Category women rights

Entries 15 Total

Huge sexual appetite generating NRM Industrialisation – Part I

Jun 11, 12 7:48 PM

If you visit any state agency, from the police, medical care, Uganda Gaddafi Telecom Limited (UTL) to a sophisticated security facility – a worker, if he or she can get you around the corner, will ask you for money termed as facilitation before any services or no services, you pay for with your tax money, are offered to you!

Even if it is a dying child, they will ask for facilitation – that is NRM Uganda economic and industrialisation philosophy. So between 1986 and now, Uganda has lost more children and adults, besides more business opportunities, innovations, technologies than it has ever lost in 24 before 1986.

Reference can be made to a year on year, Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) data and see how many of such businesses, including direct foreign investment (DFI), have materialised in a span of the last 15 years! Let me be categorical here, there is no meaningful Global Business Investment can make it in Uganda. NONE!

I have done a mini research on the above and unexpectedly some key social groups are masters of the “facilitation” economic miracle. It can also be seen with necked eyes i.e. who owns which most expensive car, or drinks in which bar in Kampala filthy slums like Kabalagala or Garden City. One time, the shoes they wore identified this NRM class!

You imagine such stupidity – type of shoes??!

It is this money, unwittingly stolen from needy working people, the Tomato, Waragi, Chappati makers, Banana, Chicken and Milk vendors and sellers, which is used to build; expensive villas, conspicuous consumption (drinking, sex, roosted chicken) and some sort of investment i.e. in matatu and the construction sectors (mizigo rentals) by the “facilitation” investors.

Note too that the huge sexual appetite in Uganda, read (Nancy C.M. Hartsock : Money, Sex, And Power) has seen expansive leisure economic growth: nightclubs, bars, lodge and restaurant sector growing by leaps and bounds. This is also boosting auxiliary sectors i.e. in media and church pornography, obscene music industry typical of American black slum gangstering, and ghettorism , (read Thorstein Veblen’s Theory of the Leisure Class)

This is an ever growing primitive mercantilists money circulation system in Uganda, typical of the Colombian and Mexicanian drug money system. This is exactly the same economy, Europeans practiced between 1200 – 1500 by importing; pepper, tobbaco, tea, and cocoa.

Ugandans are importing everything from toilet papers to pastilles!

Mercantilists economy never built those countries but the beholders were filthy rich. NRM’s Uganda is in exactly the same situation of exhortationist economy. Is it any wonder that it is only during this regime many Ugandans have been committed to death due for narcotic drug trafficking and expensive car theft from Europe and South Africa?!

Uganda has basically no industries anywhere. This too implies there are virtually no Ugandan industrialists. Among some Uganda societies, they have paged ones well-being to a mobile phone one has, never mind if it is a fake Chinese Nokia or Blackberry!

In Uganda therefore, there are a lot of rich exhortationist traffic police men/women (sleeping in Naguru or Nsambya shacks), judicial officials, town clerks, police and military CID officers, headmasters and lecturers, medical workers, fake engineers you name it who have gotten filthy rich out of a mercantilists money circulation.

And that is all about it!

NO single economy in the world has ever been developed based on the above NRM logic of middle classism i.e. citing figures on taxation, and production quantities derived from the above economic structure – exhortationist and mercantilists money circulation system. NRM rudimentary use of basic economic theorems is quite surprising. Most politicians and policy makers believe what they read from such scripts and literature or what they see in Kampala, Mbarara, Arua as a truism.

Let me show the falsehood.

Majority buildings constructed by Kampala rich, if we went by real market valuation their shilling value will be less that ½ of their production cost i.e. construction cost. The buildings are filthy, with no engineering structure design, no parking, not spacious – in reality, they are boxes with cubical for the lowery African population. Many can’t be insured as told to me by a one insurance firm. Where they are, the premium is so high, implying they are risk ventures! And that is exactly what they are meant for – owino type business conduct!

On the other side, Light industry, which has by the way, grown out of the above class, would generate technological innovation (packaging, machine fabrication and design). However in Uganda the state is sleeping – typical of all African societies, world over. Katwe local machine fabricators are on their death roll, as they can import all junk and resell making 100% profit yet grounding, NRM economic growth falsehood.

