A day after he resumed his countrywide tour, starting in Bundibugyo on June 15, and as he heads to Ishaka-Bushenyi Municipality on Tuesday, National Unity Platform (NUP) president Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu aka Bobi Wine has urged Ugandans to emulate Kenyan youths, the Gen Zs, who recently shook up their nation.
Bobi Wine lauded the Kenyan protests as an example for Africa and world on peaceful expression of discontent, noting that even when there was no war, Gen Zs stood up and were heard by their leaders.
The NUP leader said Ugandans must resolved to peacefully come out and “assert themselves” if they want to heard. He went ahead and warned Ugandans against putting their trust and placing their future in the hands of selfish politicians.
“I am calling upon the people of Uganda to emulate the young people in Kenya and not leave their future in the hands of politicians. They must hold these politicians accountable,” Bobi Wine told NTV in Mbarara as he prepared to head to Ishaka-Bushenyi Municipality.
“When I urge our people to emulate the Kenyans, consider this: Was there a war in Kenya? Did the people rise up unarmed and non-violently assert themselves? Yes, they did. And did they achieve results? Yes, they did. The young people of Kenya didn’t just act for themselves but for the whole of Africa, in fact for the whole world.”
Bobi Wine further claimed that the state was trying “to provoke us into violence,” NUP would desist from confronting security officers. In Bundibugyo, Bobi Wine and his team complained that police had blocked them from addressing their supporters on radio and at an earlier booked venue.
“We are doing our best to pursue legal avenues and avoid confrontation with the police, no matter how persistently they challenge us. They have put stringent conditions and we have abided by them,” he said.
In Kenya, Protesters burnt a section of parliament, prompting President William Ruto to label them ‘dangerous criminals’ who had committed ‘treasonous” actions, and ones that would be punished.
But Ruto would later bow to pressure to withdraw the contentious Finance Bill 2024 in which government had proposed taxes that Gen Zs vehemently rejected. Ruto would also sack his entire cabinet while the police chief resigned over the handling of protests. (See Details Here and There).
Uganda police has warned Ugandan Gen Zs against engaging in protests or even the march to parliament over corruption.
President Yoweri Museveni has vowed to crush corrupt government officials. At the weekend, internal affairs minister Maj Gen (Rtd) Kahinda Otafiire made it clear that demanding accountability IS NOT hate speech after a former deputy RCC was remanded for, among others, calling Speaker of Parliament Anita Among ‘corrupt.’ (See Details Here, There and Over There).
