Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda Synthesis Report of the Proceedings of the 9th Session of the State of the Nation Platform June 4, 2010, Kampala-Uganda Bernard Tabaire Jackie Okao Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda ACODE Policy Dialogue Series No. 13, 2010 ©ACODE Citation: Tabaire, B., and Okao, J., (2010). Politics, Patronage and Religion in Uganda: A Synthesis Report of the Proceedings of the 9th Session of the State of the Nation Platform. ACODE Policy Dialogue Series, No. 13, 2010. Kampala. Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda Synthesis Report of the Proceedings of the 9th Session of the State of the Nation Platform June 4, 2010, Kampala-Uganda Bernard Tabaire Jackie Okao ACODE Policy Dialogue Series No. 13, 2010 Table of Content List of Acronyms........................................................................................... 3 Introduction....................................................................................... 4 Governance: A General Picture............................................................ 5 Place of Religious Organisations.......................................................... 17 Church Should Focus on God and Country.......................................... 11 Conclusion.......................................................................................... 14 Annex: List of Participants.................................................................... 17 Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda List of Acronyms STON State of the Nation GDP Gross Domestic Product APRM African Peer Review Mechanism UPC Uganda People’s Congress IRCU Inter-Religious Council of Uganda UJCC Uganda Joint Christian Council UPE Universal Primary Education MP Member of Parliament TTI Think Tank Initiative Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda Introduction The 9th State of the Nation Platform denominations and officials from meeting held on June 4, 2010 Inter-religious Council of Uganda. debated the “The Role of Religious There was near unanimity at the Leaders in Promoting and Sustaining end of the debate that things are Democracy and Good Governance in not going well in Uganda. Churches Uganda: Towards the 2011 Elections or religious groupings/faith-based and Beyond.” Bishop Zac Niringiye, organisations are very much a part the assistant Bishop of the Church of the problem. They are selfish, of Uganda’s Diocese of Kampala corrupt, and are as patronage- and the chairman of the National oriented as the government that Governing Council of the African Peer has so successfully co-opted them. Review Mechanism was the main But things need not stay that way. A speaker. The other speakers included new beginning with a new cadre of politician and former journalist Sheila leaders with vision, conviction, and Kawamara, Rev. Fr. Peter Matovu of the courage is Uganda needs to kick Orthodox Church, and Sheik. Amani the country to a higher level, not Sulaiman Asiimwe of the Islamic new laws and institutions because faith. The meeting was well attended the country has adequate by religious leaders from other Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda Governance: A General Picture Bishop Zac Niringiye framed his submission in terms of the politics of patronage. “Our governance challenge is political,” he said. “We have a long history of the entrenched politics of patronage.” It is no longer God and Country first, the bishop said in reference to Uganda’s national motto: For God and My Country. The motto that works, he said, is: For Me and My Group First. Whether it is creation of districts or behaviour of churches. For example, Bishop Zac Niringiye, the Chairman of the National Governing when Catholics and Anglicans Council of APRM, making a submission on the role of religious leaders in promoting and sustaining democracy and good conflict quietly in western Uganda, it governance at the 9th session of the platform is all to do with ‘me and my group’. “We seem not to have leaders who institutions and policies and the are capable of going beyond this other related aspects? mindset,” the bishop said. “As a country,” the bishop said, “we Digging into the discussion further, have produced work that gives us the clergyman said the quality of tools to check how the quality of life life of citizens is the key measure of is changing.” There is the country how good or bad governance is in a review report, an outcome of the country. This way of looking at things African Peer Review Mechanism goes beyond the Gross Domestic (APRM) self-assessment process. The Product (GDP) measure largely report lists 10 cross cutting issues because GDP figures in Uganda tell that are critical for the country to a rosier story than what real people address so as to ensure meaningful know and feel exists. Therefore, using progress. These include high the human development indices, population growth, management or for that matter the prosperity/ of political transition, the land wellbeing indices, yields more question, resolution of conflict in realistic results. When considering northern Uganda, decentralisation, governance, one needs also to management of political diversity examine the foundational nature of and corruption. Countries that have programmes, policies, mechanisms, ignored aspects of the APRM findings structures, systems, institutions, have paid dearly, for example, South and practices that aim to deliver Africa had an explosion of xenophobic wellbeing. What undergirds the violence in 2008, and Kenya which Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda experienced post-election violence has not stopped the corrupt in their early in 2008. tracks. Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index in On corruption, Bishop Zac declared: 2009 ranked Uganda number 130 “We can be classified as a corrupt out of 180 countries, a spot it shares society. No doubt about that.” with countries such as Nigeria and Ironically, Uganda is lauded for Mauritania. That was a drop from having good laws on corruption. The a year earlier when it ranked 126 of Anti-Corruption Act passed in 2009 180 countries. is as tough as they come but that Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda Place of Religious Organisations If churches or religious organisations political, seem unable to think are to make a difference, Bishop Zac beyond patronage – patronage said, they must address patronage based on groups and individuals. nationally and within their own The political parties, the bishop ranks. “The biggest challenge said, are “supposed to exercise they face, however, is that they patronage of ideas but are stuck in themselves are trapped in the politics the patronage of individuals. UPC of patronage,” he said. “Churches made [a leadership] change after and religious groupings are part [founding party president Milton] of the problem.” Apparently, the Obote’s death. I hope the rest [of people who proclaim loud and clear the political parties] are not waiting For God and My Country are the very for their leaders to die first”. ones betraying the motto through In support of the bishop’s thesis, Ms. the way they act. Sheila Kawamara said that religious There is also an inherent inertia in groupings, indeed, are part of the the way religious groups approach governance problem in Uganda. Ms. some national issues. They are more Kawamala referred to Martyrs Day, a interested in increasing the size public holiday that fell the day before of their groups. The contest over the debate, to illustrate her point. education in Uganda has nothing to “The whole of last week, the Church do with quality but of which religious of Uganda put out adverts inviting groups have the largest number of people to go to the Anglican shrine educational institutions. Faith-based at Namugongo, that His Excellency foundations deliver 75 percent would be the chief guest,” she of education. “Now, the failure said. “But is President Museveni not to perform, especially regarding Anglican, a Christian? Why should UPE, cuts across,” Bishop Zac said, he be invited? Anyhow, when he adding that an issue like quality of went, he donated Shs100 million. education should be addressed at That was the catch.” all levels, even political levels. “Sadly, Ms. Kawamara, added that when historically, religious groups are a she was growing up she thought source of division. If churches are to the church was the most organised be relevant, they themselves must institution. “But now there is be re-oriented; we must call for re- bickering. There is corruption.” formation to act beyond ourselves and act for God and Country. There Rev. Fr. Peter Matovu declared that is need for a new way of acting by the faithful and their leaders are religious groupings.” confused and corrupt. “Everybody wants to eat,” he said. “We need Leaders, both religious and to go back to the orthodox period Politics of Patronage and Religion in Uganda Sheik Sulaiman Asiimwe, Ms. Sheilla Kawamara, Dr. Peter Mwesige, Bishop Zac Niringiye during the 9th session of the platform on the role of religious leaders in promoting democracy and good governance in Christianity when leaders were the pew, he is critical to the day’s concerned about leading for God. collections. Politicians tend to give We need to restore the dissociated big money when they attend church mind.” or go to the mosque. When time for elections comes, they hope that the In Sheik Amani Sulaiman Asiimwe’s faithful will remember their generosity view there is corruption because of and reward them with votes. This is the need