Is there any heat transfer and thermodynamics and dairy engineering specialist among NRM cattle keepers? They need to keep milk cool and fresh!

Uganda for the past 26 years has seen an impalpable expansive growth in the construction sectors. However, and because of the “Veblen effects” alluded to above – Uganda has no corresponding meaningful industry in the sector.

Hae Sung furniture and/or Sumhuk Investments?

Ugandans import everything in the construction sector right from machinery to simple things, like toilet seats and floor tiles. These could be designed by Makerere or Kyambogo ceramic students, who now days do lucrative courses, like entrepreneurship and business administration!
_______________
Bwanika Nakyesawa Luweero

Comments (4)

IGP’s statement on Turinawe’s ‘Breast’ Arrest

May 21, 12 11:45 AM

STATEMENT OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE ON THE INCIDENT OF THE ARREST OF INGRID TURINAWE ON 20TH APRIL 2012 in NANSANA TOWN.

Let me begin by welcoming you all to this press briefing intended to update the country on the investigation by the Professional Standards Unit (PSU) of the Uganda Police, (supported by the Special Investigations Unit) into the incident of arrest of Ingrid Turinawe in Nansana town, and, in particular, the allegations against the Uganda Police in relation to that incident.

The PSU have completed the investigation, and have presented to me their report which contains their findings and recommendations. At this juncture, let me ask the lead investigator, Commissioner Sam Kyomukama with his team to give you highlights of their investigation.

Uganda Police Force, and, I personally, have faced criticism for the manner in which it responded to this incident. I was, personally, accused of turning a blind eye to improper behavior by a police officer, of refusing to condemn the offending act, and of seeking to minimize the serious nature of the assault on Ingrid Turinawe and the offence to her dignity.

In fact, soon after the incident, we issued a general statement on the incdent, and, since we did not have all the facts, announced that we had set up an investigation. To do more, as some quarters demanded of me, especially to rush to a conclusion basing on one sided and distorted and selective images on NTV, (including the lie that it was a male police officer who violated the privacy of Ingrid Turinawe) would have been presumptuous, improper, and, as it has turned out, unwise,. Indeed, to do so would have been prejudicial to the investigation, and would have done injustice to all the actors involved, as well as to the truth. We refused to be stampeded into joining the chorus of condemnations, and let the joint team of the PSU and SIU, quietly, professionally carry out their task of investigating the incident. Now that we have the facts, I can authoritative and substantively comment.

First and foremost, on behalf of the Uganda Police, as well as on my own behalf, I regret, and apologise for, the action of one of my police officers, Woman Police Constable (W/PC) Irene Alinda, for improperly and unprofessionally handling Ingrid Turinawe. Although the officer is, clearly, remorseful, and is haunted by what she did, she still acted unprofessionally, and out of tune with the standards of the Uganda Police in carrying out arrests or using force. Her action was unnecessary, improper, and unacceptable, and she must be held to ccount. For that we are deeply sorry to Ingrid Turiname, her family, her friends, and indeed, all the womenfolk, and the country at large. This apology is unequivocal, unqualified and sincere. We shall, formally, and in writing, express the same to Ingrid Turinawe, directly, and personally.

This type of behavior has no place in Uganda Police Force. Indeed, notwithstanding some instances of unprofessional misconduct by some officers, as a Force we are not brutal as some propagandists want the country and the world to believe. We have a code of conduct which is part of the Police Act, and which we enforce vigorously, and rigorously. That is why we have the PSU, “the Policeman of the Police”. We emphasize people friendly methods of policing, in particular community policing (building community/police partnerships), as well as observance of human rights. In training, and in our orders, police officers are prepared to ensure that in going about their work, they should be intimate with the people, and respect the human rights of suspects. We emphasize internationally established human rights – compliant principles on use of force, namely, lawfulness, necessity, proportionality, non-discrimination, and accountability.

