How an unknown young man’s death turned him into a political football for opportunistic politicians THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Last week, it became apparent that the initial news that a one Michael [K]alinda aka Zigy Wyne had been kidnapped, eye yanked out, fingers chopped off and …
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UGANDA HISTORY | Prof. P.G. Okoth & Dr. Yokana Ogolla | The Jopadhola were part of migrant groups of Luo people who moved from Bar-El-Ghazel in South Sudan and eventually pressed their way southwards through Teso and Kaberamaido till they reached Budama in present Tororo district around 1500. Adhola moved …
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THE LAST WORD: Why we should be wary of the influence of new communication technologies in the hands of extremists THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | In 1948 George Orwell published his novel, 1984. It is a classic statement of the danger to individual liberty posed by increasing …
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Why governance standards set in the West and imposed on poor countries are dangerous THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Last week, a friend posted on a social media platform an article by a US scholar about life in a democracy and an autocracy as imagined by Americans! …
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How the Cranes blundered in Cairo when they went on strike over pay and refused to train THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Last week, the Uganda Cranes players went on strike in Cairo Egypt, where they were competing in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). They …
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How our government’s attempts to do too many things for all citizens spreads our meager resources too thin THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Poor countries suffer a fundamental contradiction in both design and aspiration. The state is designed and thus seeks to perform functions exactly like states …
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Why Africans need to look beyond the oversimplification of our development challenges THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Last week, a member on a WhatsApp chat-group I belong to posted a video of a Singaporean professor explaining why that country transformed from a third world to a first …
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How popular sentiments have undermined our journalism and blinded our intellectuals from reality THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | It has become increasingly trendy and fashionable within certain sections of social media in Uganda to denounce President Yoweri Museveni. It does not matter what arguments one makes or …
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Why, in spite of our continued poverty, there is good reason to celebrate our gains as we plan ahead THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Last week, President Yoweri Museveni gave his State of the Nation (SOTN) speech. He gave interesting facts about Uganda’s economy, which many of …
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Inside our overblown expectations and the religious origins of our hopes and frustrations THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | In February, my mother (84) visited Germany. Driving from the airport to the city of Cologne, she was impressed by the highways, flyovers and majestic buildings of that country. …
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The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price