News analysis Health Business

Museveni letter on Self-medical tests: Why Can Katamba save Uganda’s ease of doing
torture is cosmetic some are safer than others dfcu bank? business worsens

Issue No. 546 Nov 09 - 15 2018 Ushs 5,000,Kshs 200, RwF 1,500, SDP 8

What next for Kayihura?

Charges bogus, says Museveni
But ISO says it has new charges

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Issue No. 546 Nov 09 - 15 2018

News analysis Business Health Arts Motoring

Cover story
What next for Kayihura?
Charges bogus, says Museveni
But ISO says it has new charges
4 The Week
29 Comments
ADF rebels kill at least seven
civilians in Eastern DR Congo Two tasks for today’s
abolitionists: Trafficking
humans and their organs, and
9 The Last Word
forced labour and prostitution,
The destiny of nations: Why some are crimes against humanity
nations prosper and others stagnate
and what we cannot do about it
36 Health
Self-medical tests: Why some
14 Analysis are safer than others

Fighting HIV/AIDS: Uganda’s tough

choice between prevention and treatment

39 Arts & Culture

27 Business
Art legend Katarikawe dead at
Can Katamba save dfcu bank?: What it will 80: His intuitive style on canvas
take to turnaround fortunes of a bank with earned him global fame as
negative publicity and mixed performance Africa’s Chagall

STRATEGY & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR: Andrew M. Mwenda
MANAGING EDITOR: Joseph Were
INVESTIGATIONS EDITOR: Haggai Matsiko
BUSINESS EDITOR: Isaac Khisa
PHOTOGRAPHER: Jimmy Siya
WRITERS:Ronald Musoke, Flavia Nassaka, Ian Katusiime,
Agnes Nantaba, Julius Businge.
DESIGN/LAYOUT: Sarah Ngororano
CARTOONIST: Harriet Jamwa

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2 Nov 09 - 15 2018
 Offline

Karawang, Indonesia:
Rescuers watch as a
turbine engine from the
crashed Lion Air flight
JT610 is retrieved

“We have many public holidays but

one more won’t kill us”President
Museveni declaring Oct. 29 a public holiday.
It was the 133rd anniversary of the murder
of Bishop James Hannington on the orders
of Kabaka Mwanga

A model skeleton is
displayed at Day of
the Dead altars and art
installations by artists in
downtown Los Angeles

“You should not make the

plea bargaining a handshake
ceremony.”Principal Judge Yorokamu
Bamwine to judicial officers

Ouahigouy, Burkina
Faso: A fan waves a
flag after watching
the fifth stage of the
2018 Tour du Faso

“Please advise your security people

to handle us with respect. My wife
was forced out of the car and had to
walk, bishops and their wives carry
Bibles, not guns.”Archbishop Stanley
Ntagali on President Museveni’s guards

Money President Workers government plans

Loss Ugandan traders suffered
Shs376bn Shs500m 1968
Museveni has donated to to recruit to boost extension
due to outbreak of war in
the construction of the services in the country
South Sudan in 2013
new All Saints Cathedral

Nov 09 - 15 2018 3
week

National dialogue Bank of Uganda to appear before COSASE again today

a waste of time?
Activities set to be part of the
National dialogue will be officially
launched on Nov.21, but ever since
these plans were announced by
the National Elders Forum and the
Inter Religious Council of Uganda
several groups and individuals
have come out to shoot it down.
The latest of these is president of
the Democratic Party Norbert Mao
who said it’s a waste of time.
“We cannot pretend to be going
for a national dialogue when the
right to organize it was being
effectively undermined,” Mao
said adding that the agenda of the
dialogue is not clear enough and
that it’s not worth for his DP party
to take part. Also, several talk
show pundits and members of the
opposition have come out to say
that the activities of the dialogue
are being controlled by the ruling
NRM and have previously set
terms for the organizers if they are
to attend.
But for other analysts like
Lawyer Godber Tumushabe of
the NGO – Great Lakes Institute
for Strategic Studies-GLiSS, the
dialogue is important as an avenue
through which Ugandans can put
their grievances across since the
country has had a turbulent politi-
cal and economic history and yet
now the gap between the haves
and havenots, those who feel the
situation is dire and those that are
comfortable is widening. For him,
this is an opportunity that should
be embraced by all if they are to
assure Ugandans of peace, unity
and certainty. According to organ-
isers, the dialogue will address
several issues ranging from land
wrangles, political and economic
questions among others.
When adjourning an inquiry into the closure
and sale of seven commercial banks by the
Bank of Uganda, Abdul Katuntu, the chairman
of the parliamentary Committee on Statutory
Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE)
said the sitting will be resumed on Nov.09.
This was after Bank of Uganda Governor
Emmanuel Tusiime Mutebile asked MPs to
give his team two days to avail them docu-
ments that spell out the grounds on which the
banks were taken over.
Although Mutebile had promised to avail
the documents on Nov.05, the MPs said they
needed more time to read and understand
them before calling the officials back to answer
queries that have since attracted public debate.
ADF rebels kill at least seven civilians in Eastern DR Congo
Rebels killed at least seven
civilians and abducted 15
others, including children, in
fresh overnight raids in the far
eastern Democratic Republic
of Congo, civilian and military
sources said Sunday.
Fighters of the Allied
Democratic Forces (ADF)
staged two raids Saturday
night in the North Kivu
region bordering Uganda,
Teddy Kataliko, leader of the
civilian administration in Beni
district, told AFP. According
to his account, rebels at
Mangboko burnt a lorry
driver in his vehicle and killed
six other civilians, while in
Oicha, they killed one person
and abducted 15 others — for
a total death toll of eight.
Beni district administrator
Donat Kibwana said seven
people were killed and
15 people were abducted,
including 10 children.
Apart from seeking answers on the grounds
upon which the banks were closed, MPs will
also inquire into the central bank’s dealings
with external lawyers, unaccounted for funds,
missing land titles and customer loans that
were inherited from closed banks and sold
at an undervalued rate, all queries raised in a
special audit by the auditor General earlier in
the year.
Banks under question are Business man
Sudhir Ruparelia’s Crane Bank that was closed
in 2016, Global Trust Bank closed in 2014 and
the National Bank of Commerce closed in
2012. Others include International Credit Bank,
Greenland bank, the Uganda Cooperative Bank
and Teefe Bank.
Army spokesman Captain authorities designated a terror
Mak Hazukay also put the group in 2001, is a militia
death toll at seven. Kataliko created by Muslim rebels to
denounced the army as oppose Ugandan President
ineffective, saying: “It is Yoweri Museveni but which
not normal that the army also operates in the DRC.
cannot manage to keep It is blamed for a string of
the population safe,” but attacks in the region since
Hazukay insisted that soldiers 2014 that have killed at least
had reacted quickly to stop 700 civilians and 15 Tanzanian
the rebel incursions. peacekeepers in a December
The ADF, which US assault last year.

