DANIEL ARAP MOI CALLS FOR PEACEFUL 2011 ELECTIONS IN UGANDA

Tuesday, 26th January, 2010

By Milton Olupot and Daniel Edyegu FORMER Kenyan leader Daniel Arap Moi yesterday called for peaceful elections in the region and urged political leaders to learn to accept defeat. Moi was yesterday speaking at the celebration to mark the 24th anniversary of the National Resistance Movement at Malukhu in Mbale. Moi addressed the function shortly after he was decorated with the Nalubaale Medal. The NRA external wing had a base in Nairobi during the Luwero Triangle guerrilla war. Museveni decorated Moi and thanked him for honoring his invitation. He said the visit had enabled them discuss their past experiences, where the former president was intimately involved. “Elections produce winners and losers. There is no election that produces two winners. Let us not burn down our homes or kill and maim our people just because the election results did not favour us,” Moi said. He called for strict adherence to the rules for free and fair elections. He said leaders must learn to accept defeat or find other ways of expressing themselves if not satisfied with the outcomes. Violent riots erupted in early 2008 in Kenya after a disputed election claimed to be won by the incumbent, President Mwai Kibaki, who took power after Moi retired. Hundreds of Kenyans were killed in the tribal violence that left tens of thousands displaced. Some fled to Uganda for safety and are yet to return home. In his speech, Moi revealed that he was aware of President Yoweri Museveni’s movements in Nairobi while he fought the five-year guerrilla war that brought him to power in 1986. “When President Museveni was struggling for peace in Uganda, he used to move around Nairobi. I knew what he was doing and I knew he was the right person for Ugandans. Since 1986, I have seen a new Uganda,” he said. Moi thanked Museveni for holding Uganda together. “I thank you, my brother, for standing for peace and unity of these great people of Uganda. Your strength as a nation is found in unity, not division. With unity you can embark on development.” He said there was nothing else that liberates people from poverty and ignorance than when people set aside petty differences and work for a common purpose. “In this respect I call upon every individual Ugandan to put the interests of the common man way above personal interests. My word for you today is: never deviate from the line of peace.” The former president also thanked Museveni for his role as a mediator between the warring parties after the disputed elections in Kenya; and he thanked Ugandans for hosting Kenyan refugees. He commended Museveni for what he called his vision beyond the horizon. “I commend him for his vision for East Africa and hope that this dream of an East African federation, will come into being in our lifetime.” In his address, Museveni listed the achievements of his Government for the last 24 years. These, he said, included democratisation of the country. “All the leaders are elected, right from the village level.” He cited other achievements as peace in Karamoja and the northern region, a liberalised economy, decentralisation, infrastructure development and the restoration of traditional leaders. He said his Government inherited a collapsed economy with 260% inflation, but it had expanded six times since 1986. The President reiterated his warning against corrupt officials saying it was now time to fight them. On the oil, Museveni stated that the refinery to be built will produce oil for the entire East African region.