A promise made is a debt unpaid

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OPINION

By Simon Kaheru

The hackles rise every time a seemingly serious headline shows up on the front pages of the (mostly online) media here. This week’s was ‘Mandatory health insurance could come after 2026’, carefully written with the “could come” inserted there so we don’t hold anyone against the wall to answer questions.

I can even hear the accent of a clueless government official saying: “Ah ah, also you. They said it could come, NOT that it is a must. See:

A promise is not a debt.” ‘A promise is not a debt.’

That was a silly little common saying amongst primary children I interacted with in the 1980s. Even back then, I disagreed with it. I could never win because at that time the ‘moral fabric’ of society was in tatters. The torn, dirty rags we wore round our hearts could not hold in the logic, rationality or integrity required to ensure that our word counted for anything.

From the government down to the very last person and right back up, it was agreed that no one could be held to keep their promises.

Ironically, the original saying was “A promise made is a debt unpaid”, coined by the Canadian Robert Service in his poem The Cremation of Sam McGee (published in 1907). Right after the health insurance headline came one about roadworks in Kampala being launched by the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), complete with a story covering the grand ceremony declaring the promise.

This promise, about 20km of roads in Kampala, included: “KCCA ED Hajat Sharifa Buzeki said the roadworks will cost sh149b, funded through a World Bank loan.”

This promise literally involves a debt.

“She said the project is expected to take 18 months. Buzeki urged the contractors to deliver the works on time...”

See where irritation is unavoidable? She just “urged them” to deliver the works on time. What?! Even the boss of the capital city is in this boat of ‘a promise is not a debt’?

All Kampala residents, all of us, are very deeply angered on a daily basis by the condition of our roads today. We can see that some works are being done, but there is no sign of them being completed soon, if ever. We do not know when they should have been finished, but we are sure they should not have taken this long. Our ire is justifiable also because even if we are not road engineers we find it obvious that the works are being poorly executed.

There can not be any logic to all the soil being dumped into drainage areas or piled up on the sides of the newly-laid road surfaces, while young ladies wave makeshift flags to direct traffic at those pop-up roadblocks guiding diversions.

Instead of road contractors being “urged” to do their work on time, the KCCA ED should install time bombs in their homes and offices to go off 18 months from now if they do not finish on time. But, no. The client does not expect the contractor to be serious because the client is not Being Serious themselves. See, a promise is not a debt.

Instead, “Buzeki cautioned both local and international contractors to ensure a tidy work environment and maintain safety standards for all road users.”

Just ‘cautioned’. As if their contracts are merely friendly suggestions of what they could do for Kampala residents who will certainly be paying them their monies in full.

More icing on the ‘promise is not a debt’ cake came from the secretary for social services, Olive Namazzi, who represented the Lord Mayor.

She also “urged” contractors to stick to timelines and comply with all technical standards. “We do not want shoddy work. Every road must meet engineering specifications. We are watching closely,” Namazzi warned.’ read the story.

Are we really watching closely or is that, in itself, just another promise? Again — who knows when the current road works were scheduled to be completed? Who knows when they are going to be completed?

See, they were promised to us, but it is not a debt. And now we have the promise of a mandatory health insurance scheme that “could come after 2026”. Of course, it will come after 2026 because, for sure, it will not happen before that. That is one promise we can be sure of.

The rest of it?

Here are some excerpts from the story, quoting the Insurance Regulatory Authority of Uganda Supervision Director, Mr Benerd Obel. This gentleman is no less than the director in charge of Supervision of the Regulatory Authority:

“(The President) is yet to give some guidance on a few issues, but we hope that after (the 2026) election, we shall have a National Health Insurance Act.”

See? A Regulatory Authority Director is only hoping...while promising.

(Ignore the fact that they are waiting for the President to guide the experts...and that they are sure that after the 2026 election...)

That article, in which Mr Obel stated his hopes, started with: “The government is seeking to make health insurance mandatory...” and then continues to inform us that the National Health Insurance Bill was passed by Parliament back in 2021” but was withdrawn shortly afterwards, leaving a revised version stuck at the Cabinet level for the past three years.”

Next level shenanigans — this is a promise that was even delivered and then withdrawn.

If ever there was a time to address this disgustingly wrong positioning, it is now as we enter into the political campaign with its swarm of promises, and swat away all those who believe that ‘a promise is not a debt’.

We, the people will never win till we change that damn mantra to “A promise is a DEBT UNPAID”.

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