By Kasim Sematimba
In his Thursday address to the leaders and members of Buganda Youth Council (BYC), Kabaka’s Minister Henry Kiberu Ssekabembe didn’t mince words. “As a Minister in Buganda Kingdom, I won’t keep quiet about the issue of missing persons who continue to be abducted. These are youths and mostly from Buganda. We demand that let them be freed now if you [President Museveni] are genuine about wanting dialogue with your opponents,” said Ssekabembe not known for making politically very controversial statements.
Ssekabembe commended the BYC leaders, led by Baker Sejjengo, who recently came out with a press conference during which the ongoing abductions of political opponents by the state agents was condemned. Held in Bulange outside Masengere Plaza, the same news conference was used to give platform to relatives of missing persons to speak out on their missing spouses, fathers, mothers, sons and daughters while imploring President Museveni to cause their immediate release or arraignment before courts of law.
The flamboyant Minister on Thursday saluted BYC bosses for the prudence they exhibited by convening that media event and for showing solidarity with families, children and spouses of missing persons majority of whom are below 30 which makes them BYC members. “I was happy to hear you pronounce yourselves in solidarity with those who continue to be detained in unknown places. The person with the solution is the President himself and let’s keep targeting our voices to him as we demand for their release because it’s now clear that all the others [IGP, CDF] are powerless. Our plea should be that release or arraign them in court,” said Ssekabembe while reference on the ongoing embarrassing exchange between Police and the army regarding who should release the list of those in the state’s custody.
It will be recalled that the Police leadership demanded to be given all the detains first before being pushed to proclaim the list to the public. Police bosses rightly feared being required to account for people’s children in case they release a list purporting to have some of these abductees who the military might end up failing to produce. In the alternative, IGP Okoth Ochola constituted a committee comprising of CID Director Grace Akullo and head crime intelligence Brig Ddamulira Serunjogi to verify the exact identities of people the military has so that the list released to the public can be authenticated to avoid future PR problems.
Ssekabembe described the political situation in Uganda as very fragile asserting that the country has degenerated to a stage of bad governance where the state operates a police force which is synonymous with what one author characterized as “a thought police” which rampantly arrests people on purely speculative reasons without carrying out any prior investigations. “This is the worst phase that can happen to a state because police will be arresting people on mere suspicion. They just look at you and imagine this must be thinking about rioting and they arrest you just like it has been happening in Uganda,” he submitted.
The youthful Minister, who spoke for 36 minutes, was to later to veiledly hit at Gen Museveni as he delivered his paper aimed at preparing his audience for future leadership roles. Saying a good leader seeks the empowerment and transformation of his people or community, Ssekabembe reflected on the poor state in which many public schools and hospitals are at a time Gen Museveni opulently cruises in a convoy of not less than 21 vehicles. “I live on Entebbe Road and I always count the cars in the President’s convoy. I have never counted less than 21 of them. But is all that for when our children continue to be exposed to such unhelpful education which I see whenever I drive around [rural] Buganda and Uganda?”
Insisting that Buganda must invest in its youths as potential future leaders who will make the difference in the lives of the ordinary people in the communities, Ssekabembe implored his audience (which included newly elected Nakaseke Central MP Allan Mayanja [defeated Museveni’s Minister Syda Bbumba] who until recently was the Speaker for BYC) to realize that prudent leadership is “about service to the people as opposed to controlling or manipulating them.” He asserted that Buganda’s hope lies in the youths who must ascend to national leadership and infect the rest of the country with the great leadership credentials which are essential for our nation’s transformation into a properly functioning 21st century nation state.
Saying Buganda can only give platform and chance to have their leadership skills sharpened, Ssekabembe said those running for elective office in the national politics shouldn’t expect financial support from Mengo because the Kingdom doesn’t yet have such capabilities. He repeatedly referenced on Allan Mayanja who many at the meeting vowed to emulate by seeking elective positions at the subsequent election cycle.
Warning against opportunism and “microwaved leaders,” Ssekabembe implored the BYC fraternity to develop a reading culture and also consider returning to school to acquire more skills and qualifications. He referred to himself as a widely-read leader which contributes to his personal knowledge. Any leader who occupies office for 5 or even 10 years and leaves without impacting people is a microwave politician merely warming the chair, Ssekabembe explained cautioning members in his audience to always work against such leadership.
Ssekabembe, who is one of Katikkiro Mayiga’s blue eyed Ministers at Mengo, also warned against using leadership offices to facilitate selfish deal-making at the expense of service delivery for the community. To overcome materialism and opportunism, which breeds deal-making, Ssekabembe called on the young leaders to embrace “principled leadership” that stands for very strong values which can’t be compromised even with money to betray the larger public interest.
Turning to Allan Mayanja specifically, Ssekabembe said it’s possible for one to be MP for even 10 years but without ever becoming a leader in the eyes of those he leads. “Let’s be clear. Being MP doesn’t automatically turn one into a person possessed with good leadership credentials. You actually can be MP for even 10 years without ever becoming a leader in the eyes of the community you lead.” He then enumerated qualities a productive leader must possess: including being impactful, productive, principled, credible, inspirational, exemplary and accountable.
Reflecting on the more than 59,300 youth leaders Buganda Kingdom is going to be grooming, deploying and working with to champion economic transformation and productivity in the 18 Counties of the Kabaka, Ssekabembe urged those present at the Thursday training to ensure each one of them (the over 59,300 youth leaders) prioritizes working for the amplification of the Kingdom’s ideals (Ensonga Ssemasonga) while epitomizing exemplary leadership that seeks to inspire the led as opposed to manipulating them. A good leader, he added, must accept criticism, be consultative, have humility, conviction, be passionate and insist on high standards. He also warned against mediocrity and empty sloganeering as opposed to transformative leadership.
Ssekabembe also warned against money-mindedness which he said was common in organizations like National Youth Council, a statutory body under the Gender Ministry, whose members often demand for transport refund and other allowances before accepting to attend meetings. Asserting that a good leader must be one that focusses on posterity and next generation as opposed to the next election, Ssekabembe also called for selflessness among those occupying office under the BYC structures which now are going to be consolidated from village, parish, Sub County, County to national level.
He also called on BYC leaders and members to understand and make others equally understand why youth groups like Baganda Nkoba Zambogo are these days not emphasized as it used to be the case decades ago. “As of the 1990s when Nkoba Zambogo was the thing, the challenges and focus of the young people in this region was restoration of Kabakaship which was achieved. The challenges today are different. It’s about things like jobs and the young people wanting political power. These call for a different approach and different interventions and that is why we are here [discussing under BYC],” he clarified while commending BYC for complimenting the pro-Buganda Kingdom progress being registered through other groupings like Kabaka Munyango, Kezimbira and others. (For comments on this story, call, text or whatsapp us on 0705579994, 0779411734, 0200900416 or email us at mulengera2040@gmail.com).