uganda journal of management

JOURNALTHE UGANDAN

OF MANAGEMENT AND PUBLIC POLICY STUDIES

Th e Ugandan Journal of Managem

ent and Public Policy StudiesVolum

e 8 Number 1 Septem

ber 2014

Volume 8 Number 1 September 2014 ISSN 2078 - 7 049

PAPERS

Political Decentralization and Service Delivery: Evidence from Agago District, Uganda Peter Adoko Obicci

Democratic Defi cits and Public Confi dence in Public Institutions in Uganda: Implications of Accountability on Public Confi dence in the Uganda Local Government Institution Michael Kiwanuka

Challenges to Policy Implementation in Uganda: Refl ections on Politics and the StateMoses Khisa

Determinants of Tax Effort in Developing Countries: Empirical Evidence from UgandaAgaba Samuel Bakehena and William Kaberuka

Identifying the Internal Environment Components Critical to Realizing the Planned Performance of Micro-Finance Institutions in Uganda Milly Kwagala

The effect of Business Regulatory Standards on Export Trading by Small Enterprises: A Comparative Analysis of Africa and Uganda Ahmed Kitunzi Mutunzi

State and Society Relations in Uganda’s Politico-economic Transitions: Structures, Processes and Outcomes of Governance Since 1986 Samson James Opolot

i

THE UGANDAN JOURNAL

OF MANAGEMENT

AND PUBLIC POLICY STUDIESVolume 8 No.1, September 2014.

http://www.umi.ac.ug

The Ugandan Journal Of Management And Public Policy Studies

ii

Editors and Members of the Editorial Advisory Board

Editors

• Chief Editor: Dr. Proscovia Namubiru Ssentamu, Uganda Management Institute • Deputy Chief Editor: Dr. Sebastian Bigabwenkya, Uganda Management Institute • Managing Editor: Dr. Rose B. Namara, Uganda Management Institute

Editorial Advisory Board

• Prof. Gelase Mutahaba, Department of Political Science and Public Administration, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

• Prof. Joy Kwesiga, Kabale University, Uganda • Prof. Grace Bantebya, School of Gender Studies, Makerere University, Uganda• Assoc. Prof. Yasin Olum, Department of Political Science and Public Administration,

Makerere University, Uganda• Prof. Mande W. Muyinda, Nkumba University, Uganda • Prof. Pamela Mbabazi, Mbarara University of Science & Technology, Uganda• Prof. Samson Opolot, Centre for Basic Research, Kampala, Uganda • Assoc. Prof. William Kaberuka, Makerere University Business School, Uganda• Dr. James L. Nkata, Director General, Uganda Management Institute, Uganda• Dr. Martyn Davies, Chief Executive Offi cer, Frontier Advisory, South Africa• Dr. John Mary Kauzya, UNDESA/DPADM, United States • Dr. Randhir Auluck, Conventry University, United Kingdom

Editorial Address: Uganda Management Institute (UMI), P.O.Box 20131, Kampala; Uganda.Tel, 256-414-259722, Fax 256,414-259581; email: [email protected], [email protected], web: www.umi.ac.ug

Printed and bound by: Uganda Management Institute, Kampala

First Published 2010

ISSN: 2078-7049

Copyright: Uganda Management Institute (UMI). All rights reserved. With exception of fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission in writing from the copyright holder. Authorization for photocopying items for internal and personal use is granted by the copyright holder for libraries in Uganda. This consent does not extend to other kinds of copying such as for advertising or promotional purposes and for resale. Institutions for paid up subscription to this Journal may make photocopies for teaching purposes free of charge provided such copies are not resold.

Printed by Graphic Centre Ltd, Tel: 0703 441 414

Introduction

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IntroductionTh e Ugandan Journal of Management and Public Policy Studies is a multidisciplinary Journal publishing a wide range of articles relating to public administration, management, leadership and public policy, from empirical studies and theoretical orientations to practical application. The Journal reviews books, essays, and research notes that are relevant to both scholars and practitioners involved at all levels of administration and management from various organizational forms including business fi rms, non-governmental organizations and public institutions and individual networks.

Aim and scopeThe Ugandan Journal of Management and Public Policy Studies is a scholarly Journal published to scientifi cally address the problems, interests and concerns of managers and intellectuals concerned with management science as a profession. It aims at improving the understanding and practice of management. The Journal is an essential reading, publishing articles from a wide range of authors, both well-established scholars and young scholars. Thus, the Journal is an important resource for:

• Management Development Institutions. • Social Science Faculties and Research Institutions. • Graduate students, teachers and researchers. • Civil service practitioners. • All those people interested in the practice of management and administration.

