Aisha Kabanda and her husband
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Assalamu Alaikum and Ramadhan Mubarak. As part of the progression of our Muslim ‘’Think Tank’’, as explained on the following link: http://um-bs.com/think-tank/, I would like to make a suggestion that the Muslim community in Uganda rallies behind Sister Aisha Kabanda for the pending Butambala by-elections, if NRM endorses her candidature. As you all know, Butambala is more like the ‘Mecca’ of Uganda Muslims, and we would love to strengthen our position politically in the country through serious Muslims regardless of their political affiliation. So, it would be good to have a good number of serious Muslims in parliament as we also want us to be considered for ministerial or other public office positions inishallah.
Mrs.Aisha Omar Kabanda is a member of the UMBS forum and she has been involved in various Muslim activities in Uganda, including the recently concluded Muslim conferences at Hotel Africana. She never shy away when it comes to defending Muslims. Yes, I must confess that I have never physically met this sister of ours but I sometimes feel like I already know her in almost all dimensions. The influential Muslims here, therefore, should do everything possible to make sure that NRM endorses her as their candidate in the pending by-election in Butambala- which should take place after Ramandhan inishallah.
I know that she is likely to contest against Suubi/DP’s Brother Mohamed Muwanga Kivumbi but like I said, it is important that we ‘’ strengthen our position politically in the country through serious Muslims regardless of their political affiliation.’’. Aisha is NRM and I have had so many political fights with her in debates but she is a serious Muslim, and I think that is enough for all Muslims in Uganda to support this daughter of Hajji Kabanda in Butambala regardless of whatever Muslim faction one belongs to. It would be a shame if we read in Bukedde or any other newspaper about Muslim factions in Uganda supporting and fighting each other over various candidates after Ramandhan.
Let us not ignore the truth among ourselves. Politically, majority of non-Muslims look at Muslims as the ‘aggressors’ and they defend themselves. So, it would not make sense for the ‘aggressors’ to start fighting and abusing each other publicly over matters that should have instead presented an opportunity for a united front.
It may sound contradictory but sometimes I see the marginalization of Muslims in Uganda as an opportunity for us to unite ourselves. Freedom & inequality can sometimes serve all of us better than leftism and equality. Under freedom, some succeed more than others, but in succeeding the best people advance society for all of us. A computer genius entrepreneur may make billions but he creates countless jobs and devices that will be great help to millions of people. If such a person is forced to be equal with the rest of us, society would be more equal but it wouldn’t move forward.
Advancement in science, religion, education, business, arts, and so on are produced by a very small percentage of people. The fact is that 99.99% of us are not made of the super-duper material. Among many boxers, only small handfuls are like Muhammad Ali or Sugar Ray Robinson. Among many scientists, only handfuls are like Einstein and Bohr. While great folks are a part of society and depend on human community, they have some X-factor talent and skill far beyond most of us. It’s the same in the cinematic arts. In cinematic history, the number of people who really advanced the art of cinema has been few and far between; I mean guys like Eisenstein and Kubrick.
Similarly, let us find a way of recognizing people with special skills amongst the Muslim community and we start supporting them for the sake of Islam or Muslim Brotherhood. Jews do this everyday, why can’t we? Historians tell us it was Roman custom to place a slave in the chariot behind a conquering hero, there to whisper warnings about the fleeting nature of fame amid the accolades of adoring crowds. We can become slaves to our Muslim ‘heroes’ and help them to identify any obstacles they are likely to meet on the way to their new roles.
If Aisha is not endorsed by NRM, we will accept Allah’s will and still wish good luck to Brother Muwanga Kivumbi, Sister Mariam Nalubega who contested as an independent in the last election( if she stands again) or any other Muslim who may present himself for this opportunity inishallah.
Let me repeat, just to be very sure we understand one another: Aisha Kabanda lost the NRM Preminaries in 2011 where she contested with Ms. Namirembe Bitamazire. Mariam Nalubega came as an independent while Mohamed Muwanga Kivumbi is Muslim and he represented DP/Suubi in the last election. Muwanga Kivumbi is reportedly allied with the Kibuli Muslim faction but all I’m asking is that Muslims support someone who will fight for them more as Muslims than someone who looks at Muslim affairs as last after Allah has given them something (money, power or wealth).
Byebyo ebyange banange
Note: Just for clarification purposes: I don’t belong to any political party in Uganda but i have been voting for UK’s Labour party ever since i came to England.
–
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
Stalk my blog at: http://semuwemba.com/
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/semuwemba
Follow UAH at: http://ugandansatheart.org/
THE EXCITING JOURNEY FROM KASESE TO BUTAMBALA
I spent some minutes at the EC Tally centre in Kasese before setting
off for Kampala. You should have seen the look on Kiyonga’s face, as
he heard with his own ears the figures from the field – loudly and
clearly. It was not whether Winnie had won anyway. It was by how much.
