By Dr. John Mary Odoy
Ugandans will be going to the polls to elect a new president and other elective office bearers. Whereas a number of other positions the elected persons have changed, that of the president has not. The question is, is the country short of people who can occupy that office? Of course the answer is no and certainly any right thinking Ugandan knows why this is so. One of the concerns however, is that some voters do not respect their power.
The power to choose who should lead is in the hands of the voter and the people of Uganda but they decide to give out those powers in some cases. It is very surprising and quite upsetting to see people chanting praises of the current leaders in this regime claiming they have done wonders for the nation. There is no one in the country currently that is not feeling the pinch of bad governance, not even those who give praises.
So much has been written about the shrinking space for people to use their powers to make decisions and enjoy their rights and freedoms. The recent arrest of Ms Sarah Bireete, a civil and human rights advocate is clear indication of how this space is no more. There are more people rotting in prison for years and decades over non-issues.
This should be enough to deny any one in the current regime a vote but some people comfortably walk into polling station and look at the pictures on the ballot paper, select and tick people associated with the regime which has caused suffering and agony among the people of the country. After electing them into those positions, they start raising concerns about how services are inadequate, how their people are dying, how abject poverty is on the rise, how overwhelming numbers of school dropouts are recorded etc. With these and many other cases, those of you who willingly vote the wrong people into those positions are the enemies of Uganda and your own enemies as well?
It is time to think out of the box. Elect people who are people-centred, people who care about your wellbeing. The people who will use you during the electoral process and dump you or ignore you should never be your choice. You know who they are and they don’t even deserve your time and attention. There are clear headed and people centred candidates who speak substance and are likely to walk the talk, why don’t you focus on those ones and give them a chance to turn around the country. It is disappointing to note that what those candidates say is note given the deserving attention and popularity. Ugandans take them lightly yet the matters they raise are the core concerns of Ugandans which I believe will certainly fix when they get to power.
As if that is not enough, some persons who are eligible voters shun voting and in my view, these are the worst enemies of Uganda. They are punishing Ugandans and of course themselves as well. A well known personality, George Carlin said that if you don’t vote, you lose the right to complain. I can’t agree more with him. Plato, a Greek philosopher also said that bad governments are elected by people who don’t vote. Very true indeed, as it was in the previous elections. The number of people who don’t vote contributes a great percentage to a possible win. The myth of a protest vote works in favour of those they don’t vote against. If they cast their votes, the total number of votes would be above those of the persons that are declared as winners. Refusing to vote is costly and like Keith Elison said, “Not voting is not a protest, it is surrender. The loss and cost of surrendering is unimaginable! Abraham Lincoln also said, “The ballot is stronger than the bullet”. From my experience as an election monitor, this is a true statement. A ballot is powerful although in Uganda there was a leader who said that a mere paper cannot push him out of power.
The above emphasises the importance of voting. Numbers don’t lie and the more overwhelming they are, the more difficult it is for the electoral referee to play games. I urge every person who is permitted to vote, to go and vote. Don’t under estimate the power of your vote and your power to get a good government in place. It is your right to vote and moreover it is secret ballot. The undisputable large numbers are also a strong base for reclaiming a win if stolen by the powers that be. Dr. John Mary Odoy Senior Citizen. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
