A wolf had been feasting too greedily and a bone had stuck crosswise in his throat. He could get it neither up nor down, and of course, he could not eat a thing. Naturally, that was an awful state of affairs for a greedy wolf. So away he hurried to the crane. He was sure that she, with her long neck and bill, would easily be able to reach the bone and pull it out. “I will reward you very handsomely”, said the wolf, “if you pull that bone out for me.” The crane, as you can imagine, was very uneasy about putting her head in Wolf’s throat. But she was grasping in nature, so she did what the wolf asked her to do. When the wolf felt that the bone was gone, he started to walk away.
“But what about my reward!” called the crane anxiously.
“What!” snarled the wolf, whirling around. “Haven’t you got it? Isn’t it enough that I let you take your head out of my mouth without snapping it off?”
Moral: Expect no reward for serving the one who has no honor. Staying in a company of selfish people will not do anyone favor.
There has been a general outcry against the resolution, passed by the European Union, that calls for environmental and human rights protections as Uganda and Tanzania make a giant stride toward developing the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP). The EU environment policy rests on the principles of precaution, prevention and rectifying pollution at source, and on the ‘polluter pays’ principle. The precautionary principle is a risk management tool that may be invoked when there is scientific uncertainty about a suspected risk to human health or to the environment emanating from a certain action or policy. For instance, should doubts arise about the potentially harmful effects of a product, and should – following an objective scientific evaluation – uncertainty persist, instructions may be given to stop the distribution of the product or to remove it from the market. Such measures must be non-discriminatory and proportionate, and must be reviewed once more scientific information is available.
Ironically, the common Ugandan people, out of sheer ignorance and so many years of being promised ‘air’ by the current regime have turned their anger toward the EU. These are the same people who were promised abundant sugar supply by the same wolves that gave away Mabira Forest Reserve under the guise of increasing production.
These are the same Cranes (pun intended) that clapped and ululated when the wolves claimed to revive Uganda Airlines, which they had deliberately milked dry. And our ignorant folks continue clamoring, “It will create jobs!” For who? And when insightful and whip-smart politicians like Bobi Wine come out to commend the EU, our naïve local folks are confounded and befuddled. It will be hard for them to catch up with the times because they have been hoodwinked for so long (35 years ain’t a short time). And by the time they fathom the reality before their own eyes, it will be too late. You don’t need to ask the common sugar cane out growers in Busoga region how the wolves have turned them into beggars in their own backyard.
Dictatorships usually exist primarily because of the naivety of the citizens. The Ugandan population and society are too weak to cause the dictatorship serious problems because wealth and power are concentrated in too few hands. So, the continuation of human rights abuse is dependent on internal factors. Even the media is controlled by the state. Objective reporting on sensitive issues is simply nonexistent. So, when international organizations come out to contain the insanity of a dictatorship, ignorant folks start defending the impunity of their oppressors. Quite ironical!
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