Secondly, in line with the recommendations of the investigation team, I have ordered that W/PC Alinda Irene be tried before the Police Headquarters Disciplinary Court on charges of Discreditable Conduct and of Behaving in a Cruel, Disgraceful and Indecent Manner, disciplinary offences established under the Police Act (Code of Conduct).

Thirdly, having said the above, however, I wish to make some comments on the incident which led to the confrontation between Ingrid Turinawe and the Police, indeed, which is what led to the incident under investigation.

Some people, political leaders included, seem to consider that they are not obliged to follow lawful instructions of a police officer. In fact, they act and behave as if they are above the law, and that is where problems begin.

In fact, from the findings, on this occasion, Ms Ingrid Turinawe’s driver obeyed the instructions of the Police , and refused Ingrid’s insistence that he ignores the Police. In fact, she took over the wheel of the vehicle precisely because her driver refused to defy the Police. Had she cooperated with the Police, as other political leaders did during the same occasion, the question of her arrest and the subsequent incident in question would not have arisen. Indeed, ngrid Turinawe defied the direction of a police officer who was managing traffic. Not only did she refuse to follow his instructions, she actually continued to drive her vehicle into him. (This is very clear on video footage which by the way NTV conveniently left out.) As my traffic officers are constantly saying, a motor vehicle can be a lethal weapon. Here Ms Turinawe drove into one of my officers repeatedly. In fact, this was a serious assault and it was therefore entirely appropriate that she be arrested.

Again, contrary to the impression created by the deliberately distorted and manipulated images of the NTV, the commander in charge, on the scene, ordered four female officers to make up the arrest team and despite being correctly informed that she was being placed under arrest, Ms Turinawe again defied police and resisted to leave the vehicle. Indeed she struggled with them, grabbing the steering wheel and hitting, and biting the officers.

Therefore, while acknowledging that W/PC Alinda Irene acted unprofessionally, we must not lose sight of the genesis and background to the incident, especially the circumstances surrounding the incident, and who had primary responsibility for its occurrence. Ingrid Turinawe sought to attend an illegal assembly, organized by an Unlawful Society. When this assembly failed to take place she refused to comply with the lawful instructions of a police officer performing traffic management duties. She used a motor vehicle to physically strike a police officer repeatedly. When informed that she was to be detained she resisted arrest. She hit and bit police officers (This is all clear on the video footage.)

These are plain facts. Indeed, while they, absolutely, do not excuse the misconduct of one police officer, these facts are none the less relevant and material. I find it interesting to observe that not one newspaper, TV or radio programme or opposition leader (who were so quick to demand Uganda Police Force take action against the officer who assaulted Ms Turinawe), have, also, called for her to face charges of assault on police officers, or disciplinary action as a political leader. While we hold the Police to high moral, and professional standards, which we should, at the same time, should we not expect our political leaders to hold themselves to equally, or even higher standards?! Ms Turinawe is an aspiring law-maker! I respectfully suggest that she should desist in being a law-breaker.

Police has never denied anyone, (including Ingrid Turinawe) to exercise their rights and freedoms. Indeed, we facilitate , as we should, people to exercise their freedoms of speech and assembly, while, at the same time, ensuring safety and security of others and the country. All we demand, as we should, is that such exercise of rights and freedoms is within the Constitution and the law. In fact, it is when we make these demands , as we should, that we clash with individuals, and groups who do not respect the Constitutional mandate of the Uganda Police.

Finally, I wish to assure the country that the Uganda Police Force aspires to maintaining the very highest professional, ethical and behavioral standards, and to respect, uphold rights of individuals and groups. Indeed, we have demonstrated this over and over in spite of propagandists who give the contrary impression,. We have and continue to protect and serve all in Uganda, including, as we should, those who criticize us, insult us , defy us and assault us. Am aware that police officers, in the course of carrying out our work of protecting life and property, ensuring law and order, and preventing and detecting crime, we are forced to deal with people who do not respect the law. However, I expect police officers because of their training to exercise professional restraint and to act in with our standard operationg procedures in managing situations. On April 20th April 2012, at Nansana, one officer failed to meet the required standards, and, consequently, she will be dealt with in the appropriate way – through a trial by a Police Disciplinary Court.

I thank you for listening.


