The National Economic Empowerment Dialogue (NEED) leader Joseph Kabuleta has rallied the people of Ankole sub-region to unite and work together if they are to overcome the economic challenges they face.
The former presidential candidate made remarks while addressing the press at NEED’s Headquarters in Kampala on Monday, May 30, 2022.
He revealed that segregation and sectarianism which have been catalysed by President Yoweri Museveni has kept Ugandans backward because the two factors keep them disunited and distracted.
He added that over 80% of people in Ankole sub-region are suffering like other Ugandans in various parts of the country due to the current bad leadership that supports segregation and sectarianism.
“Not all people in Ankole have benefited from the NRM regime, very many people in Ankole are in abject poverty but a certain class of a few privileged people cover up the situation to make it look like all people from Western Uganda are well off. Most of them are facing the same problems faced by people in other regions. The privileges are enjoyed by the Bahima and Tutsi people who control everything in the Sub-Region,” Kabuleta said.
He further disclosed the Bahima’s 50 year grand plan where he accuses Museveni of using a divide and rule tactic that keeps him in power since disunited people are easy to rule.
“It started as a rumor, but it truly exists and it’s being executed up to date. These people in 1992 came up with a 50 year master plan to rule Uganda. And part of that masterplan was to give people their money to start a money lending business. They give you a rosy loan at an exorbitant interest so that you fail to pay back. When you fail, they take over your collateral such as land and buildings.” he said.
“They intentionally keep you in poverty so that when your child falls sick or you want to take them to school you will have to sell your land to them…. A lot of public land is being taken by private people who are from/close to the ruling establishment. The concept of Uganda is slowly fading away. We now have the Bahima taking over everything,”
The journalist turned politician further urged Ugandans to unite for a common cause of fighting for their natural resources that will in the end help them uplift their livelihoods.
“We fight because our children shouldn’t be turned into slaves. These people’s vision is to turn Uganda into a Tutsi empire…. We should not be superior or given privileges because of our ethnic background. We are fighting sectarianism and we are going to have justice anytime,” Kabuleta added.
Atuhirwe Prossy, a former Isingiro south Parliamentary contestant in the last general elections noted that Ankole sub-region currently has two classes of people; Tutsi, Bahima (Masters) and Bakiga, Banyankore (Biru/slaves).
“The Banyankore and Bakiga are oppressed people, we have political, economic and social challenges. The Bahima and Tutsi are the ones who take decisions like who get what job, who joins the army among others. They are a small group of people with a lot of powers. When it comes on a national level, you take us (All people from Western Uganda) as superiors but in actual sense, it’s not the case. We are not allowed to vote in elections, hospitals lack medicines, schools have no proper structures.”
She further accused the Bahima and Tutsi of sidelining the Banyankore and Bakiga when it comes to empowering the people of Ankole economically. “Our animals are ever in quarantine. The Bahima/Tutsi do not pay taxes, don’t pay for water or electricity bills, the burden is always imposed on us the Biru. When it comes to land grabbing, we suffer like the people in Buganda or any other part of the country,” she added.
Edwin Akoragye, a resident of Biharwe in Mbarara city also expounded that the Bahima/Tutsi have a tendency of choosing specific sons and daughters from their families, give them scholarships to study in good schools and universities abroad as well as giving them capital to start businesses so that they can run the politics and economy of Uganda.
“If the whole country has gone to the dogs, why do you think it’s a different story in Ankole?” Akoragye wondered.
He further affirmed that there’s a deliberate move by a small group of people in Ankole to own and control everything in Uganda and make citizens paupers and slaves in the own country.
“There’s a plot in Ankole to plan for Kampala in name of keeping it ‘clean’. They want to contract there people to peel all matooke from Rubindi. They want to supply already peeled matooke to Kampala. There’s an abattoir in Biharwe where they want all cattle to be slaughtered from. They want to supply ready to cook meat to Kampala. These people want to control everything starting from coffee, matooke, milk among other.
In the same vein, he decried the abject poverty, illegal land evictions and exploitation from the people in power.
Akoragye noted that the issue of land grabbing is everywhere, Ankole inclusive.
“In Rwenjeru Ranch, one person was given 500 square miles free of charge because he rears Ankole cattle. He is very close to power. This is done at the expense of the poor people who are starving and have nowhere to till,” Akoragye divulged. Ankole people are not sectarian, we are good people. We are not like how some people portray us to be. Some people taint us to be rich yet that applies to only a few powerful people,” he added.
Asuman Odaka, the NEED National Coordinator said they came up with the idea of profiling each region in order to downplay the speculation or reasoning that some citizens in specific areas are doing well than others.
“People from Bukedi think people from Ankole are well off. We focus on every region to show you that we are facing the same problems as Ugandans,” Odaka said.
Launched last year, NEED has managed to traverse most parts of the country with an aim of sensitizing Ugandans to fight for their natural resources which in turn they could use to elleviate themselves from poverty.
Unveiling the political movement in September last year, Mr Kabuleta, a former journalist said NEED is constituted of politicians who currently hold no office but have influence in their respective sub-regions and are able to start meaningful discussions that shall see Ugandans fight for their resources.
The political movement has so far managed to spread the economic empowerment message to Busoga, Buganda, Bugisu, Bukedi, Teso, Sebei, Lango, Acholi, West Nile, Tooro, Rwenzori, Kigezi and Ankole sub regions.
