Please Respect the Senior Citezen!

The world commemorates a day for older persons 1^st of October. This year, it is the 25th anniversary of International Day of Older Persons (IDOP). Older persons face great challenges but older persons in Africa and other developing countries face even greater challenges.  According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, there are about 1.3 million persons above the age of 60 years in Uganda.

Most of these older persons live in isolation, they lack social protection, suffer the high burden of non-communicable diseases and face poverty. The scourge of HIV/AIDS which ravaged the sub-Saharan African countries is one of the major causes of challenges which face the elderly. 

The scourge led to high numbers of orphans left in the care of older persons. The other major cause of tribulations among older persons is war and instability that spread across many parts of the Uganda in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s for the parts of Northern and South Western Uganda near the DRC boarder. War and conflict cause displacement, they distort the labour cycle, cause stress and result into a future generation of disillusionment.  

The other cause and perhaps the most profound cause of suffering among the senior citizens in rural communities, is the erosion of social or cultural ties and values. Culturally the older persons were cared for by the young in communities. The cultural nature of communities respected the elderly and in sense that they were never left to live and die alone in homes while ‘their’ children lived in cities like today.

With the current trend of affairs therefore, the onus is on governments and civil society organizations to support the elderly. While the government continues to increase the bases of solicited taxes from those in employment, more investment in social services needs to be done. This is the only way that the young will be able to work for and to support the elderly. The government needs to ensure that essential and special services for the elderly. Services  as, social protection schemes for the elderly, general health care, palliative care and geriatric care should be introduced, strengthened and sustained.

There is also need for deliberate effort for government systems and civil society strictures to respect the elderly. It is disheartening for example to learn continuously from the press that monies meant for payment to pensioners is misappropriated. Of recent, there have also been reports that a number of pensioners have taken some months without receiving their monthly stipends. Such should be guarded against and instead the government and the National Social Security fund should initiate reforms that offer constant and decent income to the elderly during retirement.

The obligation of the government towards the senior citizens is embedded in article 32 of   the 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda which states that “the state shall make reasonable provision for the welfare and maintenance of the elderly”. By ensuring better living conditions for the elderly, the current generation will only be preparing a soft landing for themselves, after all we all grow old as day follows night.

Do you offer to buy them a beer or not?

It was a great weekend spent in home! every evening whenever I am home, I like joining the discussions with the 'old lads' and youth at the shops near home, call them small separate bars. the 'old lads' (guys of my grand fathers and fathers age) will forever ask me to contribute a fee to their days liquor! I don't know if its right or wrong to offer small notes to them for this. they forever expect me to buy for them some whenever I am around, they somehow make it my responsibility by way of convincing me so more often than not, I will spend just UGX 5,000= on the evening that I have to join them and one can read the appreciation on the faces. I do not taste liquor my self and I always feel that its wrong to buy alcohol but I somehow commit the offence of my conscience and go away with it. Whet do you do to such lads?

That a side, the discussion at the bars this weekend was mostly around politics, women and money.

Politics: ngu Amama and Museveni nibamanyana..they are just confusing us the voters. Ngu Amama is wise, he has bought all the foreign currency (essente zamahanga gaheeru) from Uganda and he is trotting the outside countries. By his actions, the USD has lost value. ngu Amama has an army and if Museveni is not careful he will start a war..Tokureba okwarikugambisa amaani, aine ekyarikwesiga.. etc ectc
Local Politics & Religion: ''Ebyokurwanisa Bishop bitutamire..." Omuntu atemba ekituti kyekanisa kwanika Bishop?.. "kwonka Katonene nawe nomusheija mubi munoga!" The impact of the conflict between the Bishop and his flock is great at the local church. "mbwenu abaana oburonde baburugireho?" Tihakiriho kutebwaho?'' Those who have stood the fight against the Bishop seam to have an upper hand in contesting the upcoming political elections.

