Kampala — WHAT are the views of the NRM and the opposition on the topic of the week? Sunday Vision pits opposition columnist Wafula Oguttu against Government representative Ofwono Opondo

WAFULA OGUTTU

It is rather unfortunate that the New Vision deliberately carries disinformation from NRM operatives about Dr. Kizza Besigye, the biggest threat to their power, and then asks us to discuss a misconceived question to wit "Was Besigye right to order his supporters to break the thumbs of NRM supporters?"

Besigye never made such an order anywhere. Before this fabrication, there had been another from Hoima alleging that Besigye had called for war. Now the media, especially the internet is awash with the trash basically designed to destroy the Besigye brand, character and leadership.

It is not the first time the NRM government is trying to fabricate information for purposes of destroying Besigye. Since he returned from exile in 2005 and became FDC President, he has suffered several onslaughts. A few weeks after he returned, he was arrested and dragged to court to answer trumped-up charges of treason and rape. It did not work. Now they have resorted to using their propaganda machinery engineered by the disinformation centre called the Media Centre under State House.

The main job of the centre for which Ugandans are paying billions of shillings annually, is to use the media to quote out of context, twist and spin what NRM political opponents (whom they see as enemies) say and turn their words against them. The centre's operatives have for years tried without much success to paint Dr. Besigye as an angry man and a warmonger who should not be a leader.

We know these propagandists are merely diversionary. In this country, we all know who is an accomplished warmonger, who goes or threatens to go to the bush over elections, even when no votes were stolen from him, instead of going the courts of law as Besigye has done twice.

Has Besigye ever gone to the bush to cause the killings of hundreds of citizens even when it was proved in courts of law that he was rigged out of victory? Who is ever threatening Ugandans with the "we fought" scare? That one who will always wear military fatigues and carry AK-47 gun whenever visiting the east and north, the areas he literary conquered. Recall that recent Bududa picture of him at a funeral?

We know he whose existence is completely dependent on the military, violence and wars. Is it Besigye who sent heavily armed troops to the streets of Kampala last September to mow down innocent and unarmed citizens because of expressing themselves through a demonstration?

Besigye has never called for war (and even if he wanted to, FDC would never allow it) but he has repeatedly warned those concerned, the powers that be, not to rig elections again that could drive or give an excuse to some afflicted citizens to resort to violence.

The recent spin on the so-called breaking of NRM thumbs is silly one that it does not deserve my comment. I have seen Besigye refer to NRM thumbs at his rallies. He ridicules most ordinary NRM members who are also suffering poverty like the rest of us under a rotten regime but keep on showing their thumbs and saying "No Change"! Meaning ironically they too like their filthy rich corrupt leaders want to maintain the status quo.

OFWONO OPONDO

THE Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) leader Kizza Besigye told supporters in Arua last week to "break," the thumbs of NRM supporters should they flash their symbol in public, which according to any reasonable person is tantamount to instigating political violence against Ugandans. To use a politer phrase, Besigye's call is plain dim-witted. It is an attempt by Besigye who has failed to sustain violent campaign methods in Kampala to spread his outlandish behaviour up-country.

"Break the fingers of any person who flashes the thumbs-up sign because they are patronising with a system that has failed to deliver," Besigye told FDC supporters during a rally at Arua Hill Primary School, where yours truly, Ofwono Opondo, was in the vicinity and, therefore, not relying on reported speech via the media.

He also added that he would repudiate all agreements being made between the Government and foreign companies should he win next year's elections, a thirst so distant because from his posture every Ugandans should be able to see that Besigye is not the right person to lead our great country, Uganda. His talk is in fact worse that of Idi Amin Dada's who 'dreamt' and expelled Asians even of Ugandan origin and other foreigners and confiscated their investments for distribution to his political cronies in 1972. Those grave mistakes of Amin are what Ugandans are still reeling from and NRM has tried to solve.

It is surprising that a week after Besigye made the call none of the FDC leaders has come out to clarify or indeed disassociate the party from this war talk, a path that will surely lead FDC to self-destruction and create anarchy in the political atmosphere should NRM supporters be attacked and choose to respond in equal or higher measure.

Besigye's brazen conduct is partly motivated by a sloppy psyche of self-delusion that he enjoys international sympathy in the run-up to the 2011 elections, during which should he charged in court then there would be an uproar.

In short, Besigye is trying to court the police to arrest him so he could enjoy another round of populism as he did during 2006 when he was arrested and charged with alleged rape of his former housemaid. For now NRM can only treat Besigye as perhaps politically very desperate and mentally deranged. He should be ignored although watched closely by the Police.

NRM has built and is consolidating the rule of law in the whole country, and so Besigye's talk is just futile talk because he has no capacity to execute his intentions. Ugandans everywhere, including NRM supporters, should freely and openly express their different political affiliations because the communities and state will protect them. Those freedoms that we so abundantly enjoy were not granted by Besigye or anybody else and cannot be taken away Besigye.

Equally investors, both local and foreign, should be free to sign up legitimate contracts with the existing government of Uganda which is popularly elected, established and, therefore, legitimately holding public trust on behalf of all Ugandans. And if there are similar-minded Ugandans like Besigye, there are courts of judicature for legal arbitration in case they feel that some of the investment contracts do not favour Uganda's interests, otherwise Uganda needs consistent and predictable public policies to attract more private investments to generate employment and revenue. Breaking people's fingers doesn't help FDC much. Tolerant NRM will never urge any Ugandan to break the other's fingers or assault one another.