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 Week

Health workers to get Ebola shots

vaccine may be used in cause

WE ARE
of an outbreak even before it is
licensed after studies done in
Guinea proved they have a high
protective efficacy in protecting

The Ministry of Health on
Nov.05 embarked on vaccinat-
ing health workers against the
virus that causes Ebola hemor-
rhagic fever amidst an outbreak
in the neighboring DR Congo
that has so far claimed 180
people.
Health Minister Jane Ruth
Aceng announced that they
have set aside 2100 doses of
the rVSV vaccine which is still
under trial to protect healthcare
and front line workers who are
at risk high risk of infection.
While the vaccine is not yet
available for use to all, Aceng
says the World Health organiza-
tion has recommended that the
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is very safe as evidenced from
its previous use in Guinea,
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and cause antibody production Publications ltd not later than Friday 16th November
against the ebola virus”.
2018. This should not exceed 2mbs.
She said before training
health workers on vaccination,
they first sought approval in Additional details about the position can be found
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Ugandan emerges second in world birding competition

“We had to identify bird species by
their sound, family and appearance”,
Ashely Brian told URN on Nov.03 as
he returned from the intercontinental
birding competition that saw 78 countries
participating. Held in Singapore,
the competition was aimed at testing
capabilities of birders to identify different
bird species across the globe.
As a silver medalist, he was awarded a
plaque, a set of kits used in bird watching.
Brian who is also the Secretary of the
Uganda bird guiding club said though he
had never seen many of the birds at the
competition he was able to identify them by
their families since Uganda has a number
of bird species that belong to the same
families.
Though birding is not a recreational
activity that many Ugandans engage in,
it’s one of the country’s tourist attractions
that the country can pride in with bird
sanctuaries and more than a thousand bird
species in different parts of the country
including Kabale, Entebbe, Kalangala,
Entebbe and Fort Portal. However, there
are worries that some birds are at a verge of
extinction.
At the competition, a Costa Rica
birder emerged top. Papua New Guinea
participants came third after Uganda
whereas Malawi and Russia were in fourth
and fifth positions respectively.

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Week
Ex-PM Nsibambi KCCA re- launches campaign to keep vendors off city streets
speaks out on
Bobi Wine
Former Prime Minister Prof.
Apollo Nsibambi spoke out
on rising political star Robert
Kyagulanyi also known as Bobi
Wine saying although he is
widely popular, his methods
for seeking political change are
wrong. Nsibambi said Bobi
Wine, the Kyadondo East MP,
should join a political party or
form one for him to make more
impact. Nsibambi who looked
frail during a television inter-
view at his home, also advised
his former boss, President Yow-
eri Museveni, to name a succes-
sor and avoid the occurrence of
a political vacuum. He urged
the President to reduce on the Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) from KCCA where they note that they are
size of cabinet and parliament. announced on Monday that they are resuming resuming the campaign after a wide mass
Since retiring from government their operations to arrest and prosecute sensitization of the people and will effective
in 2011, he has stayed away people who illegally operate business on the Nov.05 start a crackdown on those who
from commenting on political streets including street vendors and operators disobey the rules.
affairs. He also slammed oppo- of public transport vehicles who operate in Eviction of street vendors from Kampala
sition kingpin Dr Kizza Besigye non gazzeted places. streets has previously been criticized by
as arrogant and someone “Of late, the City has been experiencing politicians and protested by those involved
whose time has passed. Nsib- resurgence of violation of regulations with many complaining not only about
ambi’s most marked character- including street vendors, indiscriminate evicting them but also the brutal manner
istic as Prime Minister was time parking by taxis in non gazetted areas and in which they are arrested. This has caused
keeping. There were occasions abuse of traffic guidelines by motorists. Such KCCA’s Executive Director Jennifer Musisi
when he would arrive to empty illegal activities lead to congestion on the Semakula who has since tendered in her
chairs to the embarrassment of street pavements, obstruction of traffic and resignation from the position effective
government officials. other associated vices”, read the statement December backlash.

Activist Nyanzi arrested for attacking President on Facebook again

Makerere Institute of Social Research
(MISR) based researcher and activist Stella
Nyanzi was for the second time arrested on
Nov.02 over insulting President Museveni.
Nyanzi allegedly insulted the President
and his deceased mother in Facebook posts
on September 16, 18 and 19th where she
used despicable descriptions to call upon
Museveni’s deceased mother to come take
her son since he is torturing Ugandans and
looting the country’s resources. She also
attacked the deceased for looking on as his
son cause too much suffering to Ugandans.
The researcher is accused of cyber
harassment and offensive communication
and it’s the second as she was last year
arrested and remanded in Luzira prison
for attacking first lady and Minister of
Education Janet Museveni and calling the
president a ‘pair of buttocks’.

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Humour Did you know?

Apple plans to be
more secretive
Apple surprised investors
recently with the news that
it plans to become even more
secretive, stopping reporting the
number of iPhones, iPads and
Macs it sells.
Shares dropped, analysts swore
and the FT’s Tim Bradshaw
explained: the number of iPhones
sold by Apple each quarter has
been a powerful metric that has
moved markets for the best part of
a decade.
Apple says the unit of sale — as
opposed to the total revenue — is
less relevant than it used to be,
because it ships such a wide range
of models, each selling at different
prices.
Overall, those prices are
soaring: the average price of an
iPhone increased from $618 a year
ago to $793 in the three months
to September, boosting Apple’s
iPhone revenues by 29 per cent.
But Apple, like Amazon, which
had conservative fourth-quarter
guidance, was also reluctant to
break out the holiday cheer: Tim
Cook, Apple’s chief executive,
blamed emerging markets for a
weaker outlook on holiday sales.
The FT’s Lex column declares
that Apple’s decision to stop
reporting the number of devices
sold makes “little sense”.
“There is no secret to the
company’s recent success.
Powerful revenue growth has
come from charging customers
more for fancier versions of
existing products. Obscuring unit
figures will simply fuel suspicion
that sales are falling,” it wrote.

Nov 09 - 15 2018 7
Istanbul, Turkey: Visitors pose in the kitchen of an upside-down house. The
attraction is in a lorry trailer at a shopping centre in Sultanbeyli district