The Scope of the Journal covers fi elds of management, administration, and public policy. Empirical and practitioner-oriented papers and reviews are welcome for the Journal.


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New Editorial Advisory Board Members

We are happy to announce to our readership that the Editorial Advisory Board meeting of 07/07/2014 in accordance with section 3, subsection 3.4 of the Editorial Policies and Guidelines approved new members to join the Editorial Advisory Board whose biography is detailed below:

Dr. John-Mary Kauzya is a Ugandan born in 1957. He is Chief of Public Administration Capacity Branch (PACB) of the Division for Public Administration and Development Management (DPADM) in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) at the United Nations Headquarters in New York where he has worked since July 1999. Prior to joining the International Civil Service at the United Nations he taught at Makerere University in Uganda and worked as the Deputy Director of Uganda Management Institute. He has advised Governments of Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Angola, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Liberia, Kenya, the Comoros, and Kosovo, on governance and public administration and management.

Dr. Kauzya is a member of the Commission on International Accreditation of Public Administration Education and Training Programs (CIAPA), a member of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS) Working Group on Administering Global Governance, a member of the UNDESA/IASIA International Taskforce on standards of excellence in public administration at local level, and has served as a member of the International Taskforce on Internationalization of the International Public Management Association for Human Resources (IPMA-HR). He is currently involved with the Africa Public Sector Human Resource Managers’ Network (APS-HRMnet) and the African Association for Public Administration and Management (AAPAM) in the effort to professionalize the management of human resources in the public service in Africa. He is a Co-Chair of the Governance for Development Advisory Board for the 2014 United Nations Public Service Forum. In recognition of his work in Public Administration and Public Policy, he was awarded the O.P DWIVEDI AWARD 2014 by the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA) for Outstanding Contribution to Public Administration and Public Policy in the World.

He has widely written and published in various areas of governance and public administration. His recent 6 papers includes:

i. “Governance and Institutional Capacities for Sustainable Development: A Global Perspective” in Andrew Robertson, Rupert Jones-Perry & Anne Wolf: Governance for Development: Towards Excellence in Global Public Service (Nexus Strategic Partnership, London, 2014- specially produced for the United Nations Public Service Forum, Day and Awards , Ceremony 2014)

ii. “Towards Professionalism in Africa’s Public Service: Professionalising Human Resources Management in the Public Sector” in Demetrios Argyriades & Gerard Timsit (Eds):

Moving Beyond the Crisis: Reclaiming and reaffi rming our common administrative space (Bruylant, IIAS, Bruxelles, 2013)

iii. “Facing the Challenges of Public Policy Leadership in Developing Countries during

Introduction

v

Turbulent Times” in Michiel S.de Vries & Geert Bouckaert: Training for Leadership, (Bruylant, IIAS, Bruxelles, 2013,

iv. “ Enhancing Public Administration Effectiveness in Africa by Strengthening Local Public Administration Leadership Capacity”, in Michiel S.de Vries & Geert Bouckaert: Training for Leadership, (Bruylant, IIAS, Bruxelles, 2013,

v. “Strengthening Human Resources in the Public Service”: Chapter iv of the World Public Sector Report 2010, on Reconstructing Public Administration after Confl ict (UNDESA,ST/ESA/PAD/SER.E/135, NewYork, April 2010)

vi. “Comparative Perspectives of the challenges and prospects of Civil Service Reforms in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda” in Andrew Massey (ed): International Handbook on Civil Service Systems (Edward Elgar Publishing 2010)

Dr Randhir Auluck is a Principal Lecturer in International HRM at Coventry University Business Scho ol. Prior to this, she held a number of roles in the UK Cabinet Offi ce Agency Centre for Management and Policy Studies including Head of International Projects – Africa, and in the National School of Government (a Cabinet Offi ce Department) where she held positions of Leadership Development Consultant and Head of Knowledge Strategy.

