COLUMNISTS

By Andrew M. Mwenda Last week, The Independent published a list of the relatives and in laws of President Yoweri Museveni that have been politically appointed into senior positions in government. We also did an analysis of why the president has sought a strategy of family rule and its likely …

By Mahmood Mamdani This is the last of a four-part series in which renowned Ugandan scholar Professor Mahmood Mamdani examines the historical causes of Zimbabwe’s crisis. Besides drought and reform, there is a third cause of declining production: the targeted donor boycott. Zimbabwe has been the target of Western sanctions …

By Mary Karooro Okurut I would like to react to the article in The Independent magazine of February 27-March 5, 2009, “Reshuffle: Museveni’s troubles over Janet – The Inside Story of Janet Museveni’s Appointment” in which Andrew Mwenda makes some really ridiculous claims over the First Lady’s appointment as Minister …

By Mahmood Mamdani In this four-part series, renowned Ugandan scholar Professor Mahmood Mamdani examines the historical causes of Zimbabwe’s crisis What land reform has meant or may come to mean for Zimbabwe’s economy is still hotly disputed. Recently there have been signs that scholarly opinion is shifting. A study by …

By Obed K. Katureebe & Bob Roberts Katende MPs have been trembling with excitement over the last three years as rumours of cabinet reshuffles ‘” and possible promotions to ministerial posts ‘” swirled around them. Facing a number of political challenges, the president and his coterie sent out signals that …

And so, we have finally neared the summit of our journey from the Republic of Uganda to the Kingdom of Rwakitura under the Kaguta dynasty. The crowning moment of this journey was two weeks ago when President Yoweri Museveni appointed his wife, Mrs Janet Museveni, to cabinet. That there has …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Two years ago, the German construction company Strabag won a tender to build a 70km tarmac road from Kigali to Bugesera in Rwanda. The company delivered a high-quality tarmac road with proper drainage and pavements for pedestrians ‘ a testament to the efficiency and effectiveness of …

By Mahmood Mamdani In the second of this four-part series, renowned Ugandan scholar Professor Mahmood Mamdani examines the historical causes of Zimbabwe’s crisis After the Lancaster House Agreement had expired, the government tried to occupy the middle ground by shifting from the ‘willing buyer, willing seller’ formula with a new …

By The Independent Team ‘If Museveni reconstitutes the Protestant base through UPC,’ one analyst said, ‘he can easily become formidable again. He knows that the Catholics do not have a political party or a leader ‘” so they cannot be politically threatening. Sometime in October 1994, President Museveni held a …

By G. Pascal Zachary Democracy has taken root in Africa,’ says Princeton Lyman, an analyst with the Council of Foreign Relations in Washington DC. And from the perspective of history, it does seem that the people of sub-Saharan Africa have entered a robust period of democracy. The trend toward multi-party …