Twenty minutes after we left, in the middle of thick fog on the
Fortportal-Kasese highway , that phone call came: “its all over, the
margin is 37000 votes!”
Someone with me called it a massacre. Another said he had never found
an more appropriate moment to practice the use of the word “Routed”
…as in “NRM has been routed”.
But the people of Kasese are different from my lot I am used to
dealing with in Kampala. There, whoever said she would vote Winnie in
public also voted Winnie in secret. In Kampala and the other nearby
places we all know, you can get a shock of your life if you believed
someone’s public support for your candidate. You rarely get what you
see.
In Bukonzo, the size of the rallies corresponded to the real support
at the ballot boxes.
In Bukonzo, they will tell you on your face whom they support and they
will proceed to do just what they told you.
We now turn to Butambala, where there is likely to be just as much
heat as there was in Bukonzo, but the dynamic will be entirely
different. In Butambala, the movement still commands a large majority
- and indeed even the DP opposition candidate depends almost 70
percent on the movement vote – not his party’s own vote bank. That
can be very tricky if a strong Movement candidate with cross cutting
appeal comes into the race. Muwanga Kivumbi should pray that Faisal
Kikulukunyo remains the NRM candidate. Then we could have another
guaranteed “massacre” in Butambala. Otherwise if the FDC brings a
candidate or any other independent candidate shows up who can get some
2000 votes, and the NRM brings a less encumbered candidate with cross
appeal, there could be some trouble there for DP’s Muwanga Kivumbi.
Unfortunately he was not able to make an appearance in Kasese in the
“return Winnie project” – unlike his counterparts Mpuuga, Nambooze,
Kasibante and E(l)rias Lukwago who defied Mao, Kivumbi’s DP boss, who
was also camped in Kasese to bolster the DP candidate to help her to
secure the 1,221 votes yesterday. This could cause some problem to
Kivumbi, especially if Mao decides to campaign for him at all.
However, what is likely is that all the candidates in the Butambala
bye election will be Baganda Muslim. So the Buganda card will be
significant (like it was in Bukoto South but with less intensity) -
candidates will compete to prove who is more “Mengo” than the other.
And the Muslim divide will certainly play a big role (Mubajje -
Kayongo factions) but also the “Muslim marginalisation” debate will
take centre stage. It will not be just ideology or the desire for
change that will drive the Butambala election.
Traditional family alliances are likely to dominate,but owing to its
proximity to Kampala, there is likely to be a lot of volunteers
flocking in Butambala to support all both sides in the race. If we
could flood Kasese with external volunteers, (a six or more hour
drive from Kampala) how about in Butambala where you need less than
one and a half hours to hit the furthest ground of the constituency.
The next three weeks will be very interesting. The real Kingmaker is
likely to be former MP Haji Kaddunabi Ibrahim, and Hon. Mariam
Nalubega, the Movement leaning Independent Woman MP who in 2011,
defeated the victorian Namirembe Bitamazire, four times her age. The
short duration of the campaign now standing at not more than 12 days
(though DP is asking for more days) could help all the candidates in
the race – they will not have a lot of money to spend on the trail
anyway, but might disadvantage any new entrant unless s/he had done
enough prior homework.
I anticipate an intense, (and I hope not nasty) media war in the
Butambala campaign, as Kivumbi certainly has good rapport with the
Luganda media, having been ‘born and bred’ by the now banned but
enduring kimeeza culture of the recent times. The English language
press will be of little consequence in the Butambala bye election.
At the end of the day, I suppose, the more independent minded
candidate will win. But the hope of a candidate who looks like would
stand a higher chance to be appointed in a possible future cabinet
(NRM or Opposition) will get more local support, as the feelings of
marginalisation of Muslims solidify each day that passes, which has
culminated into a rather strongly worded document from Muslim MPs to
the president decrying his perceived systematic sidelining of Muslims
for important positions.
Matters are not helped by the cynicism they accuse of the President by
appointing academic misfits Nasser Ntege Ssebaggala and Muyanja
Mbabali when he, the President, as a person of his knowledge and
experience knew exactly that they just could not be confirmed as
ministers. The Muslim community from both factions seem to agree on
this. Indeed the first dossier to President Museveni decrying Muslim
marginalisation came for the allegedly pro-government Old Kampala
faction of Mufti Mubajje and circulated by the versatile Haji Nsereko
Mutumba, UMSC Public Relations Officer, an astutely political
individual with historical ties to Museveni’s power project. So, on
the matter of Muslim marginalisation, both factions are in total
agreement.
omar
+256 703 851 851