A letter to those in the middle

“As we have seen, the bourgeoisie’s vocation is not to transform the nation but prosaically serve as a conveyor belt for capitalism, forced to camouflage itself behind the mask of neocolonialism.” Franz Fanon, trials and tribulations of national consciousness, page 100.

Reading the news these days is always the fastest route to depression. This is quite ironic given the fact that I am also pursuing a degree in journalism. Given all the madness going on in the world, I find it rather amazing that there is one kind of news that always tugs at my heartstrings: Ugandan news. News that has anything, and everything to do with the country I call my home. So for those of you familiar, it  should come as no surprise that the feelings that eclipse me are mostly a mix of anger and disappointment. A quick snapshot of Ugandan electoral politics provides a window into why I feel this way.

For the past few weeks, President Yoweri Museveni has been making very routine trips to the district in Northern Uganda. Much of Uganda’s postcolonial history has revolved around the tensions between the North and Southern parts of the country. A quick google search on the topic would outline the forgotten throngs of militants that were once President of the country- each with their own particular strengths and flaws. Needless to say, Uganda’s postcolonial history is filled with strife and conflict often surrounding who gets the biggest slice of the national cake.

Now I have to give President Museveni credit. He managed to make the best out of a bad situation and bring calm to a nation in tatters. Thirty four years later however, we see, to be slipping back into familiar patterns of violence. Draconian surveillance and ever increasing corruption have not only become the norm: it is what is expected from the government. After coming in as a hero, the man once thought to be a “savior” has himself turned into a tyrant. I understand that the apologists can play the blame game and say that “It’s the bad apples around him that are leading us onto the wrong path”. Beyond doubt these individuals have been overcome by the myth of Museveni: His cult of personality. His curated image as a savior. To them I ask the simple question: “If he is so great, then why is it that 34 years later, so many areas in Uganda lack access to basic things like  electricity?” 

For all the pedestals that have been created for this man, how are we going to reconcile his myth with the fact that millions of Ugandans live in deplorable conditions. There is an intentional attempt to promote the unequal allocation of resources in our country. You need only look at the distribution of first grades in the national exams to discover just how unequal the society in our country is. Is Uganda a country for all or a country for those that occupy the middle class and higher? Fanon was right when he said what he said (please reference the quote at the top). The class hierarchies present in our postcolonial societies are intentional. Capitalism only works if many lose so that the few can win. In this case, those Ugandans who do not  reside within the middle class and higher lose. They are to be the ones to grow the food crops on our farms that we later export to Europe. Of which these same crops are later sold back to us. If this doesn’t scream irony to you, then I do not know what will. 

This issue is even bigger than Museveni himself. This issue lies with the silence of the middle class. Those with privilege that allow for the status quo to squash the backs of their fellow brothers and sisters. Why else would one be able to rule for so long unless he had the backing of so many of those with privilege? I know I can not answer these questions within a simple blog. But I ask that those in the middle think about what they can do to make Uganda better for the many below them.