Women: ngu "abakazi nibo barikutegyeka Uganda hati.." owenguuto nomukazi, owemishooro nomukazi, owamajuta na oil nomukazi, orikutegyeka kampala momukazi, nangwa na AWIST erugireho orutaro na Katonene netegekwa omukazi" hahah this was a killer from an old Kajabago ka Rubanda! He added: ''go to Kabwohe and count how many cars are driven by women Vs those driven by men! That was his analysis!

Money: Apparently fewer homesteads have coffee in our place because of the "infamous Toduura disease" I was educated that the disease attained its name from its nature of being not discrimitave..toduura! The money discussions centered around, the current good price of coffee, matooke, cattle and Boda Boda. In fact serious youth in boda boda business seam to be doing well. The SACCOs have also had their way. People are using them!

I liked the discussions this weekend but came along thinking: Will the ultimate measure of a choosing any leader in Sheema District be the contending leaders stand and effort to the fight against Katonene?

This Should not Happen again Anywhere !

http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/669608-mother-of-two-held-over-child-torture.html

Restore the Church of Uganda Leadership in Sheema District

Christians of the Anglican Community in Sheema District resolved to secede from Weste Ankole Diocese. Christians met at Saturday 30^th May at St. Emmanuel Church in kabwohe and appealed to the Province of the Church of Uganda to split the current Diocese of West Ankole to form another Diocese of ‘Central Ankole’. The meeting was well by many including Cabinet Ministers of Government hailing from Sheema District, Members of Parliament, prominent former leaders and members of the District leadership. 

Bishop Y. Katonene the reigning Bishop of West Ankole Diocese had a media briefing in Mbarara the following day where he described the decision by the section of Christians as ‘null and void’.  Accordingly, the Bishop went on to state that the resolution by the Christians “was dangerous and poisonous to the flock.”

Expressions of disgruntlement between a section of Christians in Sheema and the reigning Bishop are not a new thing. The wrangles have taken over two years and they stem and rotate around the Bishop’s wish to transfer part of Ankole Western Institute of Science and Technology (AWIST) to another location in Bushenyi District. The Bishop’s desire did not go well with a section of Christians who formed a task force and it “Sheema Stakeholders”. The ‘stake holders at one time petitioned President Museveni who chaired a meeting between the two parties. For some time, after the meeting with the president, there was a semblance of calm in the land but this is no more!

The Bishop has since been escorted by Police to attend boycotted church functions. Some church leaders have been chased away from church premises or humiliated for being loyal to the bishop. In some parts of Sheema District, the churches are run on the sole advice of the ‘Sheema stakeholders’.

The strategy of the leadership at the Diocese to resolve the impasse has been confrontational. Amicable dialogue through conflict resolution strategies has lacked and a war of verbal abuses, accusations and threats have persisted. There is a semblance for lack of leadership in resolving the conflict.

As this conflict rages, some prominent Christians and leaders have decided to keep quiet about it. This is in disregard of the high importance of a proper functioning church in not only Sheema but also in our country. The church was instrumental and still holds the founding status of key educational and health institutions in this nation. Without a proper functioning church, the governance bodies of some of these institutions are in limbo. This has a greater impact on our education system. A proper functioning church is the headlock of morals to a christian dominated community like ours. What will be the explanation to the current generation of young children who have watched their fathers run after, abuse or humiliate church leaders? What should be sacred alters in church premises are now pulpits of castigating messages against church leaders.

As the Bankole say ‘’eka eteine nyineka etembwa ebikyere’’ literally translated; a family without a head will crumble one day.  

It’s high time the Province of the church of Uganda stepped in the gap to resolve the impasse. The Christians in Sheema and one can easily say that Anglican church community in Sheema district is at cross roads of a revolution or distraction.

Mark Mwesiga's Blog: 'Smoke' withot Fire

Mark Mwesiga's Blog: The can be 'Smoke' withot Fire