Category: Daily Monitor

When several Ugandans hear the phrase ‘banana republic,’ or the localised version of matooke republic, many assume it is a light-hearted jab at our love for matooke. But the term has nothing to do with growing bananas. Its roots lie elsewhere, in a darker chapter of history that still echoes in political commentary today. The expression ‘banana republic’ was coined in 1904 by American writer William Sydney Porter in his story The Admiral. It described the small Central American nations, whose economies, governments, and even elections were effectively run to serve the interests of a single foreign corporation: the United Fruit Company.

The so-called banana republics were not sovereign states in any meaningful sense. They had puppet presidents installed or toppled at the convenience of the fruit barons, sham elections, and entire national policies bent toward maximising banana exports while ordinary citizens lived in poverty. The country existed, in essence, as a private commercial outpost for distant capitalists. Over time, the label expanded to any nation marked by weak institutions, foreign economic dominance, and a ruling elite that appeared more accountable to outsiders than to its own people.

Fast-forward to Uganda. The phrase has resurfaced in local discourse. It has been invoked by critics who argue that Uganda’s political economy bears uncomfortable similarities to the old model: heavy reliance on foreign capital, strategic sectors dominated by external players, and a perception that key decisions sometimes align more with international interests than purely domestic ones. Now on that basis comes the Sovereignty Bill. The Bill seeks to do exactly what its name suggests: protect Uganda from foreign interference.

As we have heard from ministers, the government frames the Bill as a straightforward assertion of Article 1 of the Constitution: Power belongs to the people, not to outsiders with chequebooks. Supporters say it is long overdue in an age when foreign money can quietly shape elections, advocacy, and public discourse. Here lies the irony. The very government accused by critics of operating within a web of foreign economic and political influence is now the one tabling legislation to crack down on foreign funding and ‘foreign agents’ operating outside state approval.

If parts of the state are already seen by some analysts as compromised by external forces, then this Sovereignty Bill becomes a striking case of the accused stepping forward as the prosecutor.It raises an obvious question that the Bill itself does not directly answer: Why focus regulatory fire-power on NGOs, opposition figures, churches, and diaspora remittances while leaving untouched the much larger flows of foreign capital into banking, extractives, or infrastructure deals that critics say define the country’s real dependencies?

What the Bill has done, above all, is force Ugandans to stare directly at the gap between rhetoric and reality. In a country where the term ‘banana republic’ is sometimes thrown around precisely because of perceived foreign sway, the government’s attempt to legislate sovereignty becomes either a genuine course correction or a selective shield. The conversation should not be reduced to for-or-against shouting matches. It should instead probe deeper: What does genuine sovereignty look like in a globalised world where no economy is an island? How do we distinguish legitimate foreign partnership from undue influence? And can a law that claims to protect the people’s will actually strengthen institutions, or does it risk concentrating power further in the hands of those already holding it?

The matooke on our plates will remain delicious regardless. But whether Uganda truly escapes the political shadow once cast by the original banana republics depends less on any single Bill and more on the honesty with which we confront these ironies.

Up in North Africa, along the Mediterranean Sea, in the damaged nation of a man who managed to be close to both the military dictator Idi Amin and his political enemy, President Yoweri Museveni, something remarkable is happening. That man, eccentric and volatile Muammar Gaddafi, who was nevertheless quite pan-African, was killed in 2011 in the Libyan chapter of the Arab Spring popular protests that swept away other autocrats in the region, like Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak and Tunisia’s Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali.

In the days when Libya and Gaddafi faced record sanctions from the West, Museveni was virtually the only leader who dared stick his head (joined later by South African statesman Nelson Mandela) out to advocate for the long-ruling dictator, who had been a key backer of the National Resistance Army/Movement in its bush war. However, under pressure, he too often spoke from both sides of his mouth about the man who styled himself King of Africa.

There is a popular video on African, pan-African and nationalist social media of Museveni decrying the arrogance of Nato during the uprising in Libya in 2011, which was sliding into a civil war when Nato intervened and heavily bombed Gaddafi’s forces and regime installations. In the speech Museveni delivered to the Pan-African Parliament in Midrand, South Africa, he recounts an incident from March 2011 in which a high-level African Union (AU) delegation, including several African heads of state, was flying to Tripoli to mediate a ceasefire between Gaddafi and the rebels.

Museveni says that as the aircraft carrying the delegation approached Libyan airspace, Nato ordered it to turn back. His case is that to avoid such humiliation, Africa should be united, which is the only way it will be powerful enough not to be treated so dismissively. Second, he argues that the current instability in Libya and in the Sahel, fuelled by Gaddafi’s fall, proves that the AU’s rejected roadmap was the superior path.

Libya all but collapsed with the lynching of Gaddafi in 2011. Though the picture has improved considerably, it doesn’t have a unified government. It has the Government of National Unity (GNU), based in Tripoli. Led by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, it is the internationally recognised administration.

There is the parallel Government of National Stability (GNS) in Benghazi, in the East. The third main force is the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF), led by the warlord Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. Controlling Sirte, Gaddafi’s home region, gives Haftar total leverage over the oil crescent, where the majority of Libya’s oil terminals are located.

Now, for those who think Libya is a shambles, this might come as a surprise. First, Libya holds the largest foreign reserves in Africa, at $92.9 billion (including foreign currency and gold). To put this in perspective, this is significantly higher than Algeria ($83 billion) and South Africa ($65.4 billion). Secondly, Libya has the cheapest electricity in Africa (and arguably the world) at $0.000 to $0.008 per kWh for residential use. It is cheaper than bottled water.

However, on April 11, 2026, something truly remarkable happened. The rival eastern and western administrations agreed to a unified national budget for the first time in 13 years. There is a lot of speculation about how this “miracle” happened.

