By Our Reporters
In a bid to end striking at Makerere, the current VC Prof Barnabas Nawangwe administration has deployed both the carrot and stick approach. The stick has manifested in a number of students being served with warning letters threatening expulsion (Nawangwe is lucky because his predecessor Ddumba tried this & Gen Kayihura reversed his decisions-editor). Some of these are warning letters and others are suspensions depending on the profile of one’s participation in instigating strikes. Victims have so far included students the Nawangwe administration considers ring leaders of strikes and they include David Musiri who got a warning letter dated 7th August; Sulait Gamukama, Daniel Kituno, Adit Mark Raymond, James Chombo, Dhabona Jobs, Samuel Kigula, Benjamin Alinda, Derrick Obedgiu, Kassim Njalira and Penlope Aimomugisha, a diehard Museveni supporter at campus and the NRM. Nawangwe accused them of planning a range of defiance activities during this new semester. Penelope is Musevenist but her closeness to KCCA Councilor Doreen Nyanjura of the FDC party could have prompted Nawangwe to perceive her as a defiance queen. According to Dr. Stella Nyanzi, a renowned activist,Obedgiu was recently brutally clobbered by Nawangwe-leaning security operatives as he went to campus to pick his warning letter. Ordinarily, Nyanjura should have used her big platform to speak out for the students but cannot do so because as a Council member, she is supposed to exhibit a certain degree of decorum. That’s the stick bit as far as dealing with strike-prone students is concerned.
THE CARROT;
As for the carrot, the new administration has invested in appeasing some of the would-be trouble causers among students including key members of an influential group notoriously called “Mugati Party.” These always work for the highest bidder and the clique comprises mostly of elderly students that are supposed to have finished and left campus but have been hanging around illegally long after finishing their course. There are claims that, because they have always influenced younger ones and mentored them into students’ leadership and strike culture, the new administration has used the carrot approach to woo this group and manipulate them. Some have been given obscure employment and their names put on the payroll and their work mostly is to engage in cyber warfare demonizing fellow student leaders that insist on remaining outspoken against the administration. They have also done a great job of espionage ever reporting those plotting strikes to the administration and it’s understood that it’s them who betrayed and reported some of those that have since been warned or suspended. It’s said that their grateful masters recently rewarded some of them with luxurious trips abroad and got them some temporary jobs within the University system on return. This seems to have worked as the strike movement, amongst students, remains deeply polarized and it will be harder to collectively act and organize future strikes at Makerere. Among the staff, the same approach has been used whereby those that are susceptible to being gratified have been reached out to and rehabilitated including a MASA official who colleagues say can’t say anything these days because of a recent promotion that was given to him. Divide and rule has also been deployed as seen last week when a group of Muasa members came up with a counter petition and sent it to Janet denouncing colleagues who petitioned her against the current council. They asked him to disband it but another group wrote demonizing them. Ironically Dr. Tumps Ireeta who was understood to be one of the authors distanced himself when we called him. “Have you seen my signature anywhere on that document? Why are you as a journalist putting words in my mouth? Ireeta ranted when we rang him about the authenticity of the counter petition to the Minister.
CRACKING THE WHIP;
The big headed staffers like Muasa Chairman Deus Kamunyu Muhwezi and his General Secretary Geoffrey Nuwagaba have endured reprimand and harassment by their superiors in the administration. Muhwezi can’t even count how many warning letters have been written to him by the VC Nawangwe the latest being the two page letter dated 22nd August. The letter follows a last week petition Muhwezi and Nuwagaba signed and sent to Education Minister Janet Museveni calling for the disbandment of the University Council. They said members aren’t high profile enough for the job and made reference to the Rwandeire visitation committee report. In his rebuttal, Nawangwe rebukes Muhwezi for writing such a letter and falls short of referring to him an indisciplined. He accuses Muhwezi of manipulating things because he has no mandate to represent academic staff. The VC furiously says that whereas Muasa has 2,500 members, the general assembly meeting Muhwezi quotes in his petition to Janet was attended by 15 members. The VC says the current council has achieved a lot for staff welfare and it’s an act of ungratefulness for Muhwezi to ask Janet to expel them. He implores Janet to dismiss the petition with the contempt it deserves. The letter is copied to the President, Prime Minister, Janet herself, Parliament and other stakeholders. The VC says the current council has invested in research and attracted lots of grants for research. He says the University ranking too has improved during their tenure and thanks them for investing in expanding infrastructure. Nawangwe, renowned for his iron-fisted approach, directs Muhwezi to withdraw the Janet petition and apologize to Council. He also accuses Muhwezi of promoting the confrontation approach in Muasa which won’t be tolerated by his administration. As of last evening, Muasa executive members were ina crisis meeting trying to agree on how to comprehensively respond to Nawangwe’s latest missive. There was also anxiety amidst reports that during their today Thursday sitting, Council members will be voting to expel or suspend Muhwezi and other outspoken Muasa members for their courage to stand up to the all-powerful council. Muhwezi himself circulated a message to members claiming himself and the Muasa GS were being targeted. Those making this allegation of the planned purge by Council further claimed that planning meetings took place at Piato restaurant along Lumumba Avenue. However, Council chairman the much revered Wana Etyem told this news website nothing could be further from the truth. In a phone interview, Etyem said: “Makerere isn’t operated on jungle law and mere expression of opinion is okay but let them read the law on how the council is constituted otherwise nobody can be expelled for his or her opinion.” He was unusually tough-talking and dismissed Muasa’s efforts to have vote of no confidence in council and being “idle and useless.”For comments, call, text or whatsapp us on 0703164755.
