Mr Nicholas Sengoba
In the wild animal world, there are beasts that wake up to chase and eat others, lest they starve to death. Then there are those that run all their lives to avoid being eaten.
The order of the day ensures that survival goes to the fittest. This leaves the animal world with only viable animals as the weak are eliminated. The other distinct rule is that, should a carnivorous animal stray from hunting in the wild and taste a human being, it is hunted and put down. The rationale is to discourage the development of a lazy, expensively dangerous taste that kills an animal’s wild hunting instinct, weakening and exposing it to the risk of being eaten.
For most Ugandans the hustle is real. They are on their own; either hunting or fighting to not be hunted down as they struggle to make ends meet.
Then you have public officials and the elite that have developed the predatory instinct of animals that stray from the wild and taste to the easy-to-hunt, soft human flesh. When they start sponging off the taxpayer, they never want to stop. They even borrow themselves into unsustainable debt to stay there.
They get into high office and are overwhelmed by privileges they had never imagined. Many of them are undeserved. There is a free car, Ipad/phone, travel allowances, treatment abroad, appearance in the media, and invites to high-profile functions and meetings.
The challenge is that many enjoy themselves so much that they grow a misguided sense of importance and entitlement. They develop an infantile notion that those involved in politics are the most important public servants; God’s rare gift to humanity, without whom life cannot go on.
Of late there have been various news items of different categories of former highly facilitated and well-paid government servants, asking to be recognised and given special packages. They find life without perks unbearable.
You have the former RDCs who work as the President’s representatives in districts. The position is usually reserved for people in need of a reward or some comfort in case they hit hard times. It comes with a good salary, a fully fuelled government car, office, housing, security, allowances, etc. It has been documented that for some the package includes a carte blanche to abuse power with a pecuniary benefit, in cases like land evictions.
They are crying that after doing the government’s bidding some of which work has made them individually unpopular, they have failed to fit back into society. Their partisan and high-handed affront of freedoms of the media and the Opposition is well documented. They plead for the heavily burdened taxpayer to fund their livelihood lest they die.
The second unfortunate group is of former legislators in previous parliaments. Long ago some of them called for the creation of a second chamber of Parliament to incorporate them and take advantage of their alleged invaluable expertise and experience. One wonders why they don’t stand in the current arrangement and let the electorate decide if they are still worthy. Now they are asking for pension, health and other allowances and above all a ‘service award’ for they claim they spent/lost most of their youthful years contributing immensely to the development of this country. The truth of the matter is that while they were serving, they were paid more money than many people will ever earn in a lifetime. They always opened with tenure with hundreds of millions for a brand-new four-wheel drive vehicle. Had free healthcare at home and abroad. Business travel outside the country with per diem and other allowances all borne by the taxpayer. Now like Oliver Twist, they are coming back for more. To increase their premium, they argue that they are wary of the dropping standards of debate and conduct in the legislature after their departure. Granted, but the truth of the matter is that they are running ahead of themselves.
The Parliament of Uganda from 1996 has really not effectively played the oversight role as is expected and mandated. The House whose majority has always been from the ruling party, is in fact fused, pocketed, and overshadowed by the Executive and thus cannot check it. On two occasions, for little money in 2005 and 2017 they changed the 1995 Constitution to lift term and age limits, respectively. It emboldened the NRM government with a longer lease of life characterised by massive corruption and state failure.
The President even asks and thanks the electorate for sending him MPs who sleep and only wake up to vote positively on government proposals. It has just become a house of mostly empty drama, platitudes, and of course enrichment for its members who include the past MPs; the ones now asking for monetary service awards.
Characteristically it has been marked by absenteeism to the extent that work at times halts for lack of quorum yet the register is full of signatures.
The legislature has failed to tame the government on borrowing to the extent that the national debt is not almost unsustainable at over $25 billion. About one third of our GDP goes towards paying interest on debt and refinancing the same. Corruption in most government ministries and departments and in parliament itself has reached epidemic proportions.
The parliament with a whole equal opportunities committee has failed to rein in nepotism and sectarianism in the sharing of resources and job opportunities. Same happens with human rights abuses especially those commissioned by security agencies.
The ex-MPs who are hankering for privileges did not fight with the same gusto to ensure the sealing of the holes gaping in the social safety net. Our public service, schools, and hospitals have all but become shadows of themselves. They did not work towards a minimum wage and better pay for teachers who teach our children, doctors who keep us alive, soldiers and policemen who ensure our safety, and all the housemaids and grasscutters who free us to do other work. It is all selfishly about themselves. They want us to spend the family silver on their aging selves yet we have young people to feed and educate as a way of securing our future. Let them look at the animal world. They either get off their high horses and join the hustle like the rest of us or circumstances will cull them off the scene. All good things come to an end. Ex-MPs and government officials can’t burden the taxpayer forever.
Twitter: @nsengoba
