• Latest
Congrats Gen Kainerugaba for Ending Uganda-Rwanda Standoff

Congrats Gen Kainerugaba for Ending Uganda-Rwanda Standoff

March 12, 2022
Operation Shujaa: Locals Hail UPDF, DR Congo Army for Scaling Down ADF Atrocities

Operation Shujaa: Locals Hail UPDF, DR Congo Army for Scaling Down ADF Atrocities

May 21, 2022
Over 100 NUP Supporters Cross to NRM in Omoro

Over 100 NUP Supporters Cross to NRM in Omoro

May 21, 2022
Respect Human Rights, Gen Balikuddembe tells UPDF Troops in Karamoja

Respect Human Rights, Gen Balikuddembe tells UPDF Troops in Karamoja

May 21, 2022
Historic Masjid Mbogo Gets Shs212m Facelift

Historic Masjid Mbogo Gets Shs212m Facelift

May 21, 2022
Commonwealth Games 2022: Team Uganda Launched as Gov’t Sets Aside Shs7.1bn for Athletes

Commonwealth Games 2022: Team Uganda Launched as Gov’t Sets Aside Shs7.1bn for Athletes

May 20, 2022
Sheebah Named West Lake Water Brand Ambassador

Sheebah Named West Lake Water Brand Ambassador

May 20, 2022
Uganda Economy Grew by 3.8% Despite Covid Impact – Budget Committee

Uganda Economy Grew by 3.8% Despite Covid Impact – Budget Committee

May 20, 2022
Stanbic Bank Commits Shs100m Towards National Tree Planting

Stanbic Bank Commits Shs100m Towards National Tree Planting

May 20, 2022
Kadaga Nominated to be Among Selection Board for Cremer-Passey Prize

Kadaga Nominated to be Among Selection Board for Cremer-Passey Prize

May 20, 2022
72nd Makerere Graduation: Muhumuza Julia Emerges Best MUBS Student

72nd Makerere Graduation: Muhumuza Julia Emerges Best MUBS Student

May 20, 2022
Pictorial: Museveni Flags off Uganda’s First Marine Ambulances

Pictorial: Museveni Flags off Uganda’s First Marine Ambulances

May 20, 2022
Parliament Passes Shs48.1trillion Budget for Financial Year 2022/23

Parliament Passes Shs48.1trillion Budget for Financial Year 2022/23

May 20, 2022
SoftPower News
Saturday, May 21, 2022
  • News
  • Tourism & Travel
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
    • Fashion
  • Regional
    • Kenya
    • Rwanda
    • Tanzania
    • Burundi
    • South Sudan
    • DR Congo
  • Defence & Security
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • More
    • Agriculture
    • Africa
    • Columnists
    • Education
    • Health
      • COVID-19
    • International News
    • News in Pictures
    • OpEd
    • Pearl Of Africa
    • People
    • Politics
    • Special Reports
    • Women
No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Tourism & Travel
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
    • Fashion
  • Regional
    • Kenya
    • Rwanda
    • Tanzania
    • Burundi
    • South Sudan
    • DR Congo
  • Defence & Security
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • More
    • Agriculture
    • Africa
    • Columnists
    • Education
    • Health
      • COVID-19
    • International News
    • News in Pictures
    • OpEd
    • Pearl Of Africa
    • People
    • Politics
    • Special Reports
    • Women
No Result
View All Result
SoftPower News
No Result
View All Result

Congrats Gen Kainerugaba for Ending Uganda-Rwanda Standoff

by SoftPower
March 12, 2022
Congrats Gen Kainerugaba for Ending Uganda-Rwanda Standoff

Lt Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba and President Paul Kagame

  • Facebook
  • Tweet
  • WhatsApp
  • Telegram
  • Email

By Obed K Katureebe

Not so long ago, to be precise at the end of January 2022, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba took a bold step to end the Uganda/ Rwanda standoff that had existed for over three years. This standoff had led to the closure of the borders of the two brotherly countries. The amount of loss between the countries in terms of trade, social cohesion and of course human lives is unquantifiable.

It looked an odious task; remember this conundrum of a standoff had failed to be resolved by presidents in the region and other international diplomats. However, in a matter of days Gen. Kainerugaba was in Kigali on the invitation of President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and what followed is now common knowledge i.e borders have been opened and the process of rapprochement seem to be moving to another level of normalization of all our bilateral relationships.

Of course, in all this massive success the role of President Yoweri Museveni who gave Gen. Kainerugaba all the confidence and support to end the standoff has to be lauded in equal measure. Guess what, we are talking about a period of two months and the road to full normalization of relationship is almost complete.

