Obore: A sacrificial lamb – and why Teso voted Museveni and rejected homeboy Amuriat

Amuriat, Museveni and the Teso vote | Chris Obore

A vote for President Museveni in Teso against our own Amuriat was not to say we don’t like Amuriat.

Some of us in Teso had to give strategic direction right from the grassroots.

Amuriat is ours and will be ours. But Iteso exist in a context called Uganda.

We haven’t got any good deal since 1986.

The reason was that we harbored anti government sentiments.

We are angry. Bitter.

The recent election was the litmus test.

Those who were fed while we were blackmailed as bitter people and antigovernment, turned against the very hand that fed them.

Iteso are not such people. We relate honestly.

We felt for our own Amuriat but we had to sit and think.

I live in my village and I smell stress in the faces of our young.
The elderly are weak.

Limited options.

I turned into a counselor. They think I know government and can open opportunities for them.

But I face similar injustice as them. Only that I failed to cry before them because they can lose all the hope. Leadership is about giving hope too.

We have no voice. Reason? We were tagged anti-government people not deserving of any important positions in government.

We are only good as security guards.

I told the youth that we can turn this round. Let’s think objectively.

Uganda is still here. Let’s us learn to run long distance. Let’s peer into the future.

Let’s remove the antigovernment tag so that historians don’t cement the position that we were sidelined because we were always against government.

Let’s utilize the peace and stability as we see the future.

With our natural intellect and hard work , we can go far if government gave Teso even a quarter of the attention other places have.

And the return would be honest relationship not pretense and hypocrisy.

After our elder Nathan Obore, no other Etesot / Atesot has been appointed permanent secretary.

We are at the mercy of others in technical matters. But we have the capabilities.

I could say a lot but let me end here. Hope government doesn’t behave like some men who mistreat their loving wives at home while spending family resources pleasing wayward mistresses.

For long Iteso were seen and treated with suspicion. Amuriat has paid the price for that suspicion to be removed.

Chris Obore is a former Parliament of Uganda director of communication.