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FIRST READ:
Uganda’s president makes son general, appoints him overall commander of special forces
Muhoozi for president bid takes shape
Friday, 19 October 2012 00:03
Muhoozi now like
head of the army
A series of meetings have been held this year,
where a carefully choreographed plan to hand power to the president’s son, Brig
Kainerugaba Muhoozi, was discussed, The Observer has learnt.
According to highly-placed sources, some of these
meetings took place at the president’s country home in Rwakitura, Kiruhura
district. Sources told The Observer that one of these meetings at Rwakitura was
attended by youthful politicians.
Tasked to implement this plan are the recently appointed
ministers Frank Tumwebaze (Presidency) and Richard Todwong (without portfolio),
the latter of whom, party faithful believe, was appointed to beef up NRM
secretary general’s office. In this meeting, the president reportedly implored
some newly appointed young ministers to work with Muhoozi because the old guard
is on its way out.
“He [Museveni] was subtle when asking the
ministers. He did not directly mention that Muhoozi should be the next leader.
He only asked the newly appointed ministers of a younger generation to work
with Muhoozi,” said a source who did not want to go on record because of the
sensitivity of the subject.
However, even amongst those who have attended these meetings, many believe the transition to Museveni II will require careful handling and dexterity.
Some sources claim that as a way to prop up his
chances, there has been a gradual and carefully calibrated realignment within
the most important component of the NRM regime — the UPDF. Today, Muhoozi has
taken lock, stock and barrel of this institution. His inexorable rise in the
army is clearly chronicled.
Army power
A graduate of the Intake Six of the cadet course,
RO 8643 Muhoozi today sits at the pinnacle of the elite Special Forces Command
(SFC). Alongside him are fellow graduates of the same intake Six, like Col
Sabiiti Magyenyi, his deputy. Muhoozi and Sabiiti are in charge of safeguarding
key military installations and protecting VIPs, while Maj Don Nabasa is in charge
of the motorized infantry.
Under the SFC are all the key units of the army,
like the commando, mechanized, motorized, infantry, air-defence and artillery —
and all are well equipped. The mechanised brigade, for instance, is equipped
with T-55 and T-62 tanks; the artillery division has BM-21s, 155mm Howitzers,
122mm guns and several South-African made APCs, all of which make most of the
UPDF’s fighting arsenal.
Muhoozi’s influence extends through the key
echelons of the army. For example, the artillery division is under yet another
intake six cadet graduate, Lt Col Dan Kakono.
A source told The Observer: “It is clear that
Muhoozi is the de-facto Chief of Defence Forces (CDF). Most of the elite units
directly report to him.”
A group of young officers who have since
replaced the old guard are closely-knit and protect one another’s interest.
“This group of soldiers is very loyal to Muhoozi
and can back him for the presidency,” argued a source, who also revealed that
many generals who share the Luweero Triangle camaraderie are set to retire in
2015.
Other sources believe that beyond the army, there
are other backroom gung-ho power brokers — politicians, young wealthy
businessmen with ties to the first family, and the loose group known as
Nyekundiire (volunteers) — who could back Muhoozi in 2021 to protect their
interests. But Muhoozi’s 2021 project will not be a walk in the park.
Almost ten years from now is such a long time
that a tapestry of events could limit his chances of ascending to the throne.
A source conversant with the internal
deliberations within the ruling party told The Observer that: “There are two
dynamics of how Museveni could influence the chances of his son. He needs not
only to play the military card, but also the political card.”
“In the army, Muhoozi looks like he is favoured.
Many officers are wondering why Muhoozi is the one who always goes for elite
training; many believe it’s not on merit. Others believe the SFC is favoured
because it gets better salaries, wears new uniforms . . .,” argues the source.
But the most intractable challenge, according to
the source, is how Muhoozi can transit from a career soldier and be able to
sell a message that can gain traction with the public.
“You can see Muhoozi giving out donations through
the Balyekus [Moses Balyeku, MP for Jinja Municipality West] and attending
social functions, but that’s not enough. You recall that the father rode on the
wave of popular discontent to become president in 1986, but now the tables have
turned. I believe we could have another president who is not from the Museveni
stable,” says the source.