Why did Gen. Kainerugaba and President Kagame achieve this milestone in such a short time? My take is that the two leaders approached this problem with honesty, commitment and extreme wisdom that is only rare to men and women gifted with certain amount of vision. We celebrate them.

The celebrations in Kigali and Kampala on the 7th March 2022, when passenger buses were allowed to leave Kigali to Kampala after three years of border closure are a testimony of the milestone the two visionary men had achieved.

I will not go into what the benefits of the normalization of relationship of the two countries that share a lot in common mean because my assumption is that this is common knowledge to every well meaning Ugandan and Rwandese. We have a lot to lose in conflict but a gazillion benefits when we choose peaceful coexistence.

My big celebration though is that the two countries have ended the ‘capture’ of wrong elements on either side of the two countries that were profiteering in peddling wrong and dangerous information that kept the two great nations apart.

Scholars in conflict studies refer to such people who espouse such an agenda as selfish Greedy Merchants. Greedy Merchants thrive in conflicts and rebellion purely for purposes of greed. In other words, they are motivated by a desire to better their situation, and perform an informal cost benefit analysis in examining if the rewards of fermenting a rebellion or conflict are greater than no war or conflict. These are extremely dangerous people because they put across their greed and selfishness as the primary driving factor. They care less if nations went into bloody conflicts if only it satisfies their selfish and dangerous greed.

Such people are like vultures who that thrive on feasting on dead carcasses of animals that suffer pandemics or die during dry spells when they lack and water for survival.

I must admit some of us have witnessed a lot of such criminal minded greedy information merchants on either side of the conflict ie between Rwanda and Uganda. We prayed day and night for this to end such that these lousy and greed merchants are deactivated because they are God forsaken lot whose services will not be required when the two countries are honestly talking to each other . I know institutions of government can detect their lies through different stages of analysis, but there are some smart criminal merchants who succeed in misleading state actors.

Personally, I have been wrongly rebelled a vitriolic critique of the Rwandan government who hides my identity through the pseudo names of some blogger who identifies himself as RPF Gakwerere. So sad that I also have no idea about this blogger. I chose not to respond to the several accusations by several trolls in Rwanda because I knew no amount of talk would exonerate me as long as the two countries were still having a standoff. Thank God the standoff is over and there are now honest conversations between the two governments and the era of greedy information merchants is over. No doubt soon the real Gakwerere will be known.

Finally, Ugandans and Rwandese of good faith must cheers these efforts towards full normalization. We all should honestly work towards ending whatever impediments that had strained the good relationship between the two brotherly countries. We need cheer our leaders on either side such that whatever remaining imponderables are quickly sorted and the citizens of both Rwanda and Uganda enjoy fully the benefits of good neighborliness. May the good lord continue blessing our beloved leaders and citizens of the two countries.

The writer works with Uganda Media Centre.

 

Post Views: 222
  • Facebook
  • Tweet
  • WhatsApp
  • Telegram
  • Email
Tags: Muhoozi KainerugabaObedRwanda relationsSoftPowerSoftPower NewsUganda
Leave Comment

Recent Stories

Operation Shujaa: Locals Hail UPDF, DR Congo Army for Scaling Down ADF Atrocities

Over 100 NUP Supporters Cross to NRM in Omoro

Respect Human Rights, Gen Balikuddembe tells UPDF Troops in Karamoja

Historic Masjid Mbogo Gets Shs212m Facelift

Commonwealth Games 2022: Team Uganda Launched as Gov’t Sets Aside Shs7.1bn for Athletes

Sheebah Named West Lake Water Brand Ambassador

SoftPower News

SoftPower News is a subsidiary of SoftPower Communications LLC, a Ugandan digital media group. Keep posted of the latest from Uganda and East Africa.
Plot 4B Malcolm X, Kololo
P.O Box 1497, Kampala - Uganda
Tel: +256-392-001-701
Email: info@softpower.ug

This news site is licenced by Uganda Communications Commission (UCC)

ADVERTISEMENT
  • News
  • Tourism & Travel
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Regional
  • Defence & Security
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • More

© SoftPower News

No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Tourism & Travel
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
    • Fashion
  • Regional
    • Kenya
    • Rwanda
    • Tanzania
    • Burundi
    • South Sudan
    • DR Congo
  • Defence & Security
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • More
    • Agriculture
    • Africa
    • Columnists
    • Education
    • Health
      • COVID-19
    • International News
    • News in Pictures
    • OpEd
    • Pearl Of Africa
    • People
    • Politics
    • Special Reports
    • Women

© SoftPower News

error: Content is protected

Send this to a friend