Randhir has acted as advisor and consultant to the OECD as well as to a number of national governments including India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia and South Africa. She has presented papers at various United Nations/UN-DP-UN-DESA forums. Her research work has been published in a range of journals including Personnel Review, International Review of Administrative Sciences, Industrial and Commercial Training, Leadership and Organisation Development Journal and the British Journal of Social Work. The papers include;

• Establishing Learning Needs (2014) in Designing, Delivering and Evaluating Learning Needs, J. Stewart & P. Cureton (eds), CIPD: London

• Developing Global Public Servants for Good Governance & Sustainable Development (with R.Levin) (2008), in D. Argyriades (ed.) Global Governance & the Human Factor, IIAS-UNDP.

She has front-line delivery experience both in local government as a qualifi ed social worker specialising in child protection and family work in Stoke in Coventry and in Southwark, and in the voluntary sector, working with the homeless in Swansea. Randhir received her PhD from Warwick Business School and her Masters in Social Policy and Social Work from York University. She also holds other professional qualifi cations including a Certifi cate in Journalistic Writing from the University of Warwick.Randhir is a Trustee of SAHARA, a community-based organisation supporting vulnerable Asian older people, a Justice of the Peace, and actively supports various othercommunity initiatives and project.


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Editorial Note

This publication of the Ugandan Journal of Management and Public Administration, 8 (1) is one of the bi-annual issues of this Journal. It covers a broad spectrum of public administration, management and leadership matters. The issue presents seven papers on matters concerning fi nance management, political decentralization, fi nancial deregulation, tax efforts, and developmental state.

Obicci seeks to establish whether political decentralization improves service delivery. The author reveals that political decentralization can improve the provision of service delivery, but its improper implementation may reinforce poor service delivery. Using the factors of decision making, participation, and accountability the paper unearths the complex interplay of conditions that impact service delivery in a politically decentralized service delivery system. The conditions include the need for massive collective involvement and the promise of private benefi ts to the citizens. These conditions notwithstanding, he argues, political decentralization can be used as an instrument to promote the provision of service delivery owing to its signifi cant effect on service delivery.

Kiwanuka demonstrates that there is a decline in confi dence in public institutions in developing countries such as Uganda. The institutions are riddled with democratic defi cits in their governance processes. Institutional governance reveals defi cits such as defi ciencies in accountability systems. The author further argues that accountability practices, for example in Uganda, have culminated into a downward trend of public confi dence in Local Government institutions. In addition, other key factors affecting public confi dence in Local Government institutions include: the widening gap between citizens’ preferences and services delivered; the big social service backlogs; the mockery of citizens’ participation; and high levels of corruption. To improve public confi dence, Kiwanuka argues that developing countries should demonstrate commitment to social accountability by strengthening the citizen’s voice and support meaningful engagement of non-state actors alongside formal government systems.

Khisa argues that there is a gulf between policymaking and actual policy implementation in Uganda. The author indicates that the root cause of this dichotomy is the failure of government to build robust institutional capacity through a merit-based public system. To qualify this claim, the author traces a recent history (of about three decades ago) of weak policy implementation capacity in the politics of elite-inclusion or “broad-base” that started in 1986 in Uganda. It is noted that while the politics of “broad-base” gave room to wider participation and mass representation of the elite in politics, it only achieved modest progress in institutionalizing policymaking power. In the author’s view, the politics of “broad-base” also engendered patronage politics and endemic corruption which have compromised building institutional capacity to implement policies and programmes. Hence, the policy making and implementation processes in Uganda have remained disjointed for the last three decades.

Bakehena and Kaberuka reveal that while the World Bank recommends that developing countries institute tax reforms, some countries such as Uganda that have followed this recommendation do not seem to have gained much. The authors establish that Uganda’s tax share of GDP has not only remained low and stagnant at about 12% but also not matched

Editorial Note

vii

expenditure demands, leading to fi scal defi cits over the years. The tax efforts have been signifi cantly affected by the share of agriculture to GDP, GDP per capita, openness to trade, and external debt stock. To improve the current undesirable situation, the authors recommend that efforts can be put in agriculture investments through commoditizing the sector and hence bringing it under the tax net; and revisiting the tax breaks and exemptions to certain industries in order to retain only those that have a productive effect on the development of manufacturing and service sectors.

Kwagala investigates the environmental components that are critical for microfi nance institutions to realize planned performance. Taking a case-study of Uganda, the author uses data compiled from the massive closure of microfi nance institutions that had ran into a dysfunctional state. The analysis reveals that the components that critically affect the realization of planned performance of a microfi nance institution include ethical orientation of the institution managers, the nature of the relationship that the managers keep with their subordinates, and the level of authority given to employees to execute assigned responsibilities. The author concludes that institutions have to improve on the internal supervision aspect of management in a bid to enhance their performance.

