What ‘State- of-the-Nation Address’ did not address

Therefore, the President selectively gives an account of the year performance papered with selectively chosen statistics that are vote-catching and for regime maintenance.
Some of the most pressing issues the nation is facing are deliberately left out of the address. It is no wonder that at the end of the President’s speech, the ruling NRM party MPs burst into chants of tajja genda meaning President Museveni is here to stay instead of chanting poverty must go.

Real issues
There are many sticking out issues in Uganda that needed to be addressed in the speech so as to bring them to the attention of policy makers, implementers and the general public for urgent attention but which were hardly touched.

As reports show, there is a near human development crisis in Uganda. According to the UN Human Development Index report 2013, Ugandan ranks at 161 out of 193 countries. Uganda’s performance is categorised as low Human Development.

The indicators for this poor performance are clearly given. The maternal mortality rate in Uganda is 438 mothers per 100,000 live births. The child mortality rate is 130 children per 1,000 live births.
These mortality rates are among the highest in the world. There is rampant nutrition insecurity in Uganda.
In some regions such as Bushenyi, child malnutrition is at 30 per cent. Children in northern Uganda are suffering and dying of the nodding disease. HIV/Aids statistics indicate that prevalent rates are above 6.5 per cent and rising, and yet the country had registered decreasing rates in the past.
Education quality and standards are falling at alarming rates in Uganda. Reports show that primary seven pupils fail exams meant for primary two pupils and Uganda lags behind in the region. The latest report indicates that Uganda even ranks poorly behind other partner states in the region in university education standards.
Labour productivity of Ugandans is reported to be five and four times behind that of Kenyans and Tanzanians, respectively. The President is certainly aware of the above poor performance on the human development score but it is not politically prudent to mention them in a public address.

Another near crisis that deserved attention in the SNA is human security or personal security. Watching news especially on vernacular media, one notices rampant crimes of murder, robbery, mob justice and many more other aspects of structural violence.

There is rampant domestic violence and child abuse and neglect. Whereas the President touched on national and state security that resonate well with political support, he ignored personal security matters.

Economy
On the economic front, the President projected the image of a vibrant economy which is not supported by statistics, except a few successes selectively chosen here and there. President Museveni must be aware that Uganda’s balance of trade is in the negative.

Uganda’s trade deficit stands at $322. Ugandans living under $1 may be at 19 per cent but those living under $2 per day which is also another poverty indicator stands at 65 per cent and yet the global average is 35 per cent.

The income inequality as measured by the Gini coefficient stands at 0.426 in Uganda which indicates the income gap between the rich and poor is very high and is growing. This shows there is no inclusive development in Uganda and this will inevitably lead to more political and social instability.

On tax revenue collection in Uganda, the country’s performance is the poorest in East Africa. Uganda collects only 12 per cent in taxes of its GDP ratio while Kenya collects 24 per cent, Tanzania 17 and Rwanda 14 per cent. How could the SNA miss out on this important concern if it was not selective politics?

On politics
On the political front, the future is not certain. Ugandans are on tenterhooks due to succession disputes within the political parties especially in NRM and FDC.

There is very weak national cohesion in Uganda as demonstrated by the conflicts between different ethnic and social groups over the traditional institutions.

The Bamba and Bakonjo are at each other throats. The Basoga are tense over the Kyabazingaship succession.

In Buganda Kingdom, the Baruli, Banyara, Bakooki and Bamoli are not comfortable with Mengo. There is the perennial question of Buganda versus the rest of Uganda. The northern question is latent but real and alive. There is no political consensus within the political elite whether inter-party or intra-party.

There is no political tolerance, accommodation and compromise in Uganda. The manifestation of political intolerance was very clear during the SNA at Serena Conference Centre. The Opposition MPs were disrespectful of the person of the President as they continued to heckle him during his address.

The President’s reaction to the heckling by MPs was equally disrespectful of the them when he likened them to the Biblical fool who built his house on sandy soil.

KCCA issues
The events in KCCA around the issue of the Lord Mayor of Kampala are another case in point of political intolerance. These and many more issues such as poor policy implementation deserved to be addressed in the SNA but were sacrificed on the altar of political convenience.

Mwambutsya Ndebesa
History and Development Studies lecturer Makerere University