The destiny of nations
By Andrew M. Mwenda
Why some nations prosper and others
stagnate and what we cannot do about it
T
he International Monetary Fund
(IMF) has 187 countries in its list
of nations whose Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) it captures. Of these,
39 are listed as “Advanced Countries” (AC)
and only five of them – Singapore, Japan,
South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong are
none European. Taiwan and Hong Kong are
provinces of China and Singapore is 76%
ethnic Chinese. All the other AC countries
are European and its offshoots in North
America (the United States and Canada),
and Oceania (Australia and New Zealand)
– plus Israel in the Middle East. That means
only three ethnic groups – Chinese, Japa-
nese and Koreas from one cluster of this
globe, East Asia, have made the transition
that Europeans made.
The World Bank measures the GDP of
175 countries. It has 33 countries in the
Organisation for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD) category – the
equivalent of the IMF’s ACs. Of these, only
Japan and South Korea are non-European
in origin. The only country missing in the
IMF list but is listed among OECD nations
is Chile from Latin American, which is also
an offshoot of Europe. The third category
is a club of 29 countries that constitute the
Development Assistance Committee (DAC)
of “donor” countries. This excludes Chile.
DAC nations constitute the Paris Club and
include Brazil, which itself is an offshoot of
Europe.
Nations that grow rich by simply
exploiting God’s (or nature’s) bounty in
form of a rich mineral endowment do
not make it to this league even when they
have high per capita incomes like Qatar,
Oman, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates,
Kuwait, Brunei etc. The basis for being cat-
egorised as an AC is the ability to develop
largely through innovation, which is a func-
tion of human capital.
The next country expected to join the
league of ACs is China between 2025 and
2029 depending on its rate of growth. China
is already the largest economy in the world
in Purchasing Power Parity (PPP); its GDP
at $23 trillion is larger than the USA’s at
$19 trillion. The current success of China
could have been predicted in 1978 when
it adopted a market based economy. This
would only have been done by simply
looking the record of ethnic Chinese else-
where in the world where they lived in
The Last Word
market economies.
Wherever they have gone – in Europe,
North America, Africa and other parts of
Asia – the Chinese have outperformed the
native peoples. They are only 23% of the
population of Malaysia but produce 70% of
its GDP. They are 3% of the population of
Indonesia but contribute 70% of its GDP. In
Philippines they are 2% of the population
but produce 60% of its GDP. In Thailand
they are 15% of the population but produce
80% of its GDP. The success of Hong Kong,
Taiwan and Singapore is, therefore, not sur-
prising when one has studied the success of
ethnic Chinese elsewhere.
What does this tell us about the drivers
of transformation? Karl Marx would argue
that it is the penetration of capitalism in the
social tissue of these societies that explains
it all. This is true, but only partly. Many
nations of Africa, South Asia and Latin
America have had capitalism for more
than a century yet they are still poor. So
capitalism is necessary but not sufficient to
bring about transformation.
The younger President Yoweri Museveni
used to say that in Africa, our poor per-
formance is due to “leaders who cling to
power.” His critics today agree. But Nigeria
has changed leaders 15 times during its 58
years of independence. None of its presi-
dents has ruled continually for more than
eight years. It has also had capitalism for all
its life. Yet it is still poor. So, Museveni (on
longevity of leaders) and Marx (on capi-
talism) are not entirely correct.
Many “experts” on Africa would blame
corruption. However, China is a very cor-
rupt country today. Yet its transformation is
unmatched. South Korea was characterised
by very high levels of corruption during
its intense period of transition from a poor
agrarian society into a rich industrial nation
that many nations of Africa have not seen.
Indeed, Rwanda today has a very honest
government and an effective state but it is
not innovating new technologies or manu-
facturing automobiles, semiconductors and
microchips.
So what explains rapid economic transfor-
mation? I think it is human capital – plus.
Human capital is a very complex concept.
Economists use the average years the popu-
lation of a given country has spent in formal
schooling as a proxy for levels of human
capital development. I treat human capital
Opinion
in broader terms to include trust within a
society, people’s work ethics and shared
mentalities (a very broad term). Transfor-
mation needs a particular “social brain”
(some collective consciousness among a
people) to happen.
Once the social brain of a society is prop-
erly wired for trust and cooperation, an
infusion of capitalism with a very small
dose of good leadership can drive transfor-
mation. To this we can add such factors as
geography and geopolitics. This of course
raises other questions. What explains the
ability of certain people to handle “hard
subjects” like mathematics, engineering,
physics etc. which drive the kinds of techno-
logical innovations that are transforming the
world? Russia has proved capable of pro-
ducing sophisticated technologies including
space exploration but not an innovative
economy. Why?
North Korea is one of the poorest coun-
tries in the world with a Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) of $17.4 billion in nominal
dollars. This is smaller than many nations of
Africa including Uganda, Ghana, Ethiopia,
Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, etc.
Yet North Korea is able to make nuclear
weapons, manufacture its own tanks, cars
and planes, produce intercontinental bal-
listic missiles and even place satellites in
space. Not a single African country has
made any leap in these technologies.
India is another example. Indians are
great with technology and build thriving
businesses wherever they go. Their average
annual household income in USA is
$126,000 – double that of whites at $61,000
and higher than ethnic Chinese in USA
at $72,000 (blacks do $38,000, Hispanics
$46,000). Many aspects of India’s economy
are surging but the country has found it
difficult to foster the kind of rapid social
transformation we see in China. Why?
India’s social brain probably does not
work well. It requires many compromises to
organise collective action through the state
to achieve a small goal.
What then should we expect of multi
ethnic African nations without any experi-
ence and examples of broad-based business
success and/or cutting edge technological
innovations?
amwenda@independent.co.ug
Nov 09 - 15 2018 9
cover story

What next for Kayihura?