Lt Gen Kale Kayihura
Inspector General of Police

Comments (18)

We are taking disciplinary action against the officer who ‘squeezed’ FDC’s Ngrid Turinawe’s breasts & I didn’t know about UAH- Kayihura

Apr 25, 12 4:23 PM

General Kale kayihura is IGP in Uganda

General Kale kayihura is IGP in Uganda

Dear Ugandans at heart,

We are taking disciplinary action against the officer who ‘squeezed’ FDC’s Ngrid Turinawe’s breasts, who by the way is a female officer not a male officer. But that should not be misunderstood to be exoneration of the unlawful activities of Ms Ingrid Turinawe who provokes incidents in which sometimes some police officers make mistakes. It is amazing that not even an iota of outrage is expressed when police officers suffer excesses of rioters and their organizers and sponsors, the last one being the stoning to death of Ariong by rioters when he was carrying out his duty. I have not seen any expression of sympathy to the widow and his children the way you sympathize with Ingrid and her family for a lesser outrage. Remember the other was murder! Police also deserves balanced criticism which we rarely get.

Am glad to connect to the UAH forum. Am ready for discourse on the work we do and the challenges we face. While am eager to apologize to Ingrid (in spite of the fact that she has never expressed any apology to the Police for her unlawful and incessant provocations), I don’t want to pre empty the on-going investigation by our Professional Standards Unit.

As for the allegations that we provoke the incidents, it is really an insult to the memory of Ariong to suggest that the riotous incident that led to the death of Ariong was provoked by the Police!! I want to invite you to joint research with us on the riotous situations, especially the Mabira forest racist riot in 2007, the Kayunga riots in 2009, (that were orchestrated by genocidal broadcasts by some fm radios based on lies), as well as riotous incidents in the so called Walk to Work protests, in 2011 to date. I should also tell you that there are sections of the Opposition who have made demonization of the Uganda Police a political platform. But slowly they are being exposed, the mistakes that we sometimes make notwithstanding. There is a lot of hypocrisy, and I hope you who are outside the country will not be duped.

The Uganda Police is not the only security organization where unprofessional misconduct takes place. Indeed, there is no security organization the world over constituted by angels only. You only have to watch CNN or other major news network to appreciate this. My appeal is that you judge on the basis of what action we take when professional/criminal misconduct occurs rather than using mistakes of individuals to demonize the Police as an institution. I want to assure you that we don’t tolerate impunity.

However, the officers, like other citizens, are entitled to the due process of law. We have disciplinary organs in the Police, and courts of law. Indeed, there is abundant evidence of disciplinary/criminal action taken against police officers. But I also wish to reiterate that, while not apologizing for wrongdoing on the part of some police officers, Police action is usually consequential. The cause of all this, is persons, particularly political leaders, who refuse to recognize the mandate and authority of the Police under the Constitution, and create confrontational situations that result in incidents such as the current one. Ingrid is notorious for this, and it is deliberate. It is a political platform intended to demonize the Police and by extension the government. We handle many public events and in the majority of cases, including those of the Opposition, there are peaceful.

Dr Besigye can go on as he always does to call us all sorts of names. As I informed the UAH moderator, Abbey Semuwemba, am prepared for an objective, comprehensive joint research in all the incidents, especially since 2005, when the multiparty dispensation became operational after the removal of Article 269 of the Constitution. Am sure thereafter you will appreciate my point.

Judith Nababokoba is out on a course. I will tell her to begin getting active on UAH. I think this is a very important forum. I did not know about it.

Accountable to Ugandans or the regime in power?

The mandate of the Police is clearly spelled out in the Constitution, and that is what we strive to carry out on a daily, hourly basis. We face challenges which are obviously an occupational hazard.

Police carrying arms

Incidentally, the British police carry arms. Have you been to Heathrow lately? I want to assure you that our principal policing method is community policing as practiced in Britain, and I personally move on the streets and mingle with the people freely. We have very active police community liaison officers. But of course that is not sensational and does not make news.