Mutunzi argues that there is relationship between regulatory standards and the success of export trade in an economy. Taking the case of exporting small and micro-enterprises (SMEs) in Africa, the author triangulates some quantitative methods to draw a global comparative analysis of business regulations. The author concludes that the number of export documents, time (days) taken, and cost of export trading in African countries are some of the deterrent factors to export trading among a substantial fraction of SMEs. Based upon this fi nding, the need for persistent, diligent, deliberate and competitive deregulation of export trading by reducing the number of export documents, time (days) and cost of exporting is identifi ed. Consequently, SMEs and economies in Africa can realize sustainable growth.

Opolot discusses the nature and dynamics of structures and processes of state and society relations in Uganda and the political and economic outcomes in the country. Uganda undertook notable political reforms during the pre-2006 period that included signifi cant trends towards decentralization, the return to multiparty political systems, and the development of a progressive constitution. In the opinion of Opolot, most of these constitutional provisions are now being reversed, and state structures in Uganda serve partisan interests. Opolot argues that, for example, the elections in Uganda are mere pretences and a mockery of substantive democratization. Moreover, he reasons that the independence of the three arms of the state is simply pretentious and highly circumscribed by the ruling political party (NRM) that seems to use them at will in legitimizing its hold onto power. He therefore concludes that in spite of the considerable politico-administrative reforms in Uganda especially from 1986 to 2005, there are indications of regressions in the quality of governance.

Editorial Note

ix

CONTENTS

Introduction .......................................................................................................................... iii

Aim and Scope ...................................................................................................................... iii

Editor’s Note ...........................................................................................................................v

Political Decentralization and Service Delivery: Evidence from Agago District, Uganda Peter Adoko Obicci ................................................................................................................. 1

Democratic Defi cits and Public Confi dence in Public Institutions in Uganda: Implications of Accountability on Public Confi dence in the Uganda Local Government InstitutionMichael Kiwanuka ................................................................................................................ 15

Challenges to Policy Implementation in Uganda: Refl ections on Politics and the StateMoses Khisa ......................................................................................................................................28

Determinants of Tax Effort in Developing Countries: Empirical Evidence from UgandaAgaba Samuel Bakehena and William Kaberuka .............................................................................44

Identifying the Internal Environment Components Critical to Realizing the Planned Performance of Micro-Finance Institutions in UgandaMilly Kwagala ..................................................................................................................................55

The effect of Business Regulatory Standards on Export Trading by Small Enterprises: A Comparative Analysis of Africa and UgandaAhmed Kitunzi Mutunzi ....................................................................................................................75


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State and Society Relations in Uganda’s Politico-economic Transitions: Structures, Processes and Outcomes of Governance Since 1986Samson James Opolot ...............................................................................................................87

Call for Papers ....................................................................................................................114

Manuscript submission Guidelines ..................................................................................115

Peter Adoko Obicci

Political Decentralization and Service Delivery: Evidence from Agago District, Uganda

Peter Adoko ObicciMinistry of Public Service, Uganda

Abstract

Does political decentralization improve the provision of service delivery? Many developing countries have taken to political decentralization as an instrument of development that plays a central role in increasing citizens’ involvement in policy development and decision making as well as holding their leaders to account. However, the basis upon which it can be relied upon to improve service delivery remains a big puzzle to many practitioners. This study uses the factors of decision making, participation and accountability to uncover how political decentralization can promote service delivery. Based on intensive interviews with local stakeholders in ten sampled local governments in Agago District in Northern Uganda as well as survey, the study uncovered a complex interplay of conditions that impact service delivery in a political decentralization dispensation. The results reveal that political decentralization can be used as an instrument to promote the provision of service delivery. Furthermore, decentralization is shown to have had signifi cant effect on service delivery in the ten local governments examined in the study. However, the study needs generalization on a larger scale.