However Kabula county MP, James Kakooza, a
diehard Museveni supporter, told The Observer that it would not be new if
Muhoozi stood for the presidency, because political scions abound all over the
world.
“Even in the United States, a model society for
democracy, George Bush Jr. replaced his father. Look here in Uganda, Joseph
Balikuddembe, the Busiro South MP, replaced the father. [Proscovia] Alengot,
the youngest MP, replaced the father. Look at the UPC party; examples are so
many. So, why can’t Muhoozi replace his father?” Kakooza said.
Revealing perhaps what lies ahead, Kakooza, the
former minister of state for Health and a key exponent of Museveni’s third and
fourth term bids, told The Observer that the political narrative will change in
2021.
“Expect a new generation; the generation of the
Todwongs, Muhoozis and Kakoozas. We shall be in charge. If Muhoozi stands on
the party ticket and wins, I will back him. But if he joins or forms another
party rather than NRM, I will not support him,” Kakooza said.
Beyond the internal party dynamics, another
source that did not want to be named because of the sensitivity of the subject
says revenue from oil favours a Muhoozi candidacy.
“It will be much easier to buy off political
opponents and build better roads and hospitals to limit the discontent within
the public,” says the source.
This source also cited ripples from regional
conflicts, “where the West could turn a blind eye to the governance issues in Uganda as long as Museveni and, later on, his
son remain the anchormen of the USA,
Britain
and their allies in a volatile region.”
“The Somalia conflict, you recall, gave
Museveni a life-line,” argues the source.
When asked whether he was being groomed for the
presidency, Muhoozi, speaking on Capital FM’s Desert Island Discs show on July
22, 2012, said: “That’s rubbish. No one is grooming me. The Constitution is
very clear.” However, he said he could not rule out standing for the
presidency.
“I’m not thinking about it [becoming president],
but I cannot rule it out,” he said — trying to argue that in life, one should
never rule out anything.
Commenting about his rapid rise in the army,
Muhoozi said: “I have worked for the ranks,” adding that he has been on the
battle front, especially in northern Uganda, and that he served in other units
of the UPDF before joining and, later, commanding the SFG.
He defended the controversial, impromptu move by
former Libyan president, Col Muammar Gaddafi (RIP), to promote him to the rank
of Major after he had just completed his cadet course.
“He [Gaddafi] was a head of state; they [army]
had to respect that,” Muhoozi said. “But for UPDF, they said, ‘Well, you’re not
yet a Major. You’ll be a Major if you have done courses for a Major. So, after
that, I went and did the courses.”
Muhoozi, who has attended several high-profile
courses, including at the UK’s
Royal Military
Academy, Sandhurst,
says the army is now professional and that those criticizing him for commanding
SFG, which protects his father, should know that he is not the first to head
it.
Muntu caution
In 2010, former army commander, Maj Gen Mugisha
Muntu, who is now vying to become the president of Uganda’s largest opposition party,
FDC, told The Observer that the country needed to scrutinise the president’s
intentions.
“Many countries have Special Forces, but what we
need to watch are the intentions behind these changes,” said Muntu, who served
for eight years as army commander.
“Is it for national security, or is it for personal political survival? That is what we have to keep watching.”
“Is it for national security, or is it for personal political survival? That is what we have to keep watching.”
Museveni defence
Early last year, President Museveni, reacted
angrily to suggestions that his son’s position in the army is a result of
nepotism on his part.
And, in a missive dated May 14, 2012, responding
to the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) president, Jaberi Bidandi Ssali — who
was once a close ally — Museveni said Muhoozi is a patriot who is sacrificing
his life for Uganda
just as his (Musveni’s) younger brother, Gen Salim Saleh, did. Museveni said
the duo should be saluted, not ridiculed.
“. . . I have nothing but happiness for my son to
offer his life in the service of the army, as my young brother, Saleh, did. Uganda
is where it is because of such patriots,” Museveni wrote.
He argued that people concerned about his son
serving in the army should instead focus their energy on discussing the
sacrifices Muhoozi is making in the interest of Uganda.