The answer is oil. Libya has reached its highest production in 12 years at 1.37 million barrels per day, generating roughly $22 billion in annual revenue. This windfall will get bigger, and it is partly thanks to Nato – specifically its leading force, the USA, which wrecked Libya with bombs in 2011. While Nato’s 2011 intervention led to over a decade of fragmentation, the 2026 global energy desperation, fuelled by America’s attack on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, has made Libya’s oil too valuable for factions to keep fighting over. By accident, those who broke Libya are fixing it.

There are two lessons for Uganda here. First, that the country that eats together stays together; secondly, all this (the reserves, energy policy, and all) is driven or managed by the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) and the Central Bank, acting as a massive buffer that has allowed the country to survive years of civil war without total currency collapse. The fact that Libya leads in these categories despite having no unified government for 13 years suggests that the “administrative state” (the Central Bank and the National Oil Corporation) has been more resilient than the political state.

Gaddafi, the man who famously told Museveni in 2008 that “Revolutionaries do not retire”, didn’t think of the coda to that prophecy: that “the revolutionary will eventually perish, and the nation’s survival instincts will eventually outlive his ghost”.

Still, I imagine Museveni might justly chuckle at the irony that the US bombs and the crisis they brought to the Gulf are fuelling a Libyan resurrection.

The hearing of the murder case against Christopher Okello Onyum, the prime suspect in the killing of four toddlers at Ggaba Early Childhood Development Center, continued last Friday with Dr Rogers Agenda from C-Care Clinic, International Hospital Kampala (IHK), telling the High Court presided over by Justice Alice Komuhangi Khaukha of how he had sought psychiatric assessment and that on probing him, he disclosed that his family never had any history of mental illness. Below is a slightly edited court proceeding.

Evidence led by Chief State Attorney, Jonathan Muwaganya

Muwaganya: What are your full names?

Witness: I am Dr. Rogers Agenda.

Muwaganya: What is your profession?

Dr Agenda: I am a medical doctor and a psychiatrist.

Muwaganya: How old are you?

Dr Agenda: I am 41years old.

Muwaganya: Where do you work?

Dr Agenda: I work with C-Care Clinic, International Hospital Kampala (IHK).

Muwaganya: What do you do at C-Care Clinic?

Dr Agenda: I am a psychiatrist.

Muwaganya: For how long have you worked as a psychiatrist?

Dr Agenda:I have worked as a psychiatrist for the past four years.

Muwaganya: How about in C-Care IHK?

Dr Agenda: The same years, my lord.

Muwaganya: Doctor, what are your academic qualifications?

Dr Agenda: I am a medical doctor, my lord. I hold a Master’s degree in Medicine, specializing in Psychiatry, obtained in 2022 from Makerere University. I also have a Bachelor’s degree in Medicine and Surgery, obtained in 2010.

Muwaganya: How long have you practiced medicine?

Dr Agenda: I have practiced medicine for the past 16 years now.

Muwaganya: What are your duties as a psychiatric doctor?

Dr Agenda: My lord, as a psychiatric doctor, I receive clients at my mental clinic at C-Care IHK, I carry out psychiatric assessments on the clients, diagnose mental disorders if any, and provide therapy, write psychiatric reports. If any of an individual’s issues are work-related, those reports may be required by the court or for compensation purposes.

Muwaganya: Are you in a position to recognize the accused person (points towards Christopher Okello Onyum)?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord, I recognize him.

Muwaganya: How do you know him?

Dr Agenda: He came one time to C-care IHK as one of my new clients.

Muwaganya: What brought him to C-care IHK?

Dr Agenda: He came after having been referred by the Ministry of Internal Affairs Immigration Department. They had told him to get a sanity medical report to help him obtain citizenship in Uganda.

Muwaganya: Doctor, is this a general or unique requirement applicable to only the accused?

Dr Agenda: My lord, this is a requirement for everyone seeking citizenship in Uganda by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Muwaganya: Did you carry out the assessment on the accused person?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Muwaganya: And after you carried out the assessment, to whom did you give the report?

Dr Agenda: My lord, I gave the report to Mr Okello Onyum Christopher.

Muwaganya: And after that event, did anything else occur in the respect of the work you had done?

Dr Agenda: Recently, C-care IHK got a police request based on one of their exhibits, and that was a report written by me. So they wanted the hospital administration to verify that it was a report written by me, also to verify that it was their headed paper and also that it was their stamp. When this happened, the hospital administrators reached out to me to verify if the said report was actually mine.

Muwaganya: What did you verify?

Dr Agenda: My lord, I verified that the report was actually mine, and the hospital administration, through our CEO, wrote back to the police concerning the same.

Muwaganya: Why is it the CEO who replied to the police request?

Dr Agenda: My lord, it is the policy of the hospital that any external request should be handled at the administration level not at the doctor’s level.

Muwaganya: Before your admin sent out the reply where you required to do anything in respect to the report that you had authored?

Dr Agenda: My lord, after verifying that it was my report, I countersigned it.

Muwaganya: Are you in a position to identify the reply from your facility, the sanity report that you counter-signed, and the police request you are referring to?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Muwaganya: How would you identify the police request, sanity report, and the reply?

Dr Agenda: The police request has their logo on it on the headed paper and was signed by Madam Chelimo.

Muwaganya: How about your sanity report?

Dr Agenda: I identify it by my signature, a C-care IHK stamp, and CK IHK logo

Muwaganya: And the letter forwarding your sanity report?

Dr Agenda:This letter has a CK IHK logo, it has a CEO’s signature Azhar Sundoo it has also been stamped.

Muwaganya: Do you recognize the documents?

Dr Agenda: : Yes my lord

Muwaganya: What are they?