Charges bogus, says Museveni
But ISO says it has new charges
By Haggai Matsiko

10 Nov 09 - 15 2018

Gen.Kayihura appearing before the General Court-Martial in Makindye, Kampala on August 24, 2018.  courtesy photo
F
ormer Inspector General
of Police (IGP) Gen. Kale
Kayihura could soon be a
free man. President Yoweri
Museveni has reportedly
said that the charges against
Kayihura are bogus and he should be
released.
That could explain why, The
Independent understands, Kayihura
recently received two new Toyota Land
Cruisers—one from the army and another
from police for his personal official use.
The two vehicles could only have been
delivered on orders of Museveni.
As a Uganda People’s Defence Forces
(UPDF) general and former police chief,
Kayihura is entitled to certain privileges.
But given the fallout with President
Museveni and the charges he has been
facing, many see the provision of these
privileges as a sign that the dark days are
over for the general.
The Independent has learnt that
President Yoweri Museveni has held many
meetings on Kayihura and his brother,
Gen. Caleb Akandwanaho aka Salim Saleh,
who is seen as the defacto number two, has
also been deeply involved.
Some of the meetings have involved
Kayihura’s family members.
The Independent has learnt that on
Aug.27 Museveni met Kayihura’s family
members; specifically his wife, Angella,
and their two children. At that point
Kayihura had spent over 60 days under
military detention at Makindye Military
Barracks being investigated over a number
of charges.
Museveni reportedly explained to
them why Kayihura was being detained
and investigated and the allegations
against him. He promised them that the
investigation would be thorough.
Indeed, the next day after that meeting,
on Aug.28, the General Court-Martial
granted Kayihura bail.
Soon after this, State House was
deeply involved in aiding Kayihura as he
applied for visas to travel with four others
including his wife and a military officer to
Germany for medical treatment but faced
problems.
The Independent has learnt that the day
the former police chief was supposed to
pick his visa from the Germany Embassy
in Kampala he received a phone call
informing him that his application had
been declined.
The Independent could not immediately
establish why the Germany Embassy
declined his application or denied him a
visa. A close contact of Kayihura hinted
that it could be that he faces a travel ban as
a result of his work as police chief.
cover story
Germany, American sanctions bite
According to sources, heightened
interest by western capitals in Kayihura’s
work might also have prompted Museveni
to pounce on Kayihura.
Kayihura was charged with three
offences; two counts of failure to protect
war materials, and one of aiding and
abetting kidnap and illegal repatriation of
Rwandese exiles. He pleaded not guilty to
all charges and was later granted bail.
Informed sources have told The
Independent that the international
community has been keen on the charge of
forcefully deporting a group of Rwandan
nationals back to Rwanda and could have
forced Museveni to have Kayihura and
others who were involved in this charged
in order to show that he had taken the
issue seriously.
Indeed, insiders say President Museveni
directed the Chieftaincy of Military
Intelligence (CMI) to investigate the matter
after claims by UN diplomats that working
with Ugandan police, Rwandan security
were kidnapping dissidents and forcefully
taking them to Rwanda.
Following these investigations, CMI
raided police, arrested seven police officers
before bringing them before the General
Court Martial (GCM) on October 27, 2017.
The General Court Martial informed the
suspects that in 2013, while in unlawful
Nov 09 - 15 2018 11
cover story
President Museveni decorates Gen.Kale Kayihura with a medal before the fallout.   courtesy photo
possession of firearms and grenades
ordinarily a monopoly of the military,
they conveyed Joel Mutabazi; a former
bodyguard of Kagame and one Jackson
Kalemera without their consent to
Rwanda.
In March this year, a group of Rwandans
also took Kayihura to the International
Criminal Court (ICC) over crimes against
humanity that he allegedly committed
along with his men when they forcefully
deported a group of Rwandan nationals
back to Rwanda.
Also, over the years, several pressure
groups both local and in the diaspora have
petitioned the U.S. and European Union
countries to put travel sanctions against
senior security officers in command
positions who have been at the centre of
human rights violations.
The latest call for sanctions was by
members of the People Power pressure
group led by legislator Robert Kyagulanyi
following violence around the Arua
by-election of Aug.15.
Indeed, following the calls, the U.S.
banned several Ugandan security officers
from travelling to the U.S.
One of these officers is Brig. Sabiiti
Magyenyi, the deputy IGP. Insiders say
Magyenyi had been invited to travel to the
U.S but was denied a visa because of his
activities in Arua. Other security officers
belonging to the SFC who participated in
activities in Arua were also denied visas.
The sanctions on Kayihura could have
been occasioned by incidents that occurred
earlier while he was still police chief,
insiders say.
But that the establishment was also
aiding Kale to access treatment abroad
now is telling especially considering
12 Nov 09 - 15 2018
that he was detained partly to limit his
movements.
The Lt. Gen Andrew Gutti-led Court
Martial had granted Kayihura bail on
among others, a condition that he does
not travel outside the country without
court’s permission. Allowing him to
travel and aiding him too is now seen
as another positive gesture from the
establishment.
Another development on Kayihura’s
part is that President Museveni has given
his ally, Blaise Kamugisha, the head of
the National Crime Preventers Forum, an
office at State House and the group also
now maintains an office at Makyindye
after being integrated into the security
infrastructure under the Local Defence
Units (LDUs).
At the height of the fallout between
Kayihura and Museveni, Kamugisha was
forced to flee to Kenya after a tipoff that
CMI and Internal Security Organisation
(ISO) operatives were looking to
arrest him over allegations that crime
preventers were working with Kayihura
with the backing of Rwanda to organise
armed rebellion against Museveni.
President Museveni would later convince
Kamugisha to return.
For insiders, integrating Crime
Preventers into the security
infrastructure could be another indicator
that the president no longer sees the
group as a threat or found the allegation
bogus too.
Museveni’s conviction about
Kayihura’s innocence is a major
departure from a position the president
held in June when Kayihura was
arrested.
Following his arrest on June 13,
Kayihura requested the Commander
of Defence Forces (CDF) Gen. David
Muhoozi to pass on his request to meet
President Museveni. But when Muhoozi
passed on the information during a
meeting of senior army officers with
the president at State House Entebbe,
Museveni declined to see Kayihura.
According to sources, Museveni told
the army officers that he preferred to
keep emotional distance and explained
that if he met Kayihura personally,
he could be swayed by kindness and
emotion towards him. The president
explained in June, that the charges
against Kayihura were of a serious
nature.
According to one of his lawyers, Jet
Tumwebaze, the former police chief at
one point faced 19 charges.
These were later whittled down
to three. He pleaded not guilty to all
charges and was granted bail. Now there
are pointers even the pending three
charges could soon be dropped, insiders
say.
A well-placed source at State House
has told The Independent that a week
ago, while meeting a group of people,
President Museveni said that the
“charges against Kayihura are bogus and
that he should be released”.
ISO’s new charges
But amidst all this, insiders say the
Internal Security Organisation (ISO)
claims it has new credible intelligence
linking the former police chief in some
subversive activities.
For instance, insiders say ISO boss
Kaka a few weeks ago sent a radio message
to President Museveni and other security