However, having said that, we have new realities on our streets, namely terrorism that requires some level of armament for the police. Because of the high tech level of Britain with Millions of cameras all over the place, all that the police does is to place concealed armed teams which you will not see on a routine basis except when there is a problem. You remember the incident when terrorism was a big threat to Britain, and there was that incident in which the undercover police of the London Metropolitan police shot a Brazilian In full view of the public mistaking him to be a terrorist.

As I told you, I have seen heavily armed police at airports in London. In our case, we are still low tech. Our main weapon against terrorism is popular vigilance and deterrence through visibility, and so far it has worked. Anyway, go to other cities such as Rome. Haven’t you heard of the carabineiri? Even in countries such as Netherlands where the level of violent threats is low, whenever there are violent demos, riots, or other similar threats, it is the military police that responds. I saw this one time in 2006, in Amsterdam, when someone fired some object at a Press building.

What about the US, the home of democracy and human rights, where even traffic police is armed! Here in Uganda, traffic police is not armed. In fact, we have had to give them armed protection because of increasing threats on them, and as you know, they work deep into the night. So, anywhere, in any part of the world, whether Police is armed or not, depends on the level of threat. Surely, our situation is obvious.

General Kale Kayihura
Inspector General of Police
Uganda

Comments (4)

UDU statement on Ingrid Turinawe from the Gender Department.

Apr 24, 12 5:15 PM

United Democratic Ugandans
Gender Department

Statement on the Gross Violation of IngridTurinawe’s Human Rights

By Dorothy Lubowa

The rule of law is enshrined in the constitution of Uganda but it is hardly observed by the Ugandan government. Rule of law has beenupheld by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights since 1948 and, as a result, has become a part of international customary law binding on all members of the United Nations including Uganda. Uganda has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which protects the rights of all Ugandans to associate, assemble and express themselves as they see fit. Ugandan citizens, under the constitution of Uganda and the Convention Against Torture, have a right to be free from torture and inhumane treatment by the officials of their government.

Therefore all women of Uganda, and men who support them,in the international community:
Condemn the behavior of the Uganda Police who tortured IngridTurinawe while illegally arresting her without justifiable cause;

Are seriously disgusted by the silence of the government of Uganda and NRM regime on the issue of abusing women rights by the police;

Are further astounded and enraged by the savage violation of feminine dignity by the Ugandan police who denied committing the atrocities recorded on video available on u tube at http://www.youtube.com/user/ntvuganda;

Demand immediate rectification of all the wrongs committed by the Ugandan Security Forces against innocent Ugandans by arresting and punishing the individuals who perpetrated the illegal acts;

Call upon all people in the world to register their disapproval of this outrageous violation of human rights against an innocent Ugandan women.

We declare this for God, peace, liberty and justice in our country.

Comments (2)

Akena Says that he is not married to Roselyn Kabonesa

Apr 23, 12 10:44 AM

Roselyn Kabonesa claims to be Akenas first wife

Further to our telephone conversation in reference to your letter dated 16th April 2012 (Ref. FU/F/292/12) concerning the most outrageous claims by Ms Kabonesa Roselyn. Allow me to state once more for the record that I have never been married to nor have I had any sexual relations with the said Ms Kabonesa. It is in fact I, who continues to undergo “psychological violence” by your client who has stalked me at my place of work and residence on the basis that some “spirits” had told her that we are to be married. She has made herself a nuisance before the Speaker of Parliament and also at the UPC Party Headquarters.

Your letter invited me for “mediation” on “17th, 2012 at 10:00am” not stating the month but basing on the context of your letter, I would assume that it was today. Much as I do not wish to partake in a farce, I was attending a Extra Ordinary General Meeting of the Milton Obote Foundation from 9:30am which had been scheduled long before and telephoned immediately the Meeting finished.

Having been tormented by her for a number of years, my best advice to you would be to locate her family and impress upon them to arrange for medical assistance.

Honourable James Akena
Uganda Parliament
jakena@parliament.go.ug

Comments (3)

Nnabagereka Sylvia Nagginda qualifies to fight against Polygamy

Mar 11, 12 7:35 PM

Image

Folks:

Nnabagereka Sylvia Nagginda comes from a polygamous family.  She grew up in one and knows the challenges and problems of such a family.  I believe she is speaking against polygamy from that experience to caution Ugandans. Now so what if she has found herself in a tough spot?

