NEWS ANALYSIS

By The Independent Team Here, The Independent talked to Maj. Gen. Zed Maruru, former army chief-of-staff under Gen. Tito Okello’s short-lived government. Maruru is an air force pilot trained in Czechoslovakia and at Bracknell Staff College of the Royal Air Force of United Kingdom, one of the world’s most respected …

By The Independent Reporter The Independent talked to two retired military officers; one from Britain, one from the United States. Both have worked for the Special Forces of their respective countries. According to these experts, the way UPDF employed its Special Forces in the operation demonstrated a lack of understanding …

By the Independent Team One of the key issues identified in crippling LRA is to kill its leader, Kony. This is not the first time voices in UPDF are saying this. In 2002, then Chief of Military Intelligence and Security, Brig. Noble Mayombo, began negotiations with a private security firm …

By Andrew M. Mwenda  The inside story On December 4, 2008, President Yoweri Museveni called Finance Minister Ezra Suruma and ordered him to suspend the Managing Director of National Social Security Fund (NSSF), David Chandi Jamwa and his deputy, Mondo Kagonyera. For months, Suruma had been psychologically paralysed and unable …

By Andrew M. Mwenda A story of intrigue, bad weather, double-crossing   First, it was his Kaunda suit, then his walking stick, later his military pips, now it is his guitar. Over the years, the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) has captured many of the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army leader, Joseph …

By Independent Reporter President Yoweri Museveni may have to visit Sembabule to try and quell the political fever that is once again engulfing that young district amid squabbling by factions of his NRM party. This follows the Supreme Court ruling of November 10 that dismissed yellow girl Hanifa Kawooya from …

By Andrew M. Mwenda What does the appointment of internal affairs minister, Ruhakana Rugunda, as Uganda’s permanent representative at the United Nations imply? Some people believe that this is the beginning of the end of Rugunda’s long political career. Others insist this could mark his rise to a more prominent …

By Melina Platas One of the most memorable and tragic moments of 2008 was the Budo Junior Primary School fire that took the lives of 20 students as they slept in their beds one April night. This was sadly only the start of the devastating trend of loss of life …

By John Njoroge On December 27, 2007 Kenyans went to the polls to elect their president and Members of Parliament in what would turn out to be the most controversial elections in the country ever. Between Friday December 28 and the morning of Saturday December 29, the Orange Democratic Movement …

By John Njoroge This year will be remembered as the year of the Temangalo-gate. This scandal that began in February 2008 involved Security Minister Amama Mbabazi, Finance Minister Ezra Suruma, businessman Amos Nzeyi and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) top executives among others. Nzeyi and Mbabazi sold 411.44 acres …