agencies that Gen. Kayihura is involved
in subversive activities together with
Australian-based Ugandan cardiologist,
Dr. Aggrey Kiyingi.
Interestingly, in 2015, Kayihura
told journalists that Kiyingi’s alleged
involvement in rebel activities was
detected towards the end of 2014.
Kayihura said they had concrete evidence
that Kiyingi was mobilising former Lord’s
Resistance Army rebels and facilitating
Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) activities.
In a video posted on his facebook wall,
Kiyingi denied being a rebel collaborator.
He said his organisation, Uganda Federal
Democratic Organisation, was not a rebel
group but a political platform.
Away from this, according to a source
familiar with the intelligence reports,
ISO intelligence has also linked Kayihura
to a new terrorist group called People’s
Agency and that the same group has been
throwing leaflets around the country.
Apparently, ISO arrested a boda
boda rider linked to the group. Upon
interrogation, the rider took them to his
house, where ISO found a drone and
bomb-making materials.
However, insiders claim that ISO is
coming up with fresh allegations to ensure
the former police chief remains mired
in suspicion. They point to the fact that
Kayihura have a running feud from the
days when he was calling the shots as
police chief and de facto supremo of all
security agencies.
And this is not the first time ISO under
Kaka is spewing out negative intelligence
against Kayihura. In July, Kaka paraded
before the press two youths who confessed
to have participated in murdering people
using machetes/pangas.
The youths also accused Kayihura
of having released such suspects when
reported to him. Kaka, who paraded the
boys, then said he would investigate.
It should also be noted that Kayihura
was arrested after Kaka, presented a
report to Museveni, which claimed
that Kayihura had assassinated former
Assistant Inspector General of Police
(AIGP) Felix Kaweesi in order to kill
the possibility of the latter becoming his
successor.
The most significant piece of evidence
in this report was a recording in which
Kayihura was allegedly talking to the
assassin after Kaweesi was murdered.
The said assassin was reportedly
informing Kayihura that the mission was
accomplished.
Kaka had also availed witnesses who
claimed to have participated in the
planning and execution of the murder.
But when a joint team of investigators
from police, ISO and the Chieftancy
of Military Intelligence (CMI) further
interrogated the said witnesses, they
Gen. Salim Saleh
Lt.Gen. Henry Tumukunde
Rt.Col.Kaka Bagyenda
admitted that ISO operatives had coached
them. The investigating team also found
that the recording was not authentic. In
their report to President Museveni, the
joint investigating team concluded that
the evidence against Kayihura up until
this point was bogus.
Apart from meeting President
Museveni in their quest to secure his
freedom, Kayihura’s family also met Gen.
Caleb Akandwanaho, aka, Salim Saleh.
According to a source familiar with
what happened in that meeting, General
Saleh also said that he had not believed
the audio recording which operatives at
the Internal ISO had availed as part of the
cover story
evidence pinning the police chief in the
murder of Kaweesi.
Saleh said that it was ISO boss Col.
Frank Kaka and President Museveni who
appeared to believe the video.
Saleh and Kayihura have not been the
best of friends but the evidence intended
to pin Kayihura could not easily sway
him. He appeared to take a neutral stance.
For Kayihura’s allies this too was good for
the former police chief and also appeared
a break from the past.
Kayihura and Saleh’s relationship
appeared to hit rock bottom in 2016.
Several months after the elections,
Kayihura openly clashed with Saleh over
Julius Aine, the bodyguard of former
Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi, who
following several episodes of fist-fights
with the police disappeared during the
campaigns.
Following his disappearance, Mbabazi’s
camp accused police of disappearing
Aine. Police then under Kayihura put a
bounty of about Shs.20m for whoever was
able to produce Aine.
But when he finally emerged, Aine was
with Gen. Saleh, who even addressed
a press conference about the fate of
Mbabazi’s former bodyguard at the
Mutundwe-based Serene Suites.
Police insisted it was going to arrest
him sparking off major tensions between
the Kayihura and Saleh. At the time, even
other senior security officers loyal to Saleh
also happened not to be in Kayihura’s
camp.
Apart from influencing the
appointment of Kaka, Saleh had
rehabilitated Lt.Gen. Henry Tumukunde,
an arch nemesis of Kayihura and even
influenced his appointment as Security
Minister.
So Tumukunde and Kaka appeared
to be working closely clip the wings of
Kayihura.
As Security Minister, Tumukunde was
supposed to be supervising Kayihura but
the two were always feuding publicly
until President Museveni fired both of
them in March.
While Tumukunde was just fired,
Kayihura was arrested and put under
military detention.
Museveni said publicly that Kayihura’s
crime was that he had allowed
“criminals” and “foreigners” to infiltrate
the police. But insiders note that he
appeared to believe the intelligence reports
indicating that the former police chief was
plotting to oust him.
Following Museveni’s recent revelation,
it appears Museveni has thrown the file
on Kayihura’s crimes in the trash. The
former police boss’s allies are now waiting
for the charges against him to be officially
dropped. They believe it will not be long
before Kayihura is a free man.
Nov 09 - 15 2018 13
news analysis

By Flavia Nassaka

U
ganda will in 2019 launch two
researches aimed at preventing
the spread of HIV/AIDS. The
first, dubbed ‘Deliver’, will be
based on ring laced with the HIV drug
Dapivirine being placed in the vagina
and an oral drug Truvada taken daily as
preventive (Pre Exposure Prophylaxis –
PrEP) measures against HIV infection.
The research will involve only
pregnant women – 750 of them. Of
these, 500 will use the vaginal ring. The
objective will be to see if use of the
vaginal ring and the oral medicine can
keep both the mother and unborn child
safe.
The second study codenamed MTN
-043 will enroll up to 200 breast-feeding
mothers to see whether the same drug
can keep the mother and child safe. The
studies will be done at the Makerere
University - Johns Hopkins University
(MUHJU) research collaboration
facility in Mulago in Kampala.
They are among studies announced
recently at a meeting of world experts
A researcher explains her study abstract during a poster presentation session. The Madrid Conference
on HIV/AIDS who gathered in Madrid, focused on biomedical research into HIV Prevention
Spain, to discuss the strides made, the

challenges faced, and the way forward
in preventing the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
The researches were agreed against a
background of previous failure - as the
earlier set date for ending HIV/AIDS;
2030, appeared unachievable.
This time, the experts were optimistic
that recent innovations in prevention
of HIV infections will enable countries
make reasonable strides.
Today, a daily pill of Truvada taken
as an oral PrEP by a HIV negative
individual at risk can provide them
up to 95% protection once used as
directed. This was first approved for
general use in 2012 in America after
its efficacy being proved through
studies done earlier in high prevalence
countries such as Uganda, Kenya and
South Africa.
After 2012 many countries started
adopting the use of oral PrEP and soon
researchers realised they could use the
same approach to come up with other
products for prevention that do not
involve swallowing a daily pill. That
is how the medicated vaginal ring was
born.
The researchers launched sites in
different countries; including Uganda,
to study whether a medicated vaginal
ring can protect women from infection.
Later, in 2016, initial results showing
efficacy were released.
Since then, researchers have dived
not only into studying different
products ranging from injections,
Fighting HIV/AIDS
Uganda’s tough choice between
prevention and treatment
douches, gels and lubes but also
tweaking the already available ones
to meet various people’s needs. For
instance, some products are now
being considered as both a PrEP and a
contraceptive.
The driving force for the researchers
has been a combination of PrEP’s
effectiveness and the discovery that
people living with the virus cannot
transmit it to others once they become
undetectable. This duo-pronged
intervention, it is believed, can bring
the HIV/AIDS epidemic to a swift end.
But, there is an ugly fact.
Even as oral PrEP has been around
for more than half a decade, only
309,500 people are using it globally and
the number of new infections is also
not going down.
According to the latest report
released by the Joint United Nations
Programme on HIV and AIDS
(UNAIDS), 1.8million people got
infected in 2017. Almost the same
number was recorded in 2016 and 2015.
These figures were quite depressing for
researchers attending the conference.
Many questioned whether they are not
doing enough.
A look at the strides made by
Uganda helps understand the worry of
researchers.
Uganda has been involved in the
HIV/ AIDS research since its early days,
when AIDS was vaguely described as
‘slim’ - a mysterious illness that could
claim a life in just a matter of days.
Researchers went into laboratories,
they established what the new disease
actually was, what caused it, and how.
Today, they are looking into vaccines
to save thousands.
Dr. Clementia Nakabiito is one
of those researchers who have been
involved since the early days. When
we met, a senior researcher based at
MUJHU had just concluded another
PrEP study where she had enrolled
women on an open label study to
evaluate how the vaginal ring is likely
to perform when women persistently