Dr Agenda:The first one is a reply from C-care IHK by our CEO Mr Azhar Sundoo, it was a response to the police dated April 10, 2026.

Muwaganya: What was the subject?

Dr Agenda: The subject was a response to the request for information at Ggaba.

Muwaganya: Does it quote the police reference?

Dr Agenda: Yes my lord, CRB 026/2026 (ref CID / C49/2007 volume 44)

Muwaganya: In short, what was your CEO forwarding?

Dr Agenda: My CEO confirmed that the sanity medical report dated December 30, 2025, in respect to Mr Onyum Christopher Okello was duly issued by International Hospital Kampala Limited and also confirmed that it was authored and signed by me, Dr Rogers Agenda, a psychiatrist, in my capacity as a medical practitioner at the facility.

Muwaganya: Look at the second document.

Dr Agenda: The second document is my sanity report, which I wrote on December 30, 2025.

Muwaganya: And the third document.

Dr Agenda: It is a police request for information to support investigations at Ggaba CRB 026/2026 dated April 9, 2026.

Muwaganya: So, doctor, let’s go to the report that you authored.

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord

Muwaganya: When did you author the report?

Witness: I wrote the report on December 30, 2025.

Muwaganya: Who was your client?

Dr Agenda: My client was Christopher Okello Onyum.

Muwaganya: What other particulars did you take for Mr Christopher Okello Onyum?

Dr Agenda: I noted that Mr Christopher Okello Onyum was a 38-year-old male. He was residing in Bunga.

Muwaganya: Doctor, who was the source of that personal information that you took about your client?

Dr Agenda: Mr Onyum Christopher came to see me personally, so I took all the information from him alone. He told me he was a resident of Bunga, single, Christian by religion, and by that time, he had a plan to settle in Uganda and start commercial farming. Based on his request for a sanity report, I carried out a psychiatric interview with him, and after that, I also carried out a mental state examination.

Muwaganya: Doctor, what does this psychiatric entail?

Dr Agenda: It entails asking the client many times open ended questions. The interview entails asking various psychiatric questions to determine if this client has any mental disorder.

Muwaganya: So in this case, what did you do?

Dr Agenda: Upon asking him those questions, Mr Okello told me the following. That he had no history of having excessive sadness, no history of loss of interest in pleasurable activities, no history of excessive fears or excessive worries, no history of excessive happiness or increase in oriented related activities.

Muwaganya: Why were these questions important?

Dr Agenda: My lord, these questions help us to establish various mental disorders, if any, in any client that comes before us. These questions are key to the various mental disorders. For example, when I ask a client if they have a history of excessive sadness, loss of interest in pleasurable activities, I am trying to determine if they have depression. If I ask about excessive fears or worries, I am trying to determine if you have an anxiety disorder. The question asked about excessive happiness or increase in oriented related activities. I am trying to determine if a client has bipolar affective disorder.

Muwaganya: Other than that, what else did he reveal to you, or did you ask him?

Dr Agenda: He also told me that he had no history of hearing voices or seeing things other people could not see. When I asked my lord, I am trying to enlist if you have allusions. He told me he has no history of using drugs like cannabis; however, he occasionally uses alcohol, which enables me to find out if he uses drugs. That helps us to identify if someone has a substance use disorder. He also told me he has no history of having had any traumatic experience in his life. That is a question that can help me enlist if someone has what we call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The client told me that this was his first visit to mental health personnel in his life.

Muwaganya: And how did you reflect that in your report?

Dr Agenda: This is the index or first visit to mental health personnel, and he had never taken any psychiatric medications.

Muwaganya: What else?

Dr Agenda: The client disclosed that he was a patient of a chronic illness of sickle cell disease and was regularly taking medication for that purpose.

Muwaganya: Anything else?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord, Mr Onyum told me that he was a 3rd born of 4 children, and his parents are alive and they are well. He told me there was no history of any mental illness in their family.

Muwaganya: Apart from what your client disclosed to you in the interview, did you proceed to carry out an independent examination on him?

Dr Agenda: I proceeded to carry out a mental state examination. From this examination, I noted that Mr Okello was a middle-aged man, he looked kept, was well-nourished.

Muwaganya: What do you consider to declare someone well-nourished in your medical profession?

Dr Agenda: He looked healthy; he never appeared sick in any way that time I saw him.

Muwaganya: Ok you say he was well nourished, proceed.

Dr Agenda: My lord, I note that he was calm, he kept eye contact, and he had no odd behaviors of any sort.

Muwaganya: Why was this important for you to observe?

Dr Agenda: My lord, odd behaviors help us to know if this person could be acting under the influence of hearing voices in his head or could be seeing things that others are not seeing. I also noted that his speech was coherent, of normal volume, rate, and tone. I noted that his thoughts were logical with no preoccupations, no delusions, and no overvalued ideas. He had an euthymic mood, which we basically call a normal mood. This was congruent with affect, meaning that both the mood and affect are in agreement. Affect is your current emotions. Okello had no Perceptual disturbances, or cognitive disturbances and also had no cognitive disturbances.

Muwaganya: Am still going to tell you to help the court appreciate what you mean by perceptual disturbances, or cognitive disturbances?

Dr Agenda: Perceptual disturbances align with normal sessions for example you are hearing voices others are not hearing them, you are seeing things which others are not seeing, while cognitive disturbances we are looking your memory, attention, concentration, you general knowledge of what is happening around your ability to judge what is around you, your ability do basic mathematics and if you are able to tell the time or year we are in and able to tell who you are as a person.

Muwaganya: Now, doctor, why is this particular assessment in your mental health examination about this aspect of perceptual or cognitive disturbances important to you as a profession?

Dr Agenda: For the mental health examination, as a professional, I will be able to conclude whether someone has a mental illness or not at the time.

Muwaganya: Yes, proceed with your findings.

