Revive community, citizenship values to fight corruption

I like the tone Chief Justice Bart Katureebe has come with into office. It is not only a tone of quickly delivering on justice through expeditious trails – but importantly, confronting corruption in the Judiciary and by extension the country. This enthusiasm of Chief Justice must be supported, encouraged and not extinguished.
The country is optimistic and looking forward to action. Yet I strongly believe, that to strengthen this new energy manifested in Chief Justice, the discourse on how to fully confront and defeat corruption must go beyond a forest of laws and plethora of anti- corruption institutions, often grandstanding in parliamentary oversight committees, political sound bites and playing to the gallery – to concrete actions that balance laws and morals in this country. Recently, Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta remarked that “corruption is the greatest threat to our security, fundamental rights and social-economic transformation” His nerve remark is not only true for Kenya- but for Uganda, and perhaps the entire world. Instead of reaching out to each other as a citizenry, we are stealing from each other. The battle against corruption is frustrating and sometimes sucks energy, but we shouldn’t give up. Citizen action is critical. Beyond political actors; Where is Black Monday? Where are our religious and cultural leaders? Where are our teachers, trade unionists, community organisers, traditional healers, Facebookers, tweeps, farmers, brethren, wives and husbands?
Folks, it’s now clear an iron curtain of corruption has descended across our nation. Most sectors of everyday life are affected- be it churches, mosques, homes, universities, schools, sports clubs, government offices, private offices, gardens, etc. For example, farmers are reportedly conniving with extension workers to inflate input prices, some local councils and community leaders are taking bribes to make unfair decisions in village courts, police constables are reported receiving ‘facilitation’ to intervene on behalf of cunning village landed gentry to cheat peasants, teachers are riding boda bodas for quick buck and receiving salaries (from tax payers) while our children are receiving no lessons, milk vendors are powering water in milk to cheat consumers, traders are tampering with weighing scales and cheating farmers, politicians are buying votes, voters are selling their votes, business men are cheating government taxes, etc – this trend may not be in the headlines –but it is sadly entrenched. Will a compendium of anti-corruption laws and legislations alone stop this anarchy? As a country- we need a renewal and a return to our core ancestral values that define us a people that lived by code of respect, fairness, community and honesty.
All leaders and parents of this country must engage in preaching and stop pointing fingers- because, givers and receivers of bribes are in summary all criminals. I hope this will not be dismissed by sceptics and law puritans as moralising the fight against corruption. It is also not a lamentation – but call to action. My hunch tells me we have focused more on putting in place hardware administrative, legislative and judicial systems while relegating software incentives that entrench powerful value systems and social sanctions in our country. The NRM government has worked to strengthen investigative organs that deal with corruption. For example, the government reformed the office of the Auditor General (AG) and Director of Public prosecutions (DPP) from mere departments to substantive and independent institutions. The Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC) has powers of high court and is visibly interrogative and very much on the scene in the corruption fight. The anti- corruption court is in place. These institutions have sometimes delivered – and most corruption scandals are exposed by the Auditor General’s office- a government institution. But citizens want more than mere discovery and exposure of corruption scandals to actions that deliver justice and build competent systems that make corruption untenable and dangerously risky. Efforts at eliminating payroll corruption are yielding positive results. Administrative sanctions issued by Ministry of Finance permanent secretary Keith Muhakanizi were at first painful to genuine public workers but have since saved billions of tax payers’ money. But how do we holistically defeat corruption?
A sustainable solution to corruption lies in return to a robust struggle for revival and entrenchment of values of community and citizenship. Especially so with young people in our schools, clubs and everywhere. They need to learn that the world must be shared and every one must have an opportunity. That to own 20 houses you can’t sleep in at once and four cars you can’t drive at once is meaningless and backward. Parents must live by example- we must for instance go to our children’s schools and request to speak to children classes about the subject of values like morality and community. If we don’t live by example and preach our historic values- society is gone! Not even the fiercest of laws and prison sentences will avert this dangerous trend. Does this sound simplistic? No. It’s the only credible journey we must start. Nelson Mandela, in his latest 2011 book – Conversations with My Self; tells a compelling story about real progress. He counsels that “…. In judging our progress as individuals, we tend concentrate on external factors such as one’s social position, influence and popularity, wealth and standard of education. These are of course important in measuring one’s success in material matters and it is perfectly understandable if many people exert themselves mainly to achieve all these. But internal factors may be even more crucial in assessing ones development as a human being. Honesty, sincerity, simplicity, humility, pure generosity, absence of vanity, readiness to serve others – qualities which are within reach of every soul – are the foundations of one’s spiritual life. Development in matters of this nature is inconceivable without serious introspection, without knowing yourself, your weaknesses and mistakes….never forget that a saint is a sinner who keeps on trying”
The foregoing gospel according to Mandela is important. Interpreted seriously, it summons our courage as a country to engage in serious introspection. He reminds us that those internal factors like honesty and readiness to serve others are the most important and within our reach. Aren’t those we need to overcome corruption? Can we defeat the reigning dominant psychology that is bent on material factors that Mandela talks about? Can we rally to the principle of common citizenship that Winston Churchill talked about on March 5, 1946?
Mr Rwakakamba is a special presidential assistant – Research and Information, mrwakakamba@gmail.com.