Nnabagereka Sylvia Nagginda comes from a polygamous family. The father is/was polygamous which is why
Nnabagereka Sylvia Nagginda and her mother used to live in the USA/New York. This is public information.   And that is the context in which she may be speaking out against polygamy.

On what the majority of UAH folks are interested, Nnabagereka Sylvia Nagginda is not outsider. Her grandfather who was a chief played a leading role in Mmengo so she must surely have been told  a lot more about what she was getting into.

Without going into details, she must miss the late Mrs Rebecca Mulira (RIP), one of the people if not the person who had a lot of influence on —-(fill in).  The late Rebecca Mulira’s word was final. Let me stop there.

Secondly, If circumcision was effective how come HIV/ AIDS among the GEMA, Kalenjin, Kamba  and Luhya  is just as high as the rate among Luos of Kenya?. In Uganda, there is a substantial population that circumcise-Muslims, Bakonzo, Sabiny, Bamasaba. But are these groups safer than the rest of Ugandans? I think the researchers ignored a natural experiment.

But what about the women?  Are proponents of the cut saying that it is men who are the problem?  Granted men have done more harm than women but women too can infect men.  Could that be the reason why studies about circumcision have been mixed at best, misleading at worst?  It take stow to tango but the focus on men. Why ignore women  in the move to mitigate the spread of HIV/AIDS? I know some will argue that HIV/AIDS is gendered that is that more women than men are infected. But should not that be a god reason to involve women?

Now the problem with Southern African countries-I am not stereotyping them-is the mines. Absent men for long periods away from their wives. The men indulge with away games and the women too are tempted to do otherwise after all they are human too.

Now is the root cause being addressed?  No. The same in Uganda. How many men love their wives in the villages to go to cities to look for work? How often do those men return women? How faithful do those men remain/ And what about the women they  married and left in villages for months without what got them to marry?  Do men who live their wives for long periods expect them to do nothing why the men enjoy in urban centers? Playing away games like crime is about opportunity.

Where is the big picture? In a nutshell it is the movement of people in Africa which has contributed to the spread of HIV: long distance truck drivers, mining workers, factory workers,  farm workers, internal camps from war and violence etc.  Those Somali truck drivers are circumcised but studies have found that many are infected? Why? Because of their work and ensuing behavior.

The second problem is socialization when women cannot talk about safe sex and the men –even when infected-will go ahead and pass it on. Yes patriarchy is the other problem. So how has circumcisions impacted patriarchy and the sense of entitlement to sex among men?

W.B.KYIJOMANYI

Comments (1)

Government must do everything possible to stop early marriages

Feb 5, 12 2:53 PM

A typical traditional marriage in Uganda

Yes, the state must do its part to punish Ugandans that consider 13 year old girls ready for marriage! That must be illegal and punishable by atleast 10 years in prions.

Basically the government put into place UPE-a necessary condition to empower the girl child-but for some reason neglected to put into place the sufficient conditions. For example, make UPE mandatory. Also make schooling in Uganda mandatory and compulsory for all those below 18. And enforce the law to the letter. If a minister violates a teenager he should go to jail, the way they are sending the poor. The only people going to jail for sex crimes are the poor. Ministers, MPs, UPDF, police and the elite who sexually violate young girls and may be even young boys are free and still dreaming to become President or that in Uganda.
I realize that if the law on under age sex was to be enforced, prisons in Uganda would be overflowing because that country is full of sexual predator. And that is why YKM and all those who support UPE have not passed a law making UPE both mandatory and compulsory. How do you expect MPs who are in the business of harassing and violating young girls to pass the law that restricts their activities?

We have heard a lot about culture lately and let us face it; a culture that supports or even considers 13 years olds ready for marriage is abominable. Inter generational sex in Uganda is an ox moron. It is common and everywhere.

What is it the women MPs are doing in the house? What progressive law-read pro women/girls-have their advocated for and passed? The only women who cared were Dr. Specioza Kazibwe and Ms. Maria. K. Matembe. The rest are free riders.

