Gen. David Tinyefuza
13 March 2008
document
Kampala — GEN. David Tinyefuza, the coordinator of intelligence services and army MP, presented a statement to Parliament on Tuesday in which he said Buganda Kingdom's demand for the 9,000sq. miles of land was "rubbish and nonsense." This has angered the kingdom officials who say the comments are in breach of the Constitution and the UPDF Act. Below is the statement in full.
Buganda, like the rest of the colonial creations all over Africa, (intra and extra-territorial) is a haphazard placement of peoples with different cultures and linguistic characteristics, albeit related in the general sense.
Hence, when the British, in the 1900 Agreement, delineated the boundaries of Buganda, they did not give any regard to ethnic communities who inhabited some of the areas that were seceded to Buganda.
I do not advocate re-definition of the internal border demarcations, but rather use this example to illustrate the futility of the current talk of Mengo being for Baganda only, a talk devoid of historical knowledge. For instance, in the case of Karamoja, there exists a super-structure that unites people linguistically and culturally different under the same banner of Karamoja people, a colonial creation. The Labwor people of Abim district, belong to the Acholi tribe. The Pokot of Amdat are more related to the Kalenjin of Kenya than they are related to Bokoros or Matheniko of Karamoja. The list of the abrupt and haphazard realignments is endless in the post colonial African states.
When the British set out to mark Buganda's new borders in 1900, some of the areas seceded to Buganda belonged to other indigenous people either under their own chiefs or under other competing kingdoms like Bunyoro and Ankole. The British deliberately ceded many Bunyoro areas to Buganda as a way of pushing Kabalega, who had gallantly resisted colonialism and rewarded the collaborators of colonialism. A look at the names of places in Kabula, Mawogola, Rwemiyaga, Buwekula, Singo, Buruli, Bugerere illustrates this point. Thus, you have names like Kinuuka, Irwamiro in Kabula, Ihongyero Kagadu Omucuungiro gwa rwabigyemano, Omwereego gwa Kyankara, Kabacerekara, Keika Kabeika Kishaabo, Kyenshama na Kentanga, Kakoni Kanyina mwiru in Bwera, currently Sembabule district, Muyenjé, Kyenkwanzi, Kayera in Singo, Bweyale, Bulima Nsobyo, Kabaiko, Kiboga, Kyekumbya, etc in those regions which formally belonged to Bunyoro.
As a matter of fact, in 1964 when ranching schemes were created in these areas, the new inhabitants who came found it impossible to pronounce these names. Hence, they abandoned them and replaced them with numbers. For instance, what came to be known as No. 37 is made up of places like Rianyakasi, Ebiteijura Byanyaburahi, Omwereego gwa Kyankora, Ranch No. 36 was of places like Nkukuruemwe, Kagasha and Mutiri. This was at a great psychological trauma for the indigenous inhabitant let alone economic and social disempowerment. This will not happen again.
Ceded land
Crimes and sins can be committed against individuals as against communities, against the bigger common good, at large.
Emphasis on an individual's right to property should be juxtaposed to the group rights. Communities were displaced by the colonial government. For example, Bunyoro and the other areas were forcefully annexed to Buganda, as the saying goes, "what is good for the goose is good for the gander".
This injustice created by the colonial governments and perpetuated by the bankrupt post colonial regimes affected other peoples in Buyaga and Bungangaizi (current Kibaale district), Buruli, Bugerere, Kabula, Mawogola, Rwemiyaga, Buwekula and Kiboga. The indigenous people in these places were robbed of their lands which were placed under the Mailo land given to the corroborator chiefs, especially in Buganda and to a certain extend Ankole and Toro. The rest of the land in these areas is what is now being referred to as the 9000 sq. miles and claimed by Mengo. Even before this fresh claim of Mengo, it had been a long standing practice of the Mengo government to deny the original inhabitants of these areas leaseholds. In the few instances where such leases were granted, it had to be at the rate of minimum acreage. To compound this injustice, post independence regime of Milton Obote arbitrarily created, under the guise of modernising agriculture several ranching schemes in these areas. These new allocations took no regard to the land interests, or even the overall welfare of the communities who lived in these areas.
Thus, Masaka Ranching scheme, Singo Ranching Scheme and Buruli Ranching Scheme were created and given to absentee landlords who the bigger part levied tax on the indigenous people who kept grazing on these lands. (There were just a few exceptions to this). Other ranches were also created in Ankole and Bunyoro.
These schemes caused massive displacement of peasants in Nyabushozi, Isingiro, Kabula, Mawogola, Rwemiyaga, Singo, Kiboga, Bulemezi, Buruli, Masindi and Kiryandongo. Interesting to note is the fact that these were the areas where the so-called 9000 sq. miles, now being talked about were. Only the Mailo lands in these areas were spared. It was not until the late 1980s that the Movement Government resolved this ranch saga.
