Is It So?

*In Greek mythology the gods quickly punished those mortals who dared to ascend to Mt Olympus and taste devine power. However, if you had the courage to cross to their realm, you were rewarded handsomely. The likes of Hercules and Pysche did just that.
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To the light-weight simpletons that are some of Uganda’s journalists all is now well with the NRM in the Acoli subregion now that the LRA has self-destructed and relative peace has come to the region. This is either a form of denial or a calculated effort to promote the NRM. It is a cynical insult to the intelligence of the people.

That peace now reigns in the region is a welcome respite from the twenty or so years of hell. The people clearly remember how the owner of the NRM, by his own account, was dragged screaming to the negotiation table. The people surely remember the series of altimatum that dogged the NRM in its protracted wish to finish off the LRA. Moreover the hangovers from that hell do not suddenly disappear with a magic wand overnight. There are the traumatic memories of being forced into concentration camps. There are the memories of civilian abuses by the NRM military. Then there is the continued choking abject poverty. The NRM will have to be held accountable for the twenty years plus of deliberate, intentional and cavalier neglect.

In addition, while it has been watered down by shameless materialistic desires as well as basic unadorned survival instincts untamed by cultural heritage, there is still a strong streak of individualism that shuns authoritarian excesses. A rwot ki i oda (I am chief in my own house) is still the prevailing operative psyche for some. And so the modus operandi of the NRM go against the grain of many who are true to their egalitarian heritage. However, politically, this may only affect the national flag bearer. Whether it plays out into the localized parliamentarian polls remains to be seen as such factors as personality and clan dynamics may outweigh such nebulous concepts as freedom and fair play. The NRM might also pump in a few token goodies to enhance the NRM candidates’ chances to the refrain that “there is more where that came from.” Other largesse from so-called development partners will also help paint the NRM candidates beautiful prospective suitors. Even so, however, the dice is still loaded in favor of the opposition. The region is theirs to lose. The opposition just needs to play it steady, smart and hold the NRM to its dismal records.

Soko’s movie classic: Adanggaman.