Yes, why can’t the government provide pads for young girls in UPE as is the case in Kenya? That would go a long way in helping young girls to stay in school.Bottom line, there is no leadership on the girl child education in Uganda.

What happened to community spirit aka bulungi bwansi? Ugandans have become something under YKM. I wonder what it is YKM has done to drive Ugandans to such low levels of laziness. People are drowning and dying in holes!

It is also surprising to learn that that Lira schools are facing toilet shortage. What happened to pidda/PWD people who used to maintain roads throughout Uganda?

What about PTA? Board of Governors etc? Such nonsense never happened under president Amin thanks to the power of chiefs. Granted some chiefs were brutal but yes they got things done. Hygiene was high under Amin and cholera as is the norm these days was not as common. Alas!

We need Ugandans to embrace Mr Warren Buffet who pleaded with Washington to tax him more. As the famous former Supreme Court judge, Oliver Wendell observed” taxes are what we pay for civilization”. True dat. Ugandans pay no taxes and deserve what they get. No free lunch folks. Sweden and Norway are the best places to live because the folks there pay taxes. Simple.

W.B.KYIJOMANYI
NEWYORK

Comments (1)

Anne Mugisha’s visit to FDC’s Ingrid Turinawe- charged with ‘walking to treason’

Oct 28, 11 3:17 PM

Ingrid was charged with treason because she reportedly decided to 'walk to work'

Hi,

I do not know how I can tell you about my visit to Luzira women’s prison without sounding cynical, so let me just start at the deep end. I loved the place! Yes I loved it. Apart from beautiful lawn with flowers that greets you on arrival, the spirit of hope and life pemeates its environs. The smile on Ingrid Turinawe’s face when she saw us was perhaps what crowned it all. The words I was expecting to use to report my visit, words like despair, darkness, hopelessness, anger and fear became irrelevant during the visit.

We were received warmly by the OC, what a professional and courteous prison warden she is! She explained the rules for the visit without a trace of superiority in her voice or attitude. She gets respect from her staff and the inmates because she is respectful of others. As she registered our ID’s she asked our relationship with the inmate, to which I responded ‘partner in crime.’ The lady nearly cracked her ribs from laughter, then she interpreted that by writing ‘Friend!’

Ingrid has already been inducted into the discipline of prison life and her star is rising with the same meteoric speed that it was doing outside of prison. In one day she has graduated from the ugly yellow uniform to the checked red and white uniform reserved for inmates with leadership qualities! She is so proud of this achievement and boasted proudly of how she had a wonderful dress which reminded her of her school uniform.

The hardest part for me was to see her kneel when addressing prison wardens for any reason. It is part of the discipline code. But she dismissed my concern immediately saying she is only too happy to kneel as required because of the manner in which they treat her – with respect and kindness. She said after the hell she went through with the police personnel she was so happy with the prisons staff and would gladly kneel anytime they ask her to.

Ingird is working! She already had so many stories to tell, some which she felt would be inappropriate to tell in front of a prison warden. She is interacting with the women, some are on death row, some are serving 50 years, others 13, but in this place they were all united. Women with only one goal: to get through another day of their prison term. She is learning a lot and she is teaching a lot too.

Ingrid and her co-accused will appear in High Court on Monday October 31, 2011 to enter their pleas.

Oh, and before I left she gave me one last nugget of information. She is getting her nails done today – a pedicure and manicure! And guess who is giving it to her? A well known inmate known as – Draru! Yay!

Anne Mugisha

Note: Draru is the lady that is in prison over murder charges of General James Kazini

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Makerere University vice chancellor,Prof Baryamureeba, Must resign Immediately

Jul 26, 11 6:27 PM

Dr. Vernasious Baryamureeba

While Professor Baryemureeba’s ‘rape’ behaviour is considered uncouth by Western standards, many in Uganda will not see anything wrong with what he did, for that matter the professor will continue to act with impunity and as already shown by his arrogance when he refused to take advantage of the lady and her relatives who wanted to “solve” the rape case outside court. He is very confident that his high connections will shield him. Right now he is in denial but the DNA results will probably net him if he is the only one who had sexual relationship with the victim, but even then in our Uganda where high profile criminals are promoted, nothing will happen unless a high spirited campaign nationally and internationally to adovocates of women justice and to friends of Makerere University, students, human rights groups, faculty and parliamentarians, is intensified. This is one rare case in that though many cases of rape are committed on a daily basis, none is reported; the rape victims fear stigmization, blame, threats, despair and surrendering their fate to God so the perpetrators of rape go unpunished.