Dr Agenda: At that time, Mr Onyum Christopher was sane and mentally fit to leave and work in Uganda.

Muwaganya: Did you sign off on the report?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Muwaganya: Was it stamped?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord

Muwaganya: What was the date of signing and stamping?

Dr Agenda: I signed it on that very day, 30th December 2025, and the stamp was of that very date.

Muwanganya: My lord, I pray to tender the report, together with the forwarding letter and the request letter admitted as exhibits.

Judge: Defence, do you have any objection?

Richard Kumbuga (Defense lawyer): No objection, my lord.

Judge: Assessment report of Christopher Okello dated 30 December 2025 authored by Dr Rogers.

Cross examination

Kumbuga: Doctor, are you aware that the history of illness of this suspect is already on the court record?

Judge: What was the question?

Kumbuga: So, doctor, the reason why you interacted with the suspect was seeking citizenship in Uganda, is that true?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Kumbuga: And this kind of citizenship is based on mental sanity?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Kumbuga: Are you aware that your client was denied Ugandan citizenship?

Dr Agenda: No, my lord

Kumbuga: Ok, in your report, you talked of alcohol that he was taking some, did you extract any blood samples to know the content of alcohol in his body?

Dr Agenda: No, my lord.

Kumbuga: Did you also test his blood to see if there are any other substances in his body?

Dr Agenda: No, my lord.

Kumbuga: Apart from him telling you that his family there is no history of mental illness, did you have any other mechanism to establish whether it was right?

Dr Agenda: We have mechanisms. The psychiatric interview and mental state examination give us a lot of information to ascertain if someone is of sound mind or not.

Kumbuga: Doctor, you have not answered my question. My question is, did you verify from his family that apart from him, there is no history of mental illness?

Dr Agenda: No, my lord.

Kumbuga: You have talked about the question being open ended questions, will I be right to say that in your report, there is nowhere it suggests that you asked him those questions?

Dr Agenda: My lord, the report I wrote summarizes what I got in the interview.

Kumbuga: So, confirm that those questions actually happened between you and the suspect?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my Lord.

Kumbuga: Did you verify that the story he was telling you was right or wrong?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Muwaganya: My lord, the Witness is saying he’s not hearing the questions very well because it is raining heavily. Can he go and sit close there?

Judge: It is ok

Kumbuga: With the interview with your client, is it not true that there were no safeguards to determine whether your client was telling the truth or not?

Dr Agenda: It is not true.

Kumbuga: So, doctor, will I be right to say sick cell is one of the underlying causes of mental illness?

Dr Agenda: My lord, I will call it a risk factor, not a direct cause for mental illness.

Kumbuga: So, a risk is one of the causes of mental illnesses.

Judge: Please do not confuse the witness; the witness said it is a risk factor but not a direct cause, so do not mix them, Mr Kumbuga.

Kumbuga: My lord, I just need clarification from him. So if a sick cell is a risk factor leading to mental illness.

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

Kumbuga: So your report is dated December 30, 2025?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord

Kumbuga: In that report, as it is dated, can you be able to subsequently determine whether your client was normal?

Dr Agenda: My lord, this report verifies that the client is of sound mind.

Judge: Ok his question was as of 30 December 2025. Would you know his mental health after this date? Is that the question?

Kumbuga: Yes, my lord.

Dr Agenda: My lord, this was a one-time contact with this client

Kumbuga: So, you confirm you cannot know his mental status after 30th December 2025?

Dr Agenda: Yes, my lord.

From the turbulence of 1980s Nigeria to the structured corridors of international finance, Ayodeji Olaifa has built a life that moves between numbers and narratives. In this conversation with Edgar R. Batte, the banker, author, and self-described Pan-Africanist reflects on migration, identity, faith, and the quiet human stories that sit behind the systems shaping Africa’s future.

Growing up in Nigeria, what shaped your early sense of ambition, or even possibility?

Nigeria itself was the motivation. I guess it’s easier now, in hindsight, to see how all the challenges I faced as a young adult growing up in Nigeria in the 80s and 90s-a period some describe as one of the most difficult in the country’s history-shaped me.

It was a time of incessant military coups, severe economic hardship, civic unrest, long university closures, and failed liberalisation policies. It was bleak. If you were not from a privileged background, you wanted to leave.

But in spite of it all, the average Nigerian youth learnt resilience. You learnt to look upwards-to a higher power. The state had failed us, so religion and spirituality filled the gap. Faith kept us going. Faith gave us vision.

Ambition came naturally in that environment. Education was the only legacy we felt we had. I knew that if I was ever going to escape the ‘Nigeria trap,’ it would be through education. That has been my path ever since.

Before the titles and roles, who was Ayodeji Olaifa as a young man trying to find his place?

A curious mind. Highly driven. Resilient. Someone who saw beauty in everything.

Your book Unjani Mfwethu? explores the migrant experience in South Africa. What parts of that story are drawn from your own life?

It is my story. The book is autobiographical. It captures a part of my life-leaving Nigeria in my late twenties for South Africa, and everything that came with that journey.

Migration often looks like opportunity from the outside. What does it feel like from within?

That’s one of the reasons I wrote the book. Migration is a deeply layered experience. From the outside, it looks like opportunity. From within, it’s something else entirely. We live in a time when anti-immigrant sentiment is rising. But I believe part of the problem is that we’ve stopped talking to each other.

Certain forces benefit from division-xenophobia is often a tool. The only way forward is to create safe spaces where people can talk without fear. At the core of it all, we just want to be seen.

Migration is not just about economic benefit or refuge. It’s about discovery. Sometimes, you travel far only to realise that what you were searching for was always within you. As we say in Yoruba, what you are looking for in Sokoto may already be in your sokoto.

