Ugandans in state of apathy, survey reveals
SOURCE: THE DAILY MONITOR, 19 APRIL 2012
Kampala
Less than half of those interviewed said they belonged to a religious group while only 39 per cent said they were members of some form of voluntary association.Failure by the government to fulfill its responsibilities is forcing more Ugandans to look for individual solutions to problems that should have been solved by government, the Afrobarometer survey has revealed.
In 2005, 83 per cent of respondents said they belonged to some form of religious group while in 2008 44 per cent of those interviewed said they were members of a voluntary association. The survey also noted a 10 per cent drop in those who actively attend meetings in their communities, fostering the view that Ugandans are becoming more individualistic, dropping to 69 per cent since 2005.
The final release of findings from the survey also reveals a steady increase in negativity towards government and a decline in government’s responsiveness to popular issues.
Only 14 per cent of respondents felt government was doing well in bridging the gap between the rich and the poor. In 2005, 27 per cent of respondents felt this gap was narrowing while in 2000, 33 per cent felt the gap was narrowing.
On average seven out of 10 respondents said they strongly agree that sometimes politics and government seem too complicated to understand. Citizens are thus increasingly losing interest in public affairs. Seven years ago, 74 per cent of those questioned said they were very interested in the day-to-day issues. Now, only 63 per cent are interested.
Additionally, less than three out of 10 respondents said they were assured of enough to eat on a day-to-day basis. This represents an 18 per cent drop from 12 years ago, when 39 per cent of respondents said they were assured of enough to eat.
Fresh findings
Initial release of findings of this survey had revealed that 74 per cent of Ugandans felt the country is heading in the wrong direction, indicating a sharp drop in confidence in President Museveni’s government just 12 months after he was declared winner of the general elections.
Initial release of findings of this survey had revealed that 74 per cent of Ugandans felt the country is heading in the wrong direction, indicating a sharp drop in confidence in President Museveni’s government just 12 months after he was declared winner of the general elections.
Twelve months before that a previous survey had found that a more optimistic figure of six out of every 10 people felt the country was headed in the right direction.
Consequently, Ugandans have shown more faith in the current Parliament than in the President.
Consequently, Ugandans have shown more faith in the current Parliament than in the President.
All respondents showed dissatisfaction in service delivery by their local leadership. They expressed concern as to the growing lack of proper public administration now affecting service delivery at all levels.
Poor health care, poverty, taxes, poor infrastructure, lack of clean water and unemployment have been described as the country’s worst nightmares. The lack of medicines in hospitals and the apparent inequality in the dispensation of justice is now alarming.
The Uganda police was also voted the most corrupt state institution in the country. Tax officials, government officials and officers from President’s Office have also been singled out as being heavily engrossed in corruption.
Whereas the public still demonstrates patience with the state, the continued perception that government was inadequately responding to these issues is threatening this patience.
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