Ruling NRM must rediscover itself to recapture Buganda

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Todwong explained that he invited the members to discuss factors that could have led to the decline in the performance of the party in these two regions.

“We also want to learn how best the party leadership can work with you to boost its support,” Todwong said.
NRM is correct to be worried. The National Unity Platform (NUP) led by Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, made a clean sweep at the polls in Buganda.

And the way Buganda supports one politically, being Uganda’s most populous and heterogeneous region, serves as an accurate weathervane of how Uganda supports one politically.

Buganda’s support is indeed the gold standard by which a glittering political future on the national level is measured by, and NRM knows this. 

So its attempts to gild the lily, so to speak, of party support in Buganda is a normal recourse.
However, why the party is mystified by its declining support in Buganda reveals that NRM and common sense have not been on speaking terms lately. 

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For one thing, according to American English, the word for being “mystified”, baffled or confused is “buffaloed”.

This word takes on particular relevance when we recall that Bobi Wine is of the buffalo clan of the Baganda. 

In more ways than one, then, NRM is has been buffaloed by NUP’s ascendency in Buganda. 

That said, and more seriously, we need to appreciate how NRM has evolved over the years. Its evolution mirrors the evolution of President Museveni, who personifies it.

In 1971 and 1981, Mr Museveni took it upon himself to declare war on the governments of Idi Amin and Milton Obote respectively. 

Not once before he went to the bush on both occasions did he consult the people.
At the time, he took control, communicating with his followers and creating a shared vision. He thereby galvanised a cohesive fighting unit which developed bonds, created synergies while instilling passion therein. He was, in a word, transformational.

Today, Mr Museveni keeps his finger in the wind as he attempts to divine the political weather patterns. Gone is the transformational leader who once took it upon himself to “correct” the course of Uganda’s history.

He now says he will keep running for office as long as the people still want him. This Museveni would have had to hold a referendum before going to the bush. 

This mentality is “laissez-faire”, a delegative leadership style which is hinged upon delegating initiative to one’s followers. 

This hands-off leadership style is curiously blended with an iron-grip on the state of Ugandan affairs in such a way that leaves us all, well, buffaloed.

In fine, the transmogrification of Museveni reflects the transmogrification of NRM and also tells us why it is losing support in Buganda. 

With Uganda’s rising unemployment, onslaught of taxes and repressive political environment, Buganda, nay, Uganda hungers for leadership. Not the delegative style, but the transformational kind.

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If NRM is to regain its electoral heft in Buganda (and the rest of Uganda), it must lead the charge against political and economic corruption. By doing so, it will become more pro-people than pro-power. Only then will it be able recapture its lost glory in Buganda.

Mr Phillip Matogo is a professional copywriter  
[email protected]