By Mulengera Reporters
During the 6th Parliament (1996-2001), the Greater Ankole Parliamentary Caucus was one of the most potent ones in the Ugandan legislature of that time.
It was headed by Eriya Kategaya (as Chairman) with the likes of Mwesigwa Rukutana, Bernadette Bigirwa, Amanya Mushega, Kahinda Otafiire, Elly Karuhanga, Miria Matembe, Winnie Karagwa Byanyima, Augustine Ruzindana Ruzindana, Dr. Johnson Nkuuhe, Gen Mugisha Muntu, Mary Mugyenyi, Guma Gumisiriza, Bright Rwamirama and others being members. It comprised of MPs from the districts of Ntungamo, Ibanda, Mbarara, Isingiro, Bushenyi and Kiruhura.
It was a powerful caucus which Gen Museveni respected and initially appreciated for helping him to eclipse other politically more threatening formations like the Young Parliamentary Advocacy forum (YPA) and the “Discussion Group” his fellow bushwar comrades had created to shine a red flag on the political diversions and grand corruption that was beginning to manifest.
In one of the Greater Ankole Caucus meetings at Rwakitura, Gen Museveni said this was a day to teach MPs from his region about political pragmatism. He made it clear and explained at lenght why being Vice President, Army Commander and Director General ESO didn’t respectively make Specioza Kazibwe, Gen Jeje Odongo and David Pulkol powerful or very important in anyway. That Kazibwe was made VP in order to appease and get votes from her fellow women, Basoga and Catholics just like Odongo and Pulkol were meant to deliver votes from their fellow Itesots and Karamajongs.
According to Major John Kazoora (a former PA who bitterly fell out with him), Museveni explained how leaders and national politicians from Ankole had over decades wielded real power and dominated the politics of Uganda, which should be a source of pride and motivation to Kategaya’s members.
Towards the end of the meeting, Winnie Karagwa Byanyima speaking under AoB, demanded that Museveni explains why his then much younger son MK was mobilising and recruiting his fellow “young boys” to join the army.
Seemingly shocked by the question because it was raised in a forum he least expected it, Museveni replied: “Iwe Karagwa mwatandika kutiina omwereere?” Loosely translated this meant “You Karagwa you have started fearing toddlers?” He went on to explain that his son, MK, wasn’t even a member of the Local Defense Unit (LDU). “I just asked him to identify people of good character who can be absorbed in the army.”
Byanyima shot back demanding to know why that wasn’t being done through the army’s well established structures of recruitment. She demanded to know why Gen Museveni wasn’t comfortable respecting that. Indeed, a few years later, these young men and women of good character as identified by MK were to become visible everywhere in the UPDF taking up key command and decision-making positions serving as Colonels, Brigadiers and later on Generals.
At the same meeting, MPs from Ankole told Museveni the stigma they were beginning to face from fellow MPs in that 6th Parliament who were demanding to know why it majorly were children from Ankole who were benefiting from State House scholarships to go and study lucrative courses abroad.
Gen Museveni replied thus: “Iwe [Maj John] Kazoora kunkuba ndisize ente zagye, abaana baguruka omubiteete bankwata amaaguru baboroga naye nshoberwa nikwo kubaheera.” This loosely translates to mean: “When I’m grazing my cows, children jump out of the bush and hold my legs wailing seeking for assistance. I get confused and decide to help them.”
One of the Greater Ankole caucus MPs pushed back asking the President how kids from far away districts like Kaberamaido, Bundibugyo and Koboko, with no chance to ever be near his grazing grounds, can ever benefit from that same arrangement. Gen Museveni merely smiled and moved on to respond to other less controversial questions.
In his fantastic book “Betrayed by my Leader,” Major John B Kazoora concludes that this is how children from the President’s home area ended up dominating lists of Uganda’s best professionals for lucrative fields like petroleum, oil & gas because they are the ones who State House sponsored to go study these things at Western Universities like Dundee and Aberden in Scotland in those early years. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