Did writing that book change how you see yourself, as a professional, or as a person?

Absolutely. It grounded me. It made me realise how blessed I am, and also how much work is still left to do.

You work in international project and export finance-spaces that shape economies. Do you ever pause to think about the human stories behind the numbers?

All the time. In fact, my current book is about that very thing. It’s called Not Just a Ride: A story of money, memories, and the potholes that shook me. It reflects on my travels across the region as a ‘money man,’ and the people I meet along the way-drivers, traders, everyday citizens. Writing it has helped me understand my dual role-as both observer and participant in Africa’s development story.

What does impact mean to you in a role that is largely financial but deeply structural?

Impact means freedom. When the work we do liberates people rather than confines them further.

Have there been projects you’ve worked on that stayed with you beyond the spreadsheets?

Yes. Sometimes you question the motives behind projects, but most times, it’s the people that stay with you. When I board a train we helped finance, or meet someone whose life changed because of financial advice I gave years ago-it makes it worthwhile.

You describe yourself as a Pan-Africanist. What does that mean in practical terms, not just ideology?

For me, it’s about identity. I am African, and that is the lens through which I see the world. I want to tell African stories-about our people, culture, and heritage. Even when I address difficult issues like corruption or trafficking, it is not to shame but to provoke action. Being a Pan-Africanist is about living consciously and advancing that identity. It is not about defining ourselves in opposition to others.

Having worked and studied across different countries, what do you think Africa misunderstands about itself?

I can only speak from my own journey. I’ve had to confront the contradictions within myself-Western education, Western values, but also a deep desire to remain authentically African. The work is in reconciling those contradictions. Africa must do the same. Radicalism is not always the answer. Conscious living is.

And what does the world still get wrong about Africa?

Almost everything. The world does not know our history, our cultures, our values, our heroes. Yet we are taught theirs. Africa is often understood through narratives created by those who once exploited it.

You’ve written The Helper’s Son, Unjani Mfwethu?, and Nuns at the Gate. Where does the need to write come from?

From a desire to document experience. Storytelling helps us understand social realities more deeply.

Do your stories begin with observation, memory, or emotion?

All of the above. They are stories I feel deeply connected to.

How do you balance the precision of finance with the vulnerability required for storytelling?

It’s not easy. But finance, at its core, is also about stories-how people relate to money, how they make sense of it.

What inspired Nuns at the Gate-and why this story now?

It is fiction, but inspired by real events and real people. It’s a story I carried for a long time. With the rise of human trafficking, especially involving women, it felt urgent to tell it now.

How does it feel knowing your work is now part of Uganda’s secondary school curriculum?

It’s exhilarating. The journey, the people who supported me, the work of the Uganda National Curriculum Development Centre-it all feels like a collective victory. To know that students will read my work is deeply fulfilling.

What do you hope a 16-year-old student takes away from that book?

That young people are vulnerable. That danger often hides in unexpected places. But also, that it’s never too late to find your way back.

Your academic journey spans Lagos, UNISA, Stellenbosch, and Nelson Mandela University. How did each environment shape how you think?

In different ways. Each came at a different stage of my life. Stellenbosch exposed me to questions of race and identity. Nelson Mandela University deepened my appreciation of culture and development. Each environment shaped how I see the world.

What did you learn outside the classroom that no degree could offer?

That growth is not linear. Sometimes, you have to improvise.

Do you think African education systems are preparing young people for the realities you’ve experienced?

Yes. There is beauty in our imperfections. The challenges within our systems often create drive, ambition, and resilience.

What has success cost you?

Perspective. You stop taking things at face value. You question intentions more.

What keeps you grounded in spaces that are often high-pressure and high-stakes?

The understanding that everything is temporary. We are all just actors in a short film called life.

If everything you’ve built disappeared today, what part of you would remain unchanged?

My core-love for God, for self, for family, for people.

What stories are you still trying to tell, through your work or your writing?

That we all matter. And that failure is part of the journey.

What does the next chapter of your life look like?

I don’t know yet. But it will be driven more by service and teaching.

What would you like your legacy to feel like, not just look like?

If I had a wish, it would be to be remembered for championing love-love for God, for self, for family, and for society above everything else.

Court has heard that Ggaba murder suspect Christopher Okello Onyum confessed to killing four toddlers, apologised for his actions, and admitted he was aware of the consequences he faced.

Detective Assistant Superintendent of Police Eserait James, the Division CID Officer at Kabalagala Police, testified that the suspect made the admission shortly after his arrest on April 2, 2026.

‘He told me he was arrested after killing four children at a day-care centre in Ggaba,’ Eserait told court.

Eserait, 40, said he was alerted about the attack at around 11:30am and immediately mobilised a team of detectives and Scene of Crime Officers to respond.

‘On arrival, we found a huge crowd of community members who were highly charged,’ he said, adding that police had to disperse them to secure the scene and evacuate the suspect safely.

The suspect had already been arrested by private security guards and was being held at the school.

‘He was later picked and taken to Kabalagala Police Station,’ Eserait testified.

According to the officer, the suspect appeared visibly injured.

‘I observed bruises on his arms, mouth and forehead. He later told me he had been beaten by the mob,’ he said.

At the police station, Eserait said he personally interacted with Okello in what he described as an initial conversation.

‘I asked him who he was, and he identified himself as Christopher Okello Onyum,’ he told court.

When asked why he was at the police station, the suspect reportedly admitted to the killings.

‘He said he had killed four children at the day-care,’ Eserait testified.

Pressed on his motive, the suspect gave a chilling response.

‘He told me he killed these children because he was looking for riches,’ the officer said.

Eserait further told court that the suspect admitted to planning the crime.

‘He said he took time surveilling the school and noted that there was no security guard and mostly women were present,’ he said.

