By M. Suleman

12^th Nov 2012:  He inherited an economy in recession.  He inherited two wars and international terrorism.  He inherited a restless Middle-East, and a jittery Iran – not to mention the largely directionless Africa.

Then there were the big foreign policy issues pending with Pakistan, China, and Russia.  The complexity of these problems left many Americans restless and uncertain of the future. With the US as the most powerful nation in the world, it’s perhaps safe to say the same feeling of restlessness was felt by the rest of the world.

However, with surgical precision, intellect, and determination, Obama confronted the challenges and after a mere four years, US democracy demanded that he goes back to the people with his achievement report before he is given another four years as president.

For Obama the elections were about what he had promised, what he had achieved, what he intends to do how he intends to do it with facts and figures, but everything had to prove positive change.

The emotional tears on the last day of his campaigns aside, there is no doubt that Obama fought a brave battle.  His track record spoke volumes.  He proved that he was not only intellectually fit to govern America, he also showed that he was a great representative of the great nation.

Although no one really doubted his integrity and commitment to the American nation, Obama also proved that his primary mission in politics was to serve the people of America – especially the less advantaged!

Obama’s re-election definitely caused many Ugandans to reflect on the state of affairs in their own country to compare.  I suspect that like me, they found that there was absolutely nothing to compare between Obama and Museveni.  It’s like comparing an Angel with a reckless devil.

Since his entry in politics, Obama has relied on his ability.  He is creative, innovative, and transformative.  He seeks solutions to problems.  He is good at numbers, facts, and time lines. He is not afraid of competition. 

He debates and communicates. His speeches are a marvel – just nice to listen to, even if you do not subscribe to his ideas. Which African president comes close to Obama?  None!

How, for example, can one compare Obama to an autocrat like Museveni who believes he is the only one amongst millions with the best ideas for Uganda?  How do you compare Obama to Museveni who thinks his ideas should never be challenged, who thinks Uganda deserves only one dominant party, and who thinks he is entitled to lead till death?

And yet when you look at the naked facts, even after 26 years of Museveni’s rule, the country still has a narrow tax base, it’s heavily indebted, it begs for budget support every year, it has a huge trade deficit, and it has weird economic policies.

Other than that, Museveni is presiding over the most corrupt and inefficient government that Uganda has ever seen.  The infrastructure has collapsed, good health services exist only in our distant memories, our education system is hopeless, unemployment is endemic – I could go on until the proverbial cows come home!

The big questions then are: Do millions of Ugandans deserve to be led by a near senile despot like Museveni?  Does he represent Uganda?  Are Ugandans proud to have him as an embodiment of the nation?  No!

Because of these huge differences, I doubt very much that Obama will ever visit Uganda – because he is ashamed of Museveni.  END: Login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories mid-week for our updates

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