The Acholi refer to voting as bolo kwir; literally meaning placing poison.  The outcome of taking poison normally brings bitterness just like the outcome of a loved one taking poison. Gabrielle Lynch in an article ‘‘Acholi the new swing factor in the 2016 Uganda elections’’ (The East African, November 7) , argued that in 2011, […]

The Daily Monitor (23, January) reported that Uganda Farmers’ Party presidential candidate, Maj Gen (rtd) Benon Biraaro defended the National Resistance Army (NRA), now UPDF, against allegations of committing atrocities in Acholi during the insurgency in northern Uganda. When asked whether he would investigate the massacre claims against the UPDF if elected president, Maj Gen. […]

When  witty Democratic Party president Norbert Mao equated former Vice President Prof Gilbert Bukenya to a plant and an organism without a backbone, Bukenya quipped in a TV clip I watched: ‘‘Does Mao live a better life than me?’’ Mao’s description of Bukenya was sparked by the latter’s flip-flopping from the opposition Democratic Alliance (TDA) […]

The online dictionary defines “elites” as “part of a group that is superior to the rest in terms of abilities or qualities” (Refer to Classical Elite Theorists such as Pareto, Mosca, Michel, Mills, Putnam etc). For this article, elites are those who have attained certain privileges in society, such as higher education, formal employment, exposure […]

Since last week, the Chairman of Electoral Commission, Eng, Badru Kiggundu appears more distraught than stressed.  His biased utterances show that Eng. Kiggundu has lost his sense of fairness and he should step aside. The role of the Chairman of an Election Commission is that of arbitration, refereeing. And, like most referees, he should exercise […]

An ostrich is a gigantic bird with great legs. So just imagine how ridiculous it would look with its powerful legs bent, its tiny head buried in the sand and its massive backside jutting in the air. To ‘‘bury’’ one’s ‘‘head in the sand’’ is a popular idiom dedicated to this queer ostrich  behavior in […]

The post NRM Primaries has revealed a lot more about behind the scene struggles that we should analyze. It is increasingly clear that Mr. Museveni is indeed a hostage of a group of exploiters and self-seekers who are accustomed to state patronage, corruption, and are equitable to the Latin America’s fish – Piranhas/Caribes. To shed […]

The subject of pervasive corruption in Uganda accentuates a deeply seated sense of pessimism, followed by powerlessness in its victims, which leads to an internalized and normalized justification of it. Corruption, primarily perpetuates itself through a degenerative morality/ethics, feeds the politics of lumpen proletariats, and, in my view, it is the manifestation of the body […]

One of the most powerful predictors of success in politics and public policy  is the strength of political narratives. But do political narratives represent political reality? President Yoweri Museveni while addressing supporters at Pabbo Catholic Mission, Pabbo Sub County in Amuru said, ”Northern Uganda owes him for fighting tooth and nail to chase away the […]

Last week when I read the Go Forward Manifesto, I was struck hard by the central piece of their development proposal called Advanced Sub-County Model of Development (pg23). This model deserves our attention as voters as it will remove the clutter in our development planning. The proposal potentiates a standardized, equity-based development plan. The ingredient […]