Big Interview: "Museveni has become unpopular...that is why he has resorted to torture," says Dr Wakida

Dr. Patrick Wakida is the founder and chief executive of Research World International, a prominent research firm in Uganda.

He describes himself as a public policy analyst with specialisation in Labour Economics, Public Economics, Economics of Education, and Market and business research.

He is also a keen follower of political events. In an interview, Wakida told us that as the civic space shrinks, Museveni is going to become more brutal.

Excerpts below

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What exactly does Research World International(RWI) do?

We do different research products .We do business to business research which is a market research. We do social research which has got different components including politics and governance research.

We were established in 2007 .We have a capacity of 25 permanent staff divided into different departments of market research ,social research ,operation ,statistics among others.

Your firm has done a number of opinion polls. Do those polls reflect the views of the people?

For us what we do, we ask people. The views that we bring out often are views of the respondents.We do interview them and get their views. So the views that we present are never our views and that is why sometimes it is very contradictory because every person in the world has different views.

Depending on how you aggregate their views, other people will be seeing those in different perspectives but we present what people give us as their responses.

The opposition has on several times questioned the accuracy and the authenticity of those opinion polls. Does this bother you?

You see, politics is an emotional thing whereas research is a real thing. So the two can never communicate the same word and as I said politicians don’t want the truth about them .Once you tell them the truth, they will of course feel you are being biased against them because they don’t want to.

The opinion poll is a bitter truth because it tells you, your weaknesses, it tells you your strengths and it tells you what you should do and most politicians don’t want that.

What should be done to change people’s mindset about these opinion polls especially in Uganda where most people don’t take them seriously?

You cannot change the public perception; you have a population which is highly illiterate. Most importantly is that people have different ways of looking at things. In the developed countries, people understand data because it is frequently done .In a country where opinion polls are done maybe once a year or after two years, it becomes very difficult.

You can’t even promise that you will change people’s perception and I wouldn’t even want to change their perception because the value of the opinion polls is only reflected in the amount of discussion people discuss around it.When you see people discussing day and night, then you know you are making an impact.

Ugandans claim that your opinion polls are always influenced either by state or selfish individuals. Is it true?

You see, actually the biggest attack we get is from the state. The biggest challenge we have had is that we are promoting the opposition. The opposition knows that I have been their supporter. At Research World International, there are people with different political beliefs.

When it comes to doing what we do, we don’t consider political colour, we consider the outcome of the research. I have always told people that if I wanted to use data to promote the person, I would have promoted Gen Mugisha Muntu because he has been my favourite politician.

But when you check his performance in these opinion polls you would find him sometimes below 2%, so why don’t I promote that one if the intention was to promote. The challenge is that political elites live in Kampala. When you weigh, you will find out that those who support NRM in villages are more and therefore their views outweigh the few in urban areas.

In the last poll I conducted indicated that NRM is going to lose in Buganda, go and see the election results.

Having been a political activist, what is your take about the increasing acts of torture of suspects by the security agencies?

It is criminal; this torture which is going on has tainted the achievement of the National Resistance Movement, no matter what they do. You cannot torture human beings to the extent of burning them ,that is criminal.

Mr. Museveni went to the bush, one of the things he mentioned was that there was state bureau which tortured people during Idd Amin and Milton Obote regime. He has just repeated that, that will be in history no matter was he does. It will never go out in the minds of people. It is not right. It is the violation of principles of life.

Should Ugandans get worried that political space is narrowing each and every day in Uganda?

I have said in the past that as Mr. Museveni becomes unpopular, the state will become violent against its own people and it's just common sense when you are not wanted you try to assert yourself on the people.

I think that is what Mr Museveni and his people are doing. But the most importantly is that those guys who are torturing people are aware that if they lose power today, they will lose everything .The torturing of local people is actually meant to silence them.

In your view, how best can the opposition dislodge President Museveni from power and in any case is there any possibility?

It is too hard for anybody to think that he will go for an election and win in the current circumstances.That you are going to contest, be elected and be declared, it will not happen because the elections are managed by Mr. Museveni himself .

The amount of money that NRM uses to conduct an election, the kind of intimidation that is exerted on the voters, the steadiness in which those in power want to keep power will make it so difficult for an election to result in a change of government and it will never happen.

The first thing is for the opposition to fight for the space and they can only do that if they are working together.

NUP has on several times refused to join some platforms which could bring the opposition together in a bid to remove president Museveni from power. In your view, do you think unity among opposition is still possible?

Let Dr. Kizza Besigye first define what he wants to achieve [if he wants other opposition to join him].The first thing he has to start with is to have behind the curtains discussions. I am not sure that he has done that .You first of all call the leaders and have a serious discussion if you want them to join you.

I think NUP should also realize that they cannot do it alone and I think they are growing wings because they think they are big. In opposition you cannot assume that you are better off than the other.

Where do you see the future of the opposition in five years to come?

First of all the opposition in Uganda has been suppressed since 1986. They have not been allowed to grow and it is deliberate by the state not to allow the opposition to grow and until when that is appreciated the opposition must be given a space or the opposition must fight for that space which isn’t there in this country.

Which political party are you affiliated to because most people think that you are still in FDC?

I was in FDC when I came back from Europe but I still believe FDC has ideas that I believe in .I still believe that they can do better .

My position now I want to understand the politics of this country better and the only way to do that is to watch and advise politically. I am still a politician, I still love politics ,I still like good governance ,I still like proper transition. That is where I am now.

Do you expect to seek a political office in the near future?

I want power and I am waiting for when the likes of Lt Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba wake up and say they want it, then that is when they will see how we can also wake up to contest against them because I really want power .

I have never been led and if you track my history right from primary I have been a head boy .The only time I have been led is when I finished by PhD. Yes, I will seek political office at one point.