Further West, the colonial government and the post colonial regimes displaced other communities like the Basongora in Kasese and Bagungu in Masindi, now Bulisa district. For instance, in the case of Basongora, this ethnic community which from time immemorial occupied presently Busongora county of Kasese and the surrounding lowlands stretching into parts of present day Bushenyi district and some parts of eastern DRC were displaced when the colonial administrations turned most of their land into national game parks; the Queen Elizabeth National Park, Virunga National Park in DRC and much of the remaining lands in Kasese were turned into government institutions; Mobuku Irrigation Scheme, Mobuku Seed Production Unit, Mobuku Prison Farm, Ibuga Army Farm, Ibuga Prison Farm and Ibuga Refugee Settlement. The main excuse given is that the area is flat and attractive to large scale mechanised agriculture and game keeping. Today, before the Movement Government intervention to reverse these historical wrongs, a few Basongora are scattered in Kasese district, the majority having been forced to flee to Ankole, Toro, Bunyoro and other areas of Uganda.
The Bagungu
Another case in point is that of the Bagungu. These are inhabitants of present day Bulisa district, at the shores of Lake Albert. Most of arable land was turned into Murchison National Park and game reserves leaving the people of Bugungu sandwiched between the land and a 30 sq. mile stretch they are now fighting for with encroaching herdsmen.
The Movement Government has provided legal aid to Bagungu community to repossess their land.
Why the long account?
The main reason is to show you Mr. Speaker and honourable members that matters of land cannot remain unattended to. Less than an orderly intervention by the Government like it seeks to do through the Land (Amendment) Bill 2007, be prepared to have a land revolt. A revolt where revolutionary justice will prevail and we would have lost an opportunity to carry out a land reform in an orderly manner.
I hear people threatening a land war by landlords, what a joke when you compare the landlords war with the oppressed, landless peasants, in their millions. We should all stand warned. Therefore, the Mengo clique which is mobilising around the 9000 sq. miles should know that the peasants of these subjugated communities will not lose their lands, they will resist any unjust deals.
While they do not demand reverting to the pre-colonial regions, they will not be subjugated by Mengo. The Movement Government has empowered all Ugandans through decentralisation and there is no going back.
Hate campaign and calls of genocide (fascism): History counts in prediction of the future
Humans have developed a capacity to visualise about the future in clearer relation to historical time. It is not difficult for people who study common behaviour to relate the past to the future. Indeed, most forecasts we deal with today, like in the military, actively use history because there is an assumption of connection among past, present and future events.
Why is this important, therefore, like the old adage goes, "Those who don't remember the past, are condemned to repeat it."
Any adult Ugandan who was old enough in the 1960s and even those young ones who read history cannot help infer similarities of the kind of talk before the abrogation of the 1962 Constitution and the clash between Mengo and the Central Government.
One cannot help to draw a parallel of the hate campaign then, originating from Mengo and coordinated by Mengo.
The divisive messages coming from the Mengo group and aired on CBS FM and other media houses targeting certain regions, or in other instances specific ethnic communities are very regrettable. Indeed, Mengo has joined the opposition to openly call for the extermination of certain tribes. A case in point is the article by Beti Olive Namisango Kamya, Member of Parliament for Rubaga North. In this article, Kamya openly talked of potential genocide against Bahima. "Where will the poor ordinary, innocent Bahima go?" Some groups in Mengo and other politicians have repeated the same sentiments.
My answer to this criminal rhetoric is that the poor, ordinary, innocent Bahima will not go anywhere. It is the genocidaires who will go where the extreme Hutu extremists went. It is them who will end up like the Hutu extremists, the Milosevics of this world. They will either be shot, forced to commit suicide like Hitler or die in the jungles and prisons. I hope they can learn from history, to know that it is futile to take on a people who have right on their side. They always triumph.
Therefore, all those criminals who, for criminal reasons are addressing this land question as tribal must stop.
The constituency which I represent has among its core functions, the protection of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Uganda. Article 209 sets out the functions of the defence forces thus "The functions of the Uganda Peoples Defence forces are;
(a) To preserve and defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Uganda;
(b) To foster harmony and understanding between the Defence forces and civilians.
It is in this light that I want to sound a warning against all those advocating fascism and genocide that the UPDF, in carrying out it constitutional duty, shall not tolerate fascism.
It is fascism which we fought in the past, and will not hesitate to fight it now or in the future. This is the mission of all the revolutionary forces, it is our constitutional duty, to which we are all committed.
Alutta Continua!
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