14 Nov 09 - 15 2018

use it. She did not give details of her
findings but she says the percentages
in effectiveness were higher than the
initial study where women did not use
the dapivirine ring persistently and yet
others were enrolled on a placebo – a
drugless ring.
While her findings are exciting,
Nakabiito is worried. She says despite
Uganda being one of the countries
where efficacy of PrEP was established,
it cannot be accessed by those in need.
Nakabiito says, unlike elsewhere, PrEP
in Uganda can only be accessed through
demonstration sites.
“We are now exciting people who
participated in the Hope study. We are
telling them that they now have a choice
but where is that choice?” she said,
“They just can’t access these products.”
“There is a time they asked for PrEP
we had to run around Kasangati and
Infectious Diseases Institute to give it to
them,” she adds.
Another researcher, Dr. Francis
Kiweewa who heads the Research
Department at Makerere University
Walter Reed Project, one of the
international sites established by the
United States HIV Research Programme
in 2002 for a primary purpose of HIV
vaccine development and building of
vaccine testing capability in Uganda,
says Uganda “is still sleeping when it
comes to adoption of PrEP”. He says
more than 60 other countries are rapidly
enrolling people on medication.
In Uganda, even as the Ministry of
Health launched the guidelines for
launch of PrEP among key populations
in 2016, the number of people who
access it is not clear – even in the
demonstration sites.
Nakabiito worries that the
government’s slowness in rolling out
preventative innovations might one
day haunt them as researchers.
“People will even start saying we
have a hidden agenda to just keep
doing research that is never used,” she
says, ““We are now researching how
effective an injectable drug can be. All
these we don’t know when they will
be rolled out. Other countries are far
ahead.”
The researchers say that if all the
1.3million Ugandans estimated to
be living with the virus are enrolled
on treatment, the 50,000 annual
new infections in the country will
be no more. For now, only 73%
of those living with the virus are
on treatment and not many have
achieved undetectable levels of the
virus because some skip doses - either
because they are negligent or because
of treatment stock outs at their clinics.
Also, according to some sources it
is only the serodiscordant couples that
have more chance of getting PrEP once
they go to demonstration sites. Groups
like sex workers, other people with
multiple sex partners and men who
have sex with men are not a prioritised
even as prevalence rates are high among
these groups.
Nakabiito says Uganda needs to pick
lessons from Kenya whose roll out has
been robust. She says the taskforce at
the Ministry of Health should at least
give out information if they cannot
provide the products as yet.
Kenya has enrolled an estimated
25,000 people on PrEP. From initially
targeting high risk groups like the
serodiscordant couples, the Kenya
government has moved into areas of
high infection rates; especially young
women and adolescent girls.
Kiweewa says it is not just Uganda
struggling. Apart from South Africa,
African participation in interventions
geared towards HIV prevention is still
low. He says advocacy work needs to be
stepped up. He says even if the biggest
epidemic is in South Africa, East Africa
still has a big problem and vaccine
trials in South Africa might not work in
East Africa because the HIV sub types
are different. South Africa has C and
Uganda has two sub types A and D.
“If the vaccine studied are proven to
work there, we are not exactly sure that
they will work here,” he says.
He explains that Uganda participated
in one of the five vaccine studies in
news analysis
South Africa which is based on the
Mosaic concept when it was still in
early stages. This was designed to work
in 95% of circulating HIV clades or
subtypes globally. Ugandan researchers
now hope these will show efficacy in
2021 when the results are expected.
For him the government should start
looking at the lessons they are picking
from the challenges that have impeded
them from fully enrolling PrEP to
prepare for an event the vaccine works.
The results of the studies which will
determine whether or not we will have
a vaccine soon are expected in 2021 and
2022.
For instance he says they are learning
from the PrEP demonstration project
in Uganda that there are many social
issues that hinder implementation of
such prevention innovations.
Angello Katumba Kaggwa of the
AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition
(AVAC), a global HIV prevention entity,
says Uganda’s biggest challenge is
policy makers who do not know how to
target interventions to those who need
them most. He says government may
need to focus on most at risk groups
because resources are scarce.
At the Medical Research Council
facility in Rakai, the highest HIV hit
area in the country, Dr. Freddie Mukasa
Kibengo says PrEP and all the new
interventions in prevention are a good
idea, but Uganda needs to focus on
one technique which he calls the best
– ensuring all those infected receive
their treatments constantly, keep their
viral levels undetectable, and therefore
cannot transmit to cause new infections.
Kibego who is also the physician
for Masaka Regional Referral Hospital
says he knows the pressure that comes
with implementation in a country like
Uganda where a single health worker
works for up to 16 hours a day.
He says Uganda is still struggling
with ART (antiretroviral therapy) and
should not add on the burden of PrEP
which “we clearly can’t sustain now”.
Dr. Joshua Musinguzi who heads
the AIDS Control Programme in the
Ministry of Health says this is exactly
why the government has chosen to
roll out in phases. He says about 110
health workers have been trained so
far to provide PrEP at the various
demonstration sites.
“From just 6 sites, we are now talking
of over 90. This is not the pace we want
but we also have these people that we
should test positive and immediately
enroll on ART. We can consider those
choices for prevention but priority is
treatment.”
Nov 09 - 15 2018 15
news analysis

Museveni letter on
torture is cosmetic
We want action, say critics

Geoffrey Byamukama, the Mayor of Kamwenge town in western Uganda, narrates his torture ordeal to MPs attached to the Human
Rights Committee in the 10th Parliament. The MPs visited him on 19 May, 2017 at Nalufenya detention facility in Jinja.   FILE PHOTO

By Ronald Musoke torture by security agents in 18 months— pin a struggling man face down on the

H
uman rights advocates and
opposition politicians have
reacted to President Yoweri
Museveni’s recent letter on
torture with frustration, labeling it as
“merely cosmetic.”
President Museveni’s Oct. 23 letter
titled, “Guidelines on managing rioters,
terrorists, criminals and looters and
methods of arresting and handling
suspects,” was addressed to the Chief of
Defence Forces, the Inspector General
of Police,and other heads of Uganda’s
security organs but made public in
newspapers.
It was Museveni’s second letter on
an indicator of how the crime has
increased. It followed public anger over
the recent violent arrest in Kampala of a
man later identified as Yusuf Kawooya; a
member of the Uganda Young Democrats
(UYD), the youth wing of the opposition
Democratic Party (DP).
According to critics, Museveni appears
to have picked the worst case of torture
to comment on since the DP politician
was brutalised in broad daylight and no
case has been brought against him in any
court.
Kawooya’s case came into the spotlight
on Oct.18 when a video published by local
broadcaster, Record TV and widely shared
online, showed five gun-wielding men
tarmac of a city street. The men in civilian
attire piled on top of him and grabbed
him in the neck, waist, and legs. Some of
the attackers had guns at the ready.
A thick crowd watched in shock from a
safe distance as the men dragged him to a
kneeling position and attacked him with
gun butts; hitting mainly the shoulder,
waist, and rib-cage area. They continued
battering the wailing man as they dragged
him to a waiting van that looks like a
normal city matatu taxi but clearly was
not and was later outed to bear fake
number plates.
Security agencies initially denied
involvement but on Oct. 19 confirmed
Kawooya had been detained at the

