The best Motivation Ugandans have is remembering their Predicament.

By McPius Ssekatawa S

Back in the minor seminary, whenever our rector wanted to stress a point about academic hard work and efforts, he could say, “My dear friends. You know very well how hard your parents toil to make it possible for you to be here. You know the endless efforts, struggles and sacrifices they make. Why don’t you remember your predicament and work hard?” Rarely could he refer to the future niceties to draw us to work. I think, probably he saw how vague our times would be.

Like the push factor motivation we received in the minor seminary, many Ugandans today toil and struggle not necessarily because of certainty that the future is promising but because of their past complicated memories. Currently, we are not drawn to action by hope but our predicament.

It is comic how parents take us to school in the early infant years, telling us to study hard and become like the pilots we see and the “great” leaders of the state. However, as we grow up gradually, the motivation changes to “My son, you see how tough the times are, study hard.” At this point, mum or dad, who was once a cheerleader, suddenly changes into a survival tutor. You wonder whether education is still the key to success, or it mutated to a survival skill.

After school, the optimistic smart graduates face the tough and contradictory reality of the story. In no way does the job market relate to the early promises. The job market does nothing but sarcastically laughs at our credentials. Do we study for the wrong careers, or we erroneously look for jobs?

Given the present-hurdled socio-economic and political climate, devoid of hope but leaving many on their own, the troubled Ugandan accepts that such is the life, which is a springboard for his welfare. From present signs of self-aggrandizement in the leadership and sheer negligence of the common person’s welfare, the future is never a bright horizon as earlier thought but a tug-of-war.

It is not by coincidence that many people today survive but no longer live. In survival, one has no directed goals. One’s prime goal is barely living, nothing else. One takes a huge sigh and silently wonders how he has miraculously survived the past few days. It becomes a cat-and-rat chase between futility and the survivor. Over time, one accepts his predicament and finds ways of changing the story.

With all these experiences of hardship and acknowledging that one is fighting a man’s battle, resilience and determination spring in. This way, Ugandans use the lemon offered by their country to make lemonade. Here, there is a tooth and nail fight primarily not to pursue the prime goal or focus but to escape from the futility that is pursuing them. “You are the leaders of tomorrow” changes to “Grab any job you find.” It is at this point that one yields to the hurdles of life.

This continues to resonate the basic notions of living and surviving. Very few Ugandans are living; the biggest portion are surviving. These experiences drive Ugandans to action. Invention draws in due to necessity; challenges teach them endless lessons, and for every setback encountered, they will have a cause to harden and sail through, having at the back of their minds their predicament as the motivation.

A classic struggling Ugandan needs no motivational speaker to draw him or her to action. The hardships they encounter are enough to motivate them. A friend sent me a WhatsApp text reading: The three stages of a Ugandan. 1. Birth 2.Eeh! 3. Death. Another posted on the platform: The national anthem should change from “Oh Uganda” to “Eeh Uganda.”

Despite the humor, the texts reveal how Ugandans have acknowledged their hardships. The “eeh” is not a question, an answer or a resignation; it is an acknowledgment of the toughness of life. That acknowledgement of their predicament is the perfect driving force for action. Such is the motivation in context. Nevertheless, such a drive is not an outcome of sheer survival; it is, in another way, a signal of hope for a better future. Pushing them from the rear, it unconsciously pulls them to success.

Though predicaments are motivational, they are not ideal. Persistent and endless struggles have led many to scrupulosity and depression. In the cat-and-rat chase between futility and survival, some have lost the battle. This is inevitably intolerable. In these times where the few are obscenely wealthy and the many are desperate, we need a clear inspiration.

By harnessing this motivation in a way that is not self-pity but a source of inspiration, many Ugandans are sailing through the turbulent tides. This should inspire us to match on with optimism, having in mind that we can maneuver despite our tough times.

Nevertheless, we must acknowledge that the root cause of having our future obscured partly springs from systemic failures in the leadership. The disregard for the common person’s welfare has turned the populace’s dreams into techniques of survival. Our predicament is clear and needs direct confrontation. Ugandans’ efforts and resilience, though commendable, should not be taken for granted. We deserve better than predicamental motivation to live.