'Consent of the people': How internal violence is influenced by the prolonged war in neighbouring countries

Uganda now suffers from a culture of violence. While it’s easy to condemn initiation of violence against a fellow human being, it's ironic that Ugandans will freely and arbitrarily re-elect a president who has had monopoly power to initiate violence against its own citizens —practically at will – for more than two decades.

To develop a truly free society, granting to Museveni even a small amount of force ahead of the General Elections is a dangerous concession. Sadly, Ugandans like Kenyans, have become accustomed to living with a government that illegitimately uses force at will. Violence has become the tool for telling the people how to live, read, vote and watch. Unfortunately in Africa, since we are used to living with presidents who can initiate violence at will, we mechanically accept violence as a lawful culture. We wrongly believe that such an authority originates from the "consent of the people."