According to the testimony, Okello also revealed that he had prepared for the attack.

‘He told me he bought several knives before the murder and used some of them in committing the crime,’ Eserait said.

In a moment that stunned the courtroom, the officer recounted the suspect’s final remarks during their interaction.

‘He said he was sorry, he apologised and knew that what he had done had consequences,’ Eserait testified. ‘He said he could be jailed or even killed.’

The court later saw physical evidence backing this claim when a set of six knives allegedly linked to the suspect was presented.

‘Six knives, five black and one grey, were recovered from the accused’s residence,’ Eserait said.

The knives were tendered in court and admitted as exhibits without objection from the defence.

‘These are the knives he indicated he had procured in preparation for the crime,’ the officer added.

Eserait also led a search at the suspect’s residence in Kyanja the following day, where multiple items, including passports, electronics, and documents, were recovered and submitted for forensic analysis.

The prosecution argues that the confession, combined with the recovered weapons, demonstrates both intent and premeditation in the killings.

The trial Judge Alice Komuhangi Khaukha has adjourned the matter until further cross-examination.

The long-running corruption case involving former Trade Ministry Permanent Secretary Geraldine Ssali and several high-profile co-accused continues to stall, as the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court awaits guidance from the Constitutional Court.

On April 17, 2026, Justice Jane Okuo Kajuga adjourned the matter to May 29, citing the pending determination of a constitutional petition that has effectively halted trial proceedings.

At the centre of the delay is a petition filed by Busiki County MP Paul Akamba, one of the accused persons, challenging the legality of his prosecution.

Akamba alleges that he was subjected to torture by security personnel during his arrest, arguing that his fundamental human rights were violated. He is seeking dismissal of the charges on that basis.

Ms Ssali faces the charges alongside Igara East MP Michael Mawanda Muranga, Elgon County MP Ignatius Wamakuyu Mudiimi, lawyer Julius Taitankoko Kirya, and Principal Cooperative Officer Leonard Kavundira.

They are jointly accused of abuse of office, conspiracy to defraud, causing financial loss, and money laundering in connection with Shs3.8 billion intended for Buyaka Growers Cooperative Society Limited.

The prosecution contends that Ms Ssali abused her authority during the 2021/2022 financial year by irregularly introducing Buyaka Growers Cooperative Society onto a list of entities eligible for government compensation for war losses, despite the cooperative not appearing in the approved supplementary budget request dated August 4, 2021.

It is further alleged that in the financial years 2021/2022 and 2022/2023, Ms Ssali authorised payments amounting to Shs3.8 billion to Kirya and Company Advocates in contravention of the 2017 Treasury Instructions.

According to the prosecution, the accused knew or had reason to believe that their actions would result in financial loss to government, a claim that forms the backbone of the state’s case.

The prosecution also alleges that between 2019 and 2023, the accused persons conspired to defraud government of Shs3.4 billion earmarked for compensating cooperatives affected during the 1981-1986 liberation war and subsequent insurgencies.

Earlier proceedings before the Anti-Corruption Court had already faced procedural interruptions.

At one point, the matter was adjourned due to the absence of the Assistant Registrar, with defence lawyers noting the non-appearance of the prosecution and successfully applying for bail extensions for all accused persons.

The continued delay highlights the growing intersection between constitutional litigation and criminal prosecutions in high-stakes corruption cases, where accused persons increasingly turn to the Constitutional Court to challenge the legality of their arrest and trial.

For now, the fate of the Shs3.8 billion cooperative compensation case remains in limbo, pending a decisive ruling that will determine whether the trial proceeds or collapses altogether.

Fresh testimony in the ongoing High Court mobile session in Ggaba has revealed that authorities in the United States found no criminal record linked to Christopher Okello Onyum, the suspect in the murder of four toddlers at a daycare centre earlier this month.

Detective Assistant Superintendent of Police Eserait James, the Division CID Officer at Kabalagala Police, told court on Tuesday that investigators, through the office of the deputy CID director, Ms Beyata Chelimo, formally wrote to the American embassy in Kampala seeking background information on Okello, who had previously lived in the United States.

‘The report from the Americans indicated that the embassy had no known criminal offence in their records regarding Okello,’ Eserait, who headed a team of investigators in toddlers murder, testified.

The witness, appearing for a second consecutive day, said investigators also sought to verify the authenticity of two American passports recovered from Okello’s rented residence in Kyanja.

‘The two passports were genuinely issued to him,’ he said.

Mr Eserait further disclosed that police wrote to the Chief Licensing Officer in the Ministry of Works and Transport to establish whether Okello held a valid driving licence. This followed findings that he had driven himself from Kyanja to Ggaba on the eve of the alleged attack.

‘The response indicated that he only had a learner’s permit, which had expired at the time,’ he told court.

Led in evidence by Chief State Attorney Jonathan Muwaganya, the witness added that investigators also examined Okello’s bank accounts as part of efforts to understand his lifestyle and financial status.

Further, the 15th prosecution witness said the American report to the Inspector General of Police indicated that they had no knowledge of any of Okello’s mental health challenges.

Okello is facing four counts of murder for the alleged fatal stabbing of toddlers at Ggaba Early Childhood Development Centre. He has since denied the charges.

The trial, which is being conducted in a community setting at Ggaba Community Church playground, is presided over by Justice Alice Komuhangi Khaukha and continues to draw public attention due to its pace and proximity to the affected community.

New data from Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) reveals that resignations are one of the leading drivers of job vacancies in both the formal and informal sectors, overtaking retirement and termination.

The UBOS Labour Market Survey 2025, released in Kampala last Thursday, shows that in the formal sector alone, 55,684 vacancies arose from resignations, far higher than those occasioned by retirement at 1,892.

Restructuring accounted for 13,277 vacancies, termination 9,769, expansion 46,562, and others 28,056.