16 Nov 09 - 15 2018

notorious police Special Investigations
Division headquarters at Kireka on the
eastern fringes of Kampala city.
In his letter, Museveni refers to
Kawooya’s case directly but appears
double-faced about torture. He does
not condemn torture or order arrest
of offenders. He merely says that
“brutalizing suspects is not necessary.”
“It is unfair, unnecessary and gives a
bad image to the country,” Museveni’s
letter reads in part, “You do not have to
beat him or maim him.”
In an earlier public memo written on
May 15, 2017, addressed to the heads
of Uganda’s security organs, Museveni
had said using torture in order to extract
confessions was wrong because it
interferes with the fight against crime.
But many people have said in the
latest letter, Museveni appears to
endorse torture, albeit under specific
circumstances. He says it is sometimes
alright to box a suspect “very hard” and
gives the example of Kawooya. Museveni
says he was told Kawooya allegedly got
the rough treatment because he had bitten
one of the arresting officers.
“That is very serious because some
of the criminals have got infectious
diseases,” Museveni said adding that the
appropriate response would have been to
“box him hard so that he stops biting our
officer.”  is absolutely wrong,” Opio told The
“That would be self-defence which is
very legitimate,” he said.
Issues around Kawooya’s case remain
unclear as he has not been charged in any
court. But in a recent similar case, when
security agents tortured a photojournalist;
James Akena, the President said they
told him they suspected the innocent
journalist to be a thief.
In his guidelines Museveni appears to
ignore the fate of such innocents. Instead
he says security agents “have no choice
but to shoot” suspects who attempt to run
away. He specifies terrorists or murderers
but it is unclear how the security agents
can confirm that one is a terrorist or
murderer without a conviction in a court
of law.
Museveni’s endorsement of a shoot
to kill orientation could see innocent
but scared people shot dead as they run
away from security agents. But Museveni
defends it.
“If the police do not disable you or
kill you,” he writes, “they may never get
another chance to catch you to answer for
your crimes.” In the meantime, he adds,
such a criminal may commit more crimes.
But Mohammed Ndifuna, the Chief
Executive Officer of the Human Rights
Network Uganda (HURINET-U)
disagrees.
“A suspect remains a suspect until
proven guilty in a competent court
of law,” he told The Independent in an
interview.
Rights activists react
Outspoken shadow minister for
Internal Affairs, Muwanga Kivumbi, told
The Independent that Museveni’s latest
letter “is nothing but spin or a PR stunt.”
“This letter is a gimmick which
undermines the intelligence of Ugandan
citizens,” he told The Independent on Oct.
29.
Kivumbi adds: “We are a country
governed by the rule of law and we have
a constitution that the president must
speak to. Torture is illegal in this country
but he falls short of pronouncing it the
way it is.
On matters which are well articulated
in the constitution, we don’t need his
news analysis
personal opinions because he is under
obligation to speak to and defend the
law because he has taken an oath of
allegiance.”
Nicholas Opio, the executive director
of Chapter Four, a Kampala based
human rights agency recently told The
Independent that President Museveni’s
“rhetoric” shields security agencies from
accountability.
“You cannot say that because Kawooya
was biting the hand of the security
officer, he deserved what he got. That
Independent.
“Unfortunately, his rhetoric
undermines the pain and suffering of
people like Kawooya and James Akena
whose lives can be completely altered by
these acts of security agencies.”
“The president must condemn torture
because there is no justification for torture
under any circumstance. He must stop
shielding security institutions from
accountability and must act swiftly to
rein in errant members of his security
agencies.”
Michael Kabaziguruka, the opposition
MP for Nakawa Municipality who is
also a member of the Presidential Affairs
Committee in the 10th Parliament, told
The Independent that what comes out in
Museveni’s letters is often cosmetic.
“We all saw the video footage. We
did not see Kawooya biting anybody
but instead we saw these vicious men
assaulting him,” he said.
“I would expect him to come out boldly
to say that the perpetrators of torture
must be handled to the full extent of the
law. He should not only say it but should
also be seen to do it,” he added.
Kabaziguruka said cases of torture are
on the increase because security agencies
have been heavily politicized to the extent
that their cardinal responsibility now is to
protect President Museveni and not the
people of Uganda, their lives or property.
“So whatever they do, they take
it so personal; especially if you are
perceived as somebody who stands in
the way of Mr. Museveni,” he says, “The
minds of the security forces have been
programmed to look at dissenting voices
as the enemies of the state who must be
crashed.”
Torture increasing
According to the 2016 Uganda Human
Rights Commission (UHRC) report,
torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment has topped
the six highest human rights violations
registered by UHRC since 2010.
In 2016, of the 1,144 human rights
violations that UHRC registered, 380 were
torture complaints with the police, UPDF
and the prisons service accounting for
Nov 09 - 15 2018 17
news analysis
85% of the alleged crimes.
The African Centre for Treatment
and Rehabilitation of Torture Victims
(ACTV), which offers free treatment
and rehabilitation services, also says the
majority of over 6000 Ugandan survivors
of torture they have interacted with in the
past six years allege to have been violated
by the Uganda Police.
UHRC says torture mostly occurs during
arrest and pretrial detention of suspects in
police cells and prisons as well as torture
chambers/safe houses and army detaches.
The report says security agencies use
torture as a tool of investigation to obtain
information for criminal prosecution.
There have also been cases where
rogue security agents torture civilians
to extort money, fulfill vendettas, and
on behalf of clients. In many cases those
tortured are either suspected or accused
of being political opponents of Museveni’s
government; especially members of the
Allied democratic Forces (ADF).
Although the brute used by Uganda’s
security agents has been widely
condemned by local and international
human rights advocates, every new
arrest appears to be more brutal than the
previous one.
In May 2017, Ugandans were left in
shock upon seeing the gruesome and
ghastly pictures of Geoffrey Byamukama,
the Kamwenge mayor, who had been
tortured by the police over alleged
involvement in the murder of former
Assistant Inspector General of Police,
Andrew Felix Kaweesi.
In the days that followed, more pictures
of tortured inmates at the dreaded
Nalufenya detention facility in Jinja
trended on social media. The facility was
eventually closed by the new IGP, Ochola
Okoth.
As members of the public jubilated over
the closure of Nalufenya, human rights
advocates cautioned that, that might not be
the end of torture.
Then in September 2017, state security
agents entered the Parliamentary
18 Nov 09 - 15 2018
The report
says security
agencies
use torture
as a tool of
investigation
to obtain
information
for criminal
prosecution
Chambers, battered and violently removed
opposition MPs who were opposed to
a controversial motion that eventually
saw the deletion of Article 102 (b) of
the constitution that limited the age for
presidential candidates in Uganda at 75
years.
Recent incidents of security agents
torturing civilians occurred in August
when opposition MPs Robert Kyagulanyi
(Kyadondo East), Kassiano Wadri (Arua
Municipality), Francis Zaake (Mityana
Municipality) and Paul Mwiru (Jinja
East) and over 30 civilians were violently
arrested for allegedly throwing stones at
President Yoweri Museveni’s convoy in the
northwestern town of Arua hours before a
by-election.
They were badly beaten and Kyagulanyi
had to undergo treatment in America
while Zaake was treated in India. The two
cases have put Uganda among the torture
capitals of the world.
Livingstone Sewanyana, the executive
director, Foundation for Human Rights
Initiative (FHRI)—a human rights
advocacy organisation that has been
focusing on civil liberties in Uganda for the
last 25 years says until there is political will
to fight torture, the country will continue
seeing horrific torture incidents similar to
Byamukama, Akena, and Kawooya.
The 2016 UHRC report documents
how torture in the country is a persistent
human rights issue despite the existence
of a specific law criminalizing it— the
Prohibition and Prevention of Torture Act,
2012.
Sewanyana says he was disappointed
that even after the country was alarmed by
the Nalufenya torture cases, Museveni did
not order any arrest of offenders.
“The president who signed the
Prohibition Against Torture Act, 2012,
and who is the custodian of the Uganda
Constitution did not order for the arrest
and prosecution of the perpetrators.”
“So who else is going to decisively deal
with this problem if the president chooses
to educate us on the dangers of torture
without sanctioning prosecution of the
perpetrators?”
Sewanyana says torture seems not to be
taken seriously by the political elites yet
torture’s devastating effect on the victim
and governance of a country are quite
enormous.
Ndifuna of HURINET-U says many
things need to be done to realise the
intentions of the Prohibition Against
Torture Act
“We think the state should have
followed the enactment of the anti-torture
legislation with re-orienting the security
agencies and operatives’ training to the
new thinking that we have a law against
torture,” he told The Independent.
As the debate rages, Lt. Col. Deo Akiiki
and Emilian Kayima, the spokespersons
of the army and police respectively say
the security agencies will immediately
implement the president’s guidelines.
*terms and conditions apply
AfricellUG @AfricellUG

