Since last year, there has been a growing revolutionary influence where young people have ignited a strong revolutionary challenge against governments and the existing global norms of the socio-political and economic spheres of life.
Under the revolutionary code “Gen Z” the revolution is all over the world, and there’s a wide growing threat to governments all over the world about their motivation to address contemporary challenges through political overhauls and change of insensitive governments.
We have seen “Gen Z” protests in Togo attempting to overthrow one Africa’s longest oligarchies, in Kenya, and all over the world. Why aren’t these happening in Uganda?
Majority of Uganda’s youths have seemingly either taken sides with president Museveni who has been in power for nearly 40 years, or chosen silence. How has this been possible?
Despite the growing pressure on social media and from the Civil Society against president Museveni’s 40 years reign. A clear observation still reflects large crowds of young people escorting his recent political comeback with praises and slogans of hope and certainty.
But why, and really why would the debutant voters praise an 80 years old Museveni amidst greater issues as raised by Gen Z’s worldwide including unemployment, corruption and governance immoralities? Will Uganda really survive the Gen Z revolution?
This brings us to a deeper analysis of why many youths are actually determined and also pre-determined towards Museveni’s reign or any of his endorsed successors. Pre-determination means that Ugandan GenZ’s can vote for Museveni’s son, or any other successor endorsed by him.
This could be largely due to the greater desire for peace and stability as largely enshrined in the NRM ideologies. But also, some claim that government programs like PDM, Youth Skilling, EMYOGA, and government commitment to infrastructure development like roads, public relation schemes by the regime apparatus like NRM propagandists, social media and state own media like TV, radios and newspapers
Some government programs like the universal education in primary and post primary education, education scholarships like district quotas and government merit schemes in Uganda and abroad have created a ready cycle of the Museveni fun base. This is despite of the current raising costs of the education in the country.
Also, some analysts say that it is as a result of the greedy, incompetent and un-trustworthy opposition that is always dealing with the regime and insensitive to angry and violent calls to change the regime.
On many occasions, whenever there is a serious concern or mobilization calling for protests against the regime, the country’s leading opposition leader Bobi Wine finds a trip or a music concert outside the country which has casted doubts to his sensitivity towards regime change. Other opposition leaders and political parties have either taken sides with the NRM through cooperation agreements, or on government payroll, or always taken a moment of silence towards regime change which has left change seeking youths in dire hopelessness.
These conditions have made it difficult for the civil society, political parties, political actors, and foreign governments to ignite a Gen Z uprising in the country and predictably not any arrangements any time soon.
Richard Byamukama is a lawyer and a security studies expert
The simple answer is that Uganda is still extremely rural and not yet urban enough. Most youths can still scrape by in the villages. In 15 or 20 years Uganda will have a critical mass of urban youths without much prospects. Their days will come.