The data also reveals that the country’s labour market is facing a deeper crisis, with even those employed struggling to earn a meaningful living, with thousands leaving their jobs due to poor working condition.

The findings, therefore, point to a labour market where the real crisis is no longer just about joblessness, but the lack of decent, productive, and sustainable jobs, leaving millions of Ugandans working but with poor working and living standards.

The report shows Uganda has a working-age population of about 26.4 million people, but with about only 13.4 million employed, underscoring the scale of the challenges.

The survey reveals that unemployment has stagnated at 12.2 percent, nearly matching the 12.3 percent estimate by the International Labour Organisation.

But more telling is that only about 44 percent of Ugandans aged 15 and above are productively engaged, pointing to a labour market that is continuously failing to fully utilise its workforce.

This means more than half of the working-age population is either unemployed or underutilised, raising concerns about the quality and sustainability of jobs available.

Despite employing the majority, the informal sector also accounts for the highest number of job vacancies at 305,364, largely driven by expansion and high resignation rates.

The same data suggests the informal sector continues to absorb the majority of workers, employing 7,350,199 people (about 4 million males and 3.4 million females) compared to 2,373,109 (848,569 females and 1.5 million males) in formal employment.

However, most of these jobs are in the services sector, which is largely characterised by small-scale, low-productivity activities.

Of the informal jobs, 6,121,260 people are in the services sector, while industry accounts for 1,186,394. The findings that agriculture, forestry, and fishing employ the least in this category (42,547) has also sparked debate.

State Minister for Finance-in-charge of Planning Amos Lugoloobi questioned whether the figures reflect the realities on the ground.

‘For the case of agriculture, there’s the least number of employees, and that doesn’t seem to correlate with reality. I would expect to see more people reflected, especially in informal settings within the sector,’ he said during the release of the report.

Why are workers leaving?

The data shows that in the formal sector alone, 55,684 vacancies arose from resignations, far higher than those due to retirement at 1,892. Restructuring accounted for 13,277, termination (9,769), expansion (46,562), and others (28,056).

The Permanent Secretary in the Gender Ministry, Mr Aggrey David Kibenge, attached poor working environments and weak enforcement of labour standards as factors pushing workers out of jobs.

‘Many workers are not attracted to the workplaces because the places are indecent, not inspected, and not attractive. Employers say these places are not effectively filled due to insufficient funds to service payments,’ Mr Kibenge said.

‘We need to go back to the drawing board and ask ourselves if workplaces are being inspected enough and whether they are inclusive enough to retain workers,’ he added.

The burden of unemployment continues to fall disproportionately on women, whose rate stands at 13.9 percent compared to 10.8 percent for men. Nationally, youth unemployment also remains high at 18 percent, with a higher rate among females (21 percent) compared to males (15.2 percent), driven by a mismatch between education and job market needs.

Mr Lugoloobi expressed optimism that Uganda will attain middle-income status, citing plans to expand industrialisation to absorb unemployed youth.

‘The services sector has too many people compared to those in industry and agriculture in the formal sector, which is evident that we need to construct more industries to cover the large numbers of unemployed youth. We are hopeful we shall achieve middle-income status largely through this by 2040,’ he said.

Unemployment is also higher in urban areas (12.8 percent) than in rural areas (11.8 percent), reflecting growing migration to towns and cities.

The report also sparked debate over labour productivity, with Mr Lugoloobi urging UBOS to include productivity metrics in future surveys, arguing that employment figures alone do not fully capture economic performance.

‘The productivity of our population is still very low, and I would implore you in the next findings to try and include data relating to productivity, how productive our population is,’ he said.

Regional

Bukedi Sub-region recorded the highest unemployment rate at 23.7 percent, which is almost double the national average that stands at 12.2 percent. Teso follows with 19.7 percent, while Tooro (16.2 percent), Busoga (15 percent), Kampala (14.7 percent), Elgon (13.4 percent), and Lango (12.8 percent) also rank above the national level.

Buganda (11.9 percent) and Acholi (10.6 percent) also fall closer to the national average, while Bunyoro records the lowest unemployment rate at 4.5 percent, followed by West Nile (8.9 percent), Ankole (9.3 percent), and Karamoja (10 percent).

Residents of Masindi Municipality were left in shock after a man who had been announced dead resurfaced alive, just hours after a body believed to be his had been buried.

Godwin Baguma, a resident of Kijura Central Cell in Central Division, had reportedly gone missing for weeks, causing anxiety among family members and neighbours.

According to the family, Baguma, who is said to have a mental health condition, disappeared without informing anyone, prompting a frantic search.

The situation took a tragic turn over the weekend when the family received information that police had recovered a decomposing body from a sugarcane plantation in Kisanja Cell on Friday.

The body was taken to Masindi Hospital mortuary, where announcements were made for people with missing persons to help with identification.

Baguma’s father, Mr Yakobo Kamuturaki, said after receiving information on Sunday, he sent his sons to the mortuary to verify whether the body belonged to his missing son. After viewing the remains, they returned and confirmed it was Baguma.

‘We were told the body was in a bad state. My sons went and identified it as their brother. We believed them and accepted that he was dead,’ Kamuturaki said.

Following this confirmation, the family quickly organized burial arrangements due to the advanced state of decomposition. News of Baguma’s alleged death spread rapidly throughout Kijura Central Cell and neighboring areas, drawing mourners to the home.

The burial was conducted on Sunday, with the family planning to hold final funeral rites the following day [Monday].

However, what began as a solemn mourning ceremony quickly turned into disbelief and confusion.

While preparations for the final rites were underway on Monday, reports began circulating that Baguma had been spotted alive in Kihanguzi village in Labongo Sub-county, Masindi District.

