COLUMNISTS

By Andrew M. Mwenda Why it has been important that Rwandans and not the international community ended the genocide On Monday, Rwanda commemorated 20 years since the genocide against the Tutsi. It was an inspiring event because Rwanda has astounded admirers and critics alike. In little less than two decades, …

By Patrick Kamara Katojo is one of the biggest government correctional facilities or prison in south western Uganda. Located about seven kilometres from Fort-portal town it is sandwiched between the Muhoti Military Barracks and one of the deepest crater lakes in East Africa, Saka. This is also the home of …

By Richard S. Grossman Instead of filling central banks’ top positions with “insiders”, it is becoming smarter to hire an outsider Can you imagine a French citizen being elected President of the United States? Or a Japanese prime minister of the United Kingdom? Or a Mexican chancellor of Germany? Probably …

By Steven P. Cohen Chronic pain affects more people and costs more to treat, yet it is often easy to treat the wrong way Pain is ubiquitous in life. Inextricably bound to consciousness, it is an experience that all living creatures with advanced nervous systems share. For our ancestors, whose …

By Yusuf K. Serunkuma Musicians like Bobi Wine and comedians are standing out as the philosophers of our era We live in tragic times, David Scott noted in his 2004 book, Conscripts of Modernity. “This is not merely because”, Scott explained “our world is assailed by one moral and social …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Why Uganda should move away from a winner-take-all electoral system in favour of proportional representation I argued in last week’s column that in Uganda’s specific context of mass poverty, electoral competition tends to eliminate public-spirited candidates (or patriots) in favour of crooks. Therefore as our democracy …

By Patrick Kamara I was contemplating my next move while grazing our cattle when my cell-phone rang. It was the voice of the Voice of Tooro radio station manager back in Fort-Portal. They needed me without fail the next day. The same day when my elder sister Elizabeth was having …

By Esther Dyson Addressing the world’s most pressing problems, requires helping to tackle the underlying businesses An online charity organisation is taking Silicon Valley by storm. Called Watsi, the charity allows users to read personal tales of medical woe in emerging markets and contribute up to the total amount needed …

By Peter Mulira Western principles on the relationship between the state and the individual are the issue, not whether homosexuality is right In her article, “Uganda should not be pushed to adopt Western values in the name of democracy” (see Daily Monitor of March 2), Betty Kamya seemed to imply …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Why parliament will either increase its term of office from five to seven years or raise its wages threefold Some Members of Parliament have proposed that their term be extended from five to seven years. This proposal is going to gain momentum. If it is not …