Why the struggle against NGOs in poor countries is a struggle not to undermine democracy but to defend it THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | In this column last week, I wrote about the ignorance, recklessness and even subversive work of Uganda’s leading opposition figure, Robert Kyagulanyi aka …
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How the ideological poverty of Uganda’s leading opposition figure makes him subversive to our national interest THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Uganda’s leading opposition figure, Robert Kyagulanyi, hereinafter referred to by his stage name, Bobi Wine, is a disaster of unmitigated proportions. He claims to be …
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How the president’s approach of allocating favours to individual firms has undermined the development of a robust private sector THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | On August 15th, President Yoweri Museveni wrote the prime minister an instruction titled “Support of Local Companies in the Construction Sector”. He said …
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Why being vilified as being the most corrupt politician in Kenya did not undermine but facilitated his victory THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | This week, the Supreme Court confirmed the election of William Ruto as the fifth president of Kenya. The election poses a dilemma for many …
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How Kapeeka Industrial Park may be signaling a fundamental change in Uganda’s policy attitude THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Last week, on a visit to Gen. Salim Saleh in Kapeeka, I decided to also visit “his” industrial park. Although I travel for fortnightly pilgrims to Kapeeka to …
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A journey to a South Indian state and the contradictions in its egalitarian ideals THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | I had been battling continuous fatigue and exhaustion, largely mental and partly physical. A friend advised me to seek traditional Indian treatment. He chose ShinShiva, a treatment center in …
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The factors and combinations that make that newspaper survive, flourish and promote democratic freedom THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | This week, Monitor Publications Limited celebrated its 30th Birthday. Daily Monitor (the newspaper) and its affiliate radio station, KFM, are the ground on which my teeth as a …
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Why the cooperation agreement between NRM and DP should form the example in the evolution of our democracy THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | The cooperation agreement between NRM and DP is an important political innovation in our country’s politics. Uganda needs this kind of cooperation between competing …
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How our political elites waste so much time indulging in misguided debates about our development THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | President Yoweri Museveni and his critics have been locked in a debate on when or whether Uganda will achieve the much hyped “middle income” status. There …
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How this South Asian country is transiting from a stable liberal democracy into a chaotic illiberal mobocracy THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | The news from Sri Lanka is intriguing and confounding both as politics and as economics. Let us begin with its politics. Sri Lanka has, since …
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The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price