it has become almost impossible to find any insightful news or intelligent commentary in our newspapers these days.

The result: a placid, malleable society.

Don’t blame Ugandans for letting President Museveni do whatever he wishes with this nation. Blame the wimpy newsmen and our mediocre elite who spew out incoherent and spineless commentary on our OP-ED pages which, instead of enlightening, leaves readers confused and foolish.

Everyday, you pick up a copy of Daily Monitor, New Vision or Weekly Observer, pore over page upon page, cover to cover, and feel an astonishing emptiness about these papers.

Important news is never given any clear meaning or perspective that goes beyond the echo-chamber-style reproduction of what subjects tell reporters. That humdrum and mindless way of reporting news has completely buried useful journalism in this country and with it, society.

Annoyed and disappointed, you rifle past newspages and race on to the OP-ED space where you expect to stumble upon a decent and well reasoned commentary and what meets your eyes: poorly written opinions with clumsy arguments on uninspiring subjects.

There was a particularly ridiculous piece in one of our dailies on Oct 18th by a PhD academic at Makerere University, Mr. Augustus Nuwagaba. Good governance, he laboured, is essential for poverty eradication!
An average primary seven pupil would tell you that.
It was the most thoughtless and prosaic assertion I have read in recent years. I sensed he wanted to show how Museveni’s disastrous government was nudging Ugandans into destitution. But because he couldn’t summon enough courage to say what he really meant, his piece ended up a dull and derisive read.

Upon reading it you got an exact sense of the sort of arguments and opinions that should clearly never be entertained in Ugandan newspapers’ precious OP-ED space. There’s absolutely nothing
new to learn from there, no fresh ideas to invigorate any one’s mind.

The other problem that ails Kampala’s newsmen and commentators is the sheer cowardice that infects everything that they serve us every morning. Newspapers exist to report the truth and help people understand that truth. For that to happen, news must be reported in clearest, boldest, the most point black and candid language possible. But with Kampala papers’ zealousness to please and be polite to everybody, no one ever gets a grasp of what’s right and what’s wrong and no paper has seemed willing to help. The same grovelling and politically-correct language shows up in all the opinions printed daily.

So, if we may ask again: why are Ugandans an indifferent lot? It is because of the newspapers they buy and read every morning.

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Corruption dossier, starting Oct 25th 2007.