Key words: Accountability, Agago District, Decentralization, Decision making, Participation, Political decentralization, Uganda

Michael Kiwanuka

Democratic Defi cits and Public Confi dence in Public Institutions in Uganda: Implications of Accountability on Public Confi dence in the Uganda Local Government Institutions

Michael KiwanukaUganda Management Institute

Abstract

There is a general belief by scholars and practitioners alike that the notable declining public confi dence in public institutions in developing countries like Uganda is a consequence of democratic defi cits in institutional governance. This belief is more so, because democratic defi cits like defi ciencies in accountability systems, stifl es capacities of democratic systems to evolve and reform into effective and legitimate agents of citizens. Accountability is a fundamental virtue of good governance and an important cornerstone in democratic systems. The paper analyzes the impact of accountability on public confi dence within the context of Uganda’s local government Institution. The analysis of accountability practices and experiences suggests that public confi dence in the institution of local governments in Uganda is on the down ward trend. This is partly due to the inherent democratic defi cits with respect to accountability defi ciencies in local government institutions. The paper concludes that: the widening gap between citizen preferences and services delivered; the big social service backlogs; the mockery of citizen participation; and high levels of corruption are already having a big toll on citizens’ trust and eroding public confi dence in the local government institution. The paper recommends that developing countries like Uganda should demonstrate commitment to social accountability by strengthening the citizen voice and support meaningful engagement of non-state actors alongside formal government systems.

Key words: Democratic defi cits, Public confi dence, Public Institutions, Uganda Local Governments, Accountability, Participation


Challenges to Policy Implementation in Uganda: Refl ections on Politics and the State

Moses KhisaDepartment of Political Science at Northwestern University, Chicago USA

Abstract

Like many African countries, Uganda faces the problem of poor or failed implementation of state polices and government programmes. There is a big gulf between policymaking and actual implementation. This article locates the source of the problem in the nature of Uganda’s contemporary politics under the regime of President Yoweri Museveni. The article argues that at the root of poor policy implementation is the failure to build robust institutional capacity through a merit-based public system. To understand Uganda’s weak implementation capacity, we need to look at the politics of elite-inclusion and “broad-base” that started with the “Movement” no-party system. By prioritizing the politics of “broad-base,” Museveni’s regime opened up the Ugandan society to wider elite political participation and mass representation, and achieved modest progress in institutionalizing decision/policy-making power. However, simultaneously, the politics of “broad-base” also engendered patronage politics and endemic corruption, which have greatly compromised building the institutional capacity to implement policies and programs. Since 1986, the idea of “broad-base” as the founding approach of power-sharing became an entrenched strategy of keeping state power even after reverting to multiparty politics in 2005. The net outcome has been the continuation of deleterious patronage-politics at odds with the imperatives of a development-oriented state.

Key words: Public Policy, Policy Implementation, the State, Politics of Elite-Inclusion, Politics of , Institutional Capacity Building, Uganda


Determinants of Tax Effort in Developing Countries: Empirical Evidence from Uganda

Agaba Samuel Bakehena1 and William Kaberuka2

1 Electoral Commission, Kampala, Uganda 2 Makerere Business School

Abstract

Tax effort is the exertion that a country puts into collecting revenue that is necessary to meets its expenditure demands for sustainable development. One of the reforms that the World Bank recommends to DCs aimed at augmenting their revenue is a tax reform. Towards this endeavour, Uganda has carried out a number of tax reforms; but its tax share to GDP has not only remained low and stagnant at about 12 per cent but has also not matched her expenditure demands. This has led to high fi scal defi cits which have persisted over the years. This study was carried out using time series data obtained from the World Bank’s Development Indicators 2010 CD-RM. A multivariate regression model was used in the analysis to identify the determinants of tax effort in Uganda. The fi ndings of the study revealed that lagged tax effort measured by tax-GDP ratio, share of agriculture to GDP, GDP per capita, openness to trade and external debt stock signifi cantly affect tax effort. Increase in the other mentioned variables augurs well with tax effort in Uganda. However, services and manufacturing sectors’ share to GDP were found not to signifi cantly affect tax effort. The study recommends that if Uganda is to improve her tax effort to the levels of other Sub-Saharan African countries, she needs to invest in areas that would signifi cantly increase GDP per capita. Investment incentives should be provided to the agricultural sector with the view to commoditizing the sector and hence bringing it under the tax net. Uganda should also review the policies regarding the currently offered tax breaks and exemptions with a view to retaining only those that have a productive effect on the development of manufacturing and service sectors.