‘At first, we dismissed it as rumours. We had already buried the body. But we decided to go and confirm.’ Baguma’s sister, Ms Jane Birungi said.

She said family members rushed to the area, only to find Baguma alive. It is reported that he had spent the night at a friend’s home.

‘When we saw him, we were shocked. We could not believe it was him standing there alive,’ Birungi said.

Baguma was immediately brought back home, bringing the ongoing funeral ceremony to an abrupt halt.

The discovery forced the family into the difficult process of exhuming the body that had already been buried. The remains, initially believed to be Baguma’s, are now suspected to belong to an unidentified individual.

‘We had already mourned and even buried the body. Then suddenly, the person we thought was dead returns alive. This is something we have never witnessed before,’ Ms Janet Asiimwe, a neighbor said.

Another resident, Ms Florence Bikorwa, described the incident as strange which she has never witnessed in her entire life.

‘It felt like a movie. People were confused and scared. No one could understand what was happening,’ she said.

Police have since confirmed the incident and launched investigations to establish the identity of the body that was mistakenly buried.

Mr Solomon Mugisa, the Albertine North Regional Community Liaison Officer and acting police spokesperson, said the body had been recovered last Friday and taken to the mortuary.

‘A family came and identified the body as their relative and began burial arrangements. Later, they discovered their relative was alive, which caused confusion,’ Mugisa said.

He added that the family has since withdrawn their initial identification, leading to the exhumation of the body and its return to the mortuary at Masindi Hospital.

The case has been registered under reference number Masindi CRB 017/2026.

Police have urged the public to exercise caution when identifying bodies, particularly those in advanced states of decomposition.

‘In such situations, identification must be done carefully, and families should work closely with medical personnel to avoid such mistakes,’ Mugisa advised.

He also emphasized that proper legal procedures must be followed during exhumations, including obtaining a court order, recommendations from local authorities, and police involvement.

Every year, Uganda prepares its national budget through a process guided by the Public Finance and Management Act. The Act requires the Finance Minister to present the country’s annual budget to Parliament by April 1, ahead of the next financial year. The Minister does this on behalf of the President.

This budget process is a major undertaking for the government and all stakeholders because it forms the legal basis for how Uganda plans, raises, and spends public money. Since the government cannot spend what it does not have, the budget also outlines how revenue will be collected, with taxation being one of the main sources. This is why, each year, proposed tax changes are discussed at the Cabinet level and later presented to Parliament as Tax Amendment Bills.

One of the most widely discussed proposals this time is the amendment of the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) income tax brackets. The proposal has triggered debate, with arguments on both sides. But one thing is clear: if you currently pay PAYE, you stand to take home slightly more pay if the changes are approved. It may not be a huge amount, but it is still some relief.

Although this seems surprising at a time when the government urgently needs to increase revenue, there is a reasonable explanation – which we shall get to shortly.

Uganda’s current PAYE system has three tax bands: 10% on monthly income Shs235,001 to Shs335,000,

20% on the monthly income of Shs335,001 to Shs410,000,

30% on monthly income above Shs410,000, increasing to 40% for those earning above Shs10 million per month.

The tax-free threshold is Shs235,000 per month (Shs2,820,000 per year). Every shilling earned above this amount is taxed progressively until one reaches the top rate of 40 percent.

Proposed PAYE changes

The proposed PAYE changes introduce two major reforms:

1. The tax-free threshold would rise from Shs235,000 to Shs335,000.

This means: Anyone earning Shs335,000 or below will pay no PAYE.

Low-income earners retain more of their pay.

This boosts disposable income, increases consumption, and helps reduce income inequality and poverty.

2. A new tax band of 25 percent would apply to earnings between Shs410,000 and Shs485,000. This means people currently taxed at 30 percent in this range would instead pay tax at a rate of 25 percent, giving middle-income earners some relief. Since the first Shs335,000 becomes tax-free for everyone, all PAYE-paying employees will contribute slightly less tax overall.

Taken together, these changes show an effort to prioritise social equity over pure revenue mobilisation which the public has often demanded from the government. The proposals provide targeted relief to lower- and middle-income earners at a time when many households are struggling.

This relief is timely because PAYE brackets were last revised in 2012, when the threshold increased from Shs130,000 to Shs235,000 per month. A lot has changed in the past 13 years – inflation, cost of living, and wage levels – making this update long overdue.

However, even with these improvements, Uganda’s PAYE regime remains uncompetitive in the region.

Uganda’s top PAYE marginal tax rate is 40%, compared to: Kenya: 35%, Tanzania: 30%, Rwanda: 30% and Burundi: 30%.

Beyond the PAYE rates, it is also the income level at which the top rate kicks in.

Uganda: 40% applies from Shs10 million, Kenya: 35% applies from about Shs22 million.

For the common 30% rate applied regionally:

Uganda: applies from Shs410,001

Rwanda: from Shs509,000

Burundi: from Shs520,000

Kenya: from Shs923,000

Tanzania: from Shs1,440,000

In short, Ugandans start paying higher tax rates much earlier, meaning they end up with less disposable income than neighbours earning similar salaries.

A PAYE system that takes a large share of income early reduces household purchasing power and suppresses domestic consumption. With limited take-home pay, many Ugandans cannot afford basics such as quality private education or healthcare. This makes it important for government to invest more in human capital development such as affordable, quality public education and healthcare to ease the burden on citizens whose spending capacity is already constrained by the tax system. The proposed PAYE changes are positive and necessary, especially for low- and middle-income earners. They correct long-standing thresholds and put a bit more money back into people’s pockets.

However, Uganda will remain a high-PAYE jurisdiction relative to its neighbours.

To balance this, the government must reinforce social services so taxpayers get tangible value for the taxes they pay and so the broader economy can benefit from a healthier, more productive population.