I salute this lady for taking that extra mile to report a well placed individual who failed to use his position, intellect and exposure to convince her in order to win her love. Even after realizing that he had committed a capital offence, he could not go down on his knees to ask for forgivenness and promise the lady heaven on earth which action in our traditional society would have granted him safety as our people are so considerate and forgiving.

May be Professor Baryamureba has forgotten his undergraudate talents of convincing ladies. University students, especially undergraduates, have the best language for conving partners: the boys will discuss anything on planet earth and give nearly pratical solutions, they promise heaven on earth and look forward to a rich and fruitful future and how they will take their future wives for honey-moon in Las Vegas, Cuba etc while displaying their university identification cards. The ladies pretend not to drink alcohol, they sip orange juice, eat a little, speak softly as they offer to dust the man’s face; some ask the men how many children would they want then to give the man, things the house-wives rarely do to their husbands or things the same girls will not do after their mission.

Professor Baryamureeba should consult his Makerere undergraduate students for the best approaches, those boys know a lot. There was one rich Kampala business man who confessed that he cannot compete with a university student because students have the best language to use and they don’t get ashamed to lie in order to win, so for him when he sees a student going to his girl-friend, he calls it quits. Don’t think he was uneducated, he was a graduate himself!

Peter Simon Okurut

Comments (6)

Kazibwe Has always been in the Company of Male Friends since Medical school

Jun 29, 11 10:28 AM

Dr Speciosa Wandira Kazibwe

Guys, why can’t you give Doctor Specioza Kazibwe, a break! Why can’t you give her a benefit of your doubt by simply putting to mind that she may be speaking her mind, first and foremost as a medical doctor and as a woman who first got married not as am old woman but not as a very young woman either.

Dr. Kazibwe, from the time i have known her since her early days at MUK, has always been in the company of males as her friends. Very rarely, would one find her for example walking from her lecture room to old Mulago, where she would go for her clinicals every so often, with female colleagues. She was always in the company of fellow male students with particular reference to one individual whom, for the sake of protecting individual privacy, i will not mention the name of the medical doctor she always walked with back and from Mulago hospital.

Why am i saying all this? It is not because i have anything to gain out of her private or political life, after all, i have never been and i will probably never be an NRM-zero sympathizer, but it concerns me when people start making up issues out of nothing and sometimes attacking individuals they really don’t know apart from reading about them in papers.

The good doctor, has always been as public and open minded as she could be. Starting with her DP mobilization crusades in the early eighties then later as Minister in Museveni’s regime up to when she became VP and back to private life.

Her encounter and vast knowledge about men issues is part of her training as a medical doctor and more so because of the fact that she has more male friends than she does with women. And before you make more nasty conclusions, the male friends i am talking about were and possibly are still just that. Male friends. Let no man tell me that ne cannot have an opposite sex as a mere friend. If one can’t do it, there are many who can and Specioza, happens to be one.

So, when she freely talks about male issues, like smelly socks, she knows what she is talking about, because she has been around many of them. When she talks about male circumcision, she knows that very well because, she has probably seen many “rotten” ones – as a medical doctor! Hon. Miria-Matembe, used to talk about such things even as far s recommending that penises deserved to be chopped off!

When she talks about “A mega hole” she probably has one which is absolutely a normal. Is it it abnormal for a man to have a long tool? Was it good for her to announce to the world about herself in that format? May be not. But again, how honest can one be when lousy, senseless men keep talking about a woman and accusing her of being a “sexual deviant” when she is as normal and truthful with herself?

Kamugisha Joseph
USA

Comments (2)
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