1. “Mukula, Muhwezi Trial Resumes.” It was reported by DM today, Oct. 29, 2007 that the trial of the above in the High Court (prosecuted by the IGG) had resumed after months of investigations. They are accused of misappropriating money that was meant for immunisation of children. The money had been donated in 2004 by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation, Gavi. Muhwezi is accused of illegally requisitioning Shs. I billion, he also could not explain the whereabouts of Shillings 774 million which was withdrawn on his instructions from Citi Bank between March 2004 and May 2005. He was also accused of stealing another Shs.214 million. He’s also jointly charged with Capt. Mike Mukula for illegally requisitioning Shs.263 million. The two also allegedly embezzled 210 million claiming they spent it on advocacy conferences organised under the office of the First Lady. continued, 2. “National Drug Authority (NDA) in Shs500 million Cash Scam.” Daily Monitor reported on October 25th, 2007 (page 4) that a special audit of NDA by the Auditor General had unearthed an embezzlement of $232,000 which the paper said was equivalent to 401,360,000 Shillings. However the figure contradicted what was in the headline. Nevertheless, the money, it was reported had disappeared in duplication of receipts and non-receipted of payments. Continued, 3. “Government to Forgive Tri-Star, Basssajja, Phoenix debts.” It was reported on Wednesday, October 24th, 2007 in Daily Monitor (front page) that the government had planned to write off a debt amounting 1.6 trillion Shillings in bad loans advanced to various businessmen under President Museveni government. Among the beneficiaries of the “debt forgiveness,” include Vellupilai Kananathan and his collapsed Tri-Star Apparels company (20 billion) Hassan Basajja Balaba of Basajja Balaba Hides & Skins(Shs.34 billion), Yuichi Kashiwada of Phoenix Logistics (5.7 billion) and Mr Mwebesa of BM Technical Services based in Mbarara. Continued, 4. “State House Offers Karim $4 Million Bail Out.” DM reported on 23rd March, 2007 that State House had ordered the Ministry of Finance to give Mr. Karim Hirji, $ 4 million (translated into Shs.7 billion) to enable him finish his Royal Imperial Royal Hotel in time for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. But that hotel is a private enterprise and there was no explanation on why the government should invest in a private company. Continued, 5.“US Firm Paid 2bn To Edit Museveni, Kutesa Letters,” It was reported by the Weekly Observer on 23rd August, 2007 that the Ministry of Finance (directed by Museveni) had paid a total of at least Shs.2 billion to a US firm, the Whitaker Group, belonging to US’s ex Assistant Trade Representative for Africa, Ms Rosa Whitaker. The money was allegedly for services rendered to the Ugandan government including writing letters for Museveni and Kutesa to the US media, facilitating meetings between Museveni and business executives and similar other silly issues. Continued, 6.“Butera Grilled for Hiring Private Lawyers in Besigye Case,” Daily Monitor Reported on August 2nd, 2006 that the Parliament’s Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee on the previous day had grilled the Director of Prosecutions, Mr Richard Butera on why he spent a colossal Shs.2.5 billion ($1.38 million) on a private law firm (Kampala Associated Advocates) to prosecute Dr. Kiizza Besigye in a treason case. The private firm was hired in May 2006. The story said the money was larger than the Directorate of Public Prosecutions entire annual wage bill. Continued, “Govt could lose Shs.13 billion invested in Munyonyo,” DM reported on December 1st, 2007 that the government stood to lose $7.5 million (then estimated at Shs.13.3 billion) it had injected in Sudhir Ruparelia’s Munyonyo Commonwealth Resort, an extension of Speke Resort and Conference Centre (Munyonyo) to acquire a 25% equity in Meera Investments Limited, MIL, which owned the Resort. The story quoted the Auditor General’s report for the year ended June 30th, 2006 as saying that while the government had allegedly been given 25% equity in MIL, it was never issued a certificate of shareholding neither were the company’s legal documents revised to reflect the new shareholding structure. Commonwealth Resort (series of presidential suites) was constructed to host Heads of Government attending the Chogm2007 in Kampala. The deal between government and MIL was entered into on March 19th, 2006. The AG said the government just paid the money based on Bills of Quantities drawn by independent consultants and were never independently verified by government. continued, “Go slow on corrupt officials, MPs told,” DM reported on November 28th, 2007 that a government proposal to have NRM MPs stop toughening on government accounting officers who appear before parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, PAC had been rejected by a meeting convened by the Prime Minister’s office. According to the story the Prime Minister’s Office had summoned NRM MPs on November 20th for a discussion on getting them to soften a bit on accounting officers who fail to fully account while appearing before PAC. The proposal was tabled by the NRM Chief Whip, Ms Kabakumba Masiko but it was roundly rejected by the MPs. continued, “Museveni son-in-law bags Shs 640 million,” DM reported in November 2005 that a company, Terp Group belonging to President Yoweri Museveni’s son-in-law Mr. Odrek Rwabogo had been paid $350,000 (equivalent of 640 million then) by the government through the ministry of tourism in connection with a project to promote Ugandan on a CNN programme, Inside Africa. The story quoted Dr Sam Nahamya the PS of Tourism Ministry as saying the decision to award the contract to Mr Rwabogo without any open bidding as required by Uganda’s public procurement laws had been “made by politicians.” Continued, Daily Monitor Reported on Wednesday September 6th 2006 that the then Kampala Town Clerk, Mr James Ssegane had been interdicted on allegations of embezzling Shs. 1.8 billion. The Permanent Secretary of Local Government, Mr Vincent Ssekono was quoted as saying that investigations by the police into allegations of mismanagement of public funds by some KCC staff had revealed that Shs 1.8 billion had been stolen. Then on September 10th 2006, Sunday Monitor carried a Front Page Comment on Ssegane’s interdiction. Citing a tally of all the reported monies siphoned out of the KCC accounts in the “Cheques Scam” orchestrated by Ssegane and his accomplices (junior officers in KCC), the Comment put the final figure of stolen funds at Shs 5 billion. The Comment also referred to allegations voiced by some of the implicated officials in KCC as saying that the money was used in the 2006 presidential and parliamentary elections signalling that the scam could have involved high-level collaboration. Ssegane was never convicted. continued, “Shs2.2bn Bwebajja hotel Chogm deal under probe by Parliament,” Daily Monitor reported on December 29th 2007 that parliament had unearthed a scum in which the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Sam Kutesa had diverted Shs 2.2 billion from the Commonwealth Heads of government Meeting (Chogm) budget and given it to the proprietor of Bwebajja Hotel to complete it ahead of Chogm in November. However, according to MPs probing the scandal, Bwebajja was never meant for Chogm delegates and the hotel itself was actually opened shortly after the Chogm meeting. Secondly, the government can not spend public funds in a private business. Even then the whole deal was executed without parliamentary approval. Foreign Affiars PS claimed that the Shs 2.2 bn was to be converted into equity in the hotel but didn’t present any documentary evidence.

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Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Ugandans Are Zombies: Look What’s In The Newspapers!

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Corruption dossier, starting Oct 25th 2007.

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