Kagame, Mbeki congratulate Museveni --- are they genuine?

Former Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi has congratulated Presdient Yoweri Museveni upon retaining his position as Uganda's head of state. Moi, who ruled Kenya for 24 years, issued a statement on Tuesday through his press secretary, Lee Njiru.

Museveni was also congratulated by North Korea on March 1, through Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of the North Korean assembly.

President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa on Monday February 27 also congratulated Museveni on his election victory and urged the opposition to accept the outcome.

Rwandan president Paul Kagame also sent congratulations to Museveni.

On the surface, these seem like gestures of brotherly African states to a re-elected leader. How genuine they are, is open to questions.

Radio Katwe, for example, has received information that even before the election, the government had already drawn up the list of foreign dignitaries to invite to Musevni's swearing-in in May. The list of foreign invites at that time had only Tanzania's President Jakaya Kikwete and the SPLM leader Salva Kir.

There was no Mbeki, Kagame, Kibaki, or any other leaders. The official in charge of the invitations is John Maku-Iga, the director-general of the External Security Organisation.

We must remember that President Mbeki hosted Colonel Kizza Besigye in South Africa for four years as a state guest and he was protected by South African intelligence.

Furthermore, before Besigye returned to Uganda on October 26, 2005, Radio Katwe has learned that he spent two weeks in Kigali at the presidential palace of President Kagame.

The South Africa and Rwanda leaders no friends of Museveni and he knows it. That could explain why despite their relatively prompt congratulation messages, they were not very high on the list of invited guests.

The North Korean message and maybe Moi's are the only ones that can be taken as genuine.