Key words: Tax Effort, Sustainable Development, Fiscal Defi cit, Tax Reform, Commoditization, Investment Incentives and Productive Effect

Milly Kwagala

Identifying the Internal Environment Components Critical to Realizing the Planned Performance of Micro-Finance Institutions in Uganda

Milly Kwagala Ndejje University

Abstract

The nature of a fi rm’s internal environment is known to be a major determinant of its performance. It is, however, not always clear which components of this environment are critical and therefore need more managerial attention if a fi rm is to realize its planned performance. Consequently, this article focuses on establishing these components for micro-fi nance institutions in Uganda. The article has been compiled from a study conducted empirically about the massive closure of these institutions which caused government and client concern, as explained by their management. Concisely, the fi ndings indicate that the components that critically affect the realization of the planned performance of a micro-fi nance institution in Uganda include the ethical orientation of institutions’ managers, the nature of the relationship that the managers keep with their subordinates, and the level of authority given to employees to execute assigned responsibilities. All these components relate to the quality of the institutions’ internal supervision, implying that if the institutions are to realize their performance as planned, their management has to ensure that their internal supervision is of the best possible quality.

Key words: Micro-Finance Institution, Internal Environment, Performance, Uganda

Kitunzi Ahmed Mutunzi

The effect of Business Regulatory Standards on Export Trading by Small Enterprises: A Comparative Analysis of Africa and Uganda

Ahmed Kitunzi MutunziMakerere University

Abstract

This article investigates the relationship between regulatory standards affecting export trade and the proportion of exporting SMEs with a focus on Africa and especially Uganda. The study is principally a global comparative analysis of business regulations and exporting SMEs with a focus on Uganda and the rest of Africa and employs a triangulation of quantitative research methodologies. The study results reveal that the number of export documents, time (days) and cost of export trading in Uganda and other African countries are relatively deterrent to export trading by a substantial fraction of SMEs. Hence, it is recommendable that Uganda and the rest of Africa implement persistent, diligent, deliberate, and competitive deregulation of export trading by reducing the number of export documents, time (days) and cost of exporting so as to enable more of their SMEs to engage in export trading. Such reforms will lead to sustainable growth of SMEs and economies.

Key words: Business Regulatory Standards, Small Enterprises and Export Trading

Samson James Opolot

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State and Society Relations in Uganda’s Politico-economic Transitions: Structures, Processes and Outcomes of Governance Since 1986

Samson James OpolotCentre for Basic Research, Kampala and Ibanda University, Uganda

Abstracts

The article discusses the nature and dynamics of structures and processes of state and society relations in Uganda and the political and economic outcomes in the country. Empirical data from the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)/Expert Opinion Survey (EOS) and Focus Group Discussions in Uganda that was compiled in 2011 are among those analyzed. In addition, literature on these state structures (executive, legislature and judiciary) and on elections as spaces, processes and institutions for defi ning, arbitrating and determining outcomes of structure and processes of governance, with emphases on the 18 February 2011 and prior to the Presidential and Parliamentary Elections are also used to triangulate the fi ndings and enrich the discussion. In addition, the results from a recent study on ‘Uganda @ 50’ conducted by the Centre for Basic Research (CBR) are used to fore ground the opinions of Ugandans on the contemporary social structures and political trends in the country. The conclusion is that in spite of the considerable politico-administrative reforms in Uganda especially from 1986 to 2005, there are strong indications of regressions in the quality of governance since then that warrant concern for the future democratization in Uganda. Some notable reforms during the pre-2006 period included signifi cant trends towards decentralization, the return to multiparty political systems, and the development of a progressive constitution with pronounced frameworks for pursuing democratic governance through accountable and transparent institutions of governance. Most of these constitutional provisions are now being reversed. Uganda today demonstrates the trappings of a post-colonial non-democratic state in which state structures serve partisan interests. The army takes centre stage in politics and in turn enables the authoritarian character of the state where elections have become mere pretences and a mockery of substantive democratization. The independence of the three arms of the state is simply pretentious and highly circumscribed by the NRM to be used at will in legitimizing its hold onto power. Unless these trends change, the country could revert to its tyrannical past.

Key Words: Corruption, State, Society, Political Transitions, Democracy, Elections, Civil Society, Culture, Power, Paternalism, Economic Commission for Africa (Eca)/Expert Opinion Survey (Eos), 20111.

1 The ECA/EOC is conducted to assess governance processes and outcomes in Africa by the United Economic Commissions for Africa (UNECA) but the most used acronym is ECA. Key aspects of governance analyses are undertaken by interviewing expert Key Informants hence (EOS) that stands for Expert Opinion Survey. UNECA contracts Think Tanks to conduct the survey in individual countries and thus Centre for Basic Research (CBR), Kampala has been privileged to conduct these in the case of Uganda.

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