Predators or Protectors? Military Corruption as a Pillar of Regime Survival in Uganda

Uganda's Fraudulent Election

“…The expansion of Uganda's economy over the last decade, combined with generous donor assistance, has allowed Museveni to reward his generals with big budgets as well as personal riches from business deals and opportunities for corruption. 19 In return, they give him their loyalty. Foreign assistance has given the UPDF better training and gear, while its centrality to international security agendas has given it expanded power and influence relative to civilian leaders.…”

Militarism and the Politics of Covid-19 Response in Uganda

“…Under objective control , militaries submit to civilian institutions. Under subjective control , militaries have influence in decision-making and other civilian realms, and control is achieved through such practices as coup proofing, cooptation, and allowing for military-specific advantages like corruption ( Bareebe, 2020 ; Rwengabo, 2012 ).…”

“…The NRA transformed into the UPDF under the 1995 constitution. The NRA/UPDF is the basis of Museveni’s uninterrupted rule since 1986 ( Bareebe, 2020 ; Rwengabo, 2012 ). Museveni built the NRA from scratch, as a rebel commander, nurtured it into a formidable fighting force that overthrew a government through successful guerrilla insurgency, and the rebel-group-turned-national-army successfully conducted counterinsurgency operations over two decades (1987–2008).…”

“…In analyzing Uganda’s military-dominated response to Covid-19, this article contributes to broad literatures that address the growing global trend of militarization of pandemics ( Kamradt-Scott et al, 2015 ; Gibson-Fall, 2021 ); varying contexts of militarized health sector operations and militaries’ contributions to fighting disease outbreaks ( Watterson & Kamradt-Scott, 2016 , pp. 153–160); militarism in African governance ( Kumah-Abiwu, 2022 ); and militarized arbitrary governance ( Bareebe, 2020 ; Tapscott, 2021 ; 2020 ). This article’s core contribution is to use process tracing to underline the mechanisms that link militarism and an overly militarized pandemic response, the continuities in aspects of militarism that predate the pandemic, and the pandemic-related militarization that unfolded.…”

Lethal aid and human security: The effects of US security assistance on civilian harm in low- and middle-income countries

“…Foreign funds, weapons, military equipment, and training can all be used to buy the loyalty of military elites and reward security forces for repressing popular dissent. In Uganda, for example, US$2 billion a year in aid from the United States and other Western donors enables Uganda's president, Yoweri Museveni, to buy the loyalty of military generals with big budgets and high-tech military equipment (Bareebe, 2020; Khisa, 2020). Although a leader could use domestic tax revenue, other types of aid, or natural resource rents to compensate security agents, foreign security assistance has distinct advantages over these sources.…”