A woman in Nakivale refugee settlement is given flour as part of her food ration.   WFP PHOTO
Uganda’s ghost refugees
Audit reveals need for honest discussion,
greater accountable and sufficient funding
By Ronald Musoke
S
hining the spotlight on the huge
numbers of refugees Uganda hosts
peaked in June 2017 with a meet-
ing of world leaders on the shores
of Lake Victoria in Kampala that sought
to raise US$2 billion (€1.8 billion) in aid to-
wards a humanitarian crisis.
At the time, the crisis over the South
Sudanese civil war was threatening to spill
out of control and Uganda was said to host
about 1.2 million refugees, the majority
from South Sudan. So Uganda was support-
ed by the UN to host the refugee solidarity
fundraising summit. The UN Secretary
General Antonio Guterres and the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi
attended together with other big names.
By the end of the two day summit, how-
ever, only US $358 million was raised while
the World Bank and the Africa Develop-
ment Bank made pledges.
But the anticipated dollars from the refu-
gee summit had an unexpected outcome:
They sparked disputes over “who was
doing how much work for the refugees and
therefore should be getting more.”
A few months after the summit, a whis-
tleblower tipped off donors saying senior
government officials in the Office of the
Prime Minister were conspiring with staff
from the United Nations High Commission
for Refugees (UNHCR) and World Food
Programme (WFP) to report higher refugee
numbers, get more money to support them,
and steal the difference between what is
received and what is actually spent on the
actual smaller number of refugees.
That sounded like a big scandal and
the donors led by the European Union,
demanded an immediate investigation.
“We take a zero-tolerance approach when
it comes to any allegations of misconduct
occurring in European Union funded
projects and even more so when this has
potential negative effects on an already very
vulnerable population such as refugees and
host communities,” said a Feb.05 statement
from the European Union Delegation to
Uganda.
The Uganda government also acted
news analysis
swiftly, suspending Apollo Kazungu the
commissioner for refugees in the Prime
Minister’s Office alongside three other
senior staff.
The UNHCR also recalled Bornwell
Kantande, the country representative for
failing to detect the alleged gross misman-
agement of refugee resources.
When a verification exercise kicked off in
March, starting in the sprawling Nakivale
camp in southern Uganda, the worst
appeared to be confirmed. Auditors found
thousands of ghost refugees on the food
ration rota.
Hillary Onek, the minister for Relief,
Disaster Preparedness and Refugees said
at the time that of the 16,000 refugees and
asylum seekers that the government offi-
cials claimed, 7,000 were non-existent. He
lamented that whereas food and non-food
items for 16,000 refugees were being sup-
plied, there were just 9,000 genuine recipi-
ents. The items for the 7,000 non-existent
refugees were being stolen by officials. He
said the racket thrived because crooked
technocrats knew how to beat the system
Nov 09 - 15 2018 19
news analysis
and exploit the loopholes.
In Kampala, only 7,000 refugees and asy-
lum seekers were confirmed and not 17,000
that had been claimed by officials from
the refugee desk in the Office of the Prime
Minister. And the list went on as the audit
progressed.
Finally, the audit was concluded and
a report issued on Oct.24. It found that
Uganda actually hosts slightly over one
million refugees but not 1.4 million that was
claimed.
According to a joint statement from
UNHCR, WFP and the Uganda govern-
ment which was published on Oct.29, there
were cases of multiple registrations by refu-
gees at the height of the emergency influxes
of South Sudanese refugees between mid-
2016 and mid-2017, when registration sys-
tems were sometimes overwhelmed by the
sheer number and speed of arrivals.
Uganda was at the time facing the
world’s fastest growing refugee influx,
thanks to a continuous and record entry of
Refugees prepare to get their food rations in Nakivale refugee settlement.   WFP PHOTO
people fleeing brutal conflict in neighbour-
ing South Sudan, Burundi and the Demo-
cratic Republic of Congo.
The statement said close to 1.1 million
refugees were verified and biometrically
enrolled from the target population of
1.4 million refugees, a figure which rep-
resents about 75% of the population that
had sought asylum in Uganda prior to the
verification start date in March 2018. The
UNHCR noted that figures do not indicate
anything unusual. The agency said that
verification exercises conducted in any refu-
gee situation usually result in reductions in
numbers.
“Many factors could have contributed
to the reduction in the number of refugees,
including movement around the country or
beyond or other refugees could simply have
chosen not to show up.”
The conclusion of the investigation and
the outcome are good news for Uganda
which has for a long time been praised for
its progressive refugee policy.
While many countries keep refugees in
20 Nov 09 - 15 2018
camps away from the citizens, Uganda has
for decades allowed refugees to be as free as
possible.
The majority of the refugees live in settle-
ments in Uganda’s rural countryside where
they are given emergency food aid before
being allocated small plots of land and
given materials to build a basic shelter, cul-
tivate crops, get an education, and work for
those with skills.
Loopholes to be plugged
Musa Ecweru, the state minister for Relief
and Disaster Preparedness told The Inde-
pendent on Nov.02 that the government is
happy with the report.
“This is a good report in the sense that
the government is going to plug all the
loopholes permanently,” he said, “I want to
thank the UN system and the Prime Minis-
ter for putting their feet down to go ahead
with the verification exercise.”
Ecweru said the government also intends
to punish all the officials who made mis-
takes.
The UNHCR says a new registration
system will be deployed for new arrivals
and to update refugee population changes
in Uganda by the end of the year. The
management of the refugee response by
OPM, UNHCR, and WFP will be improved
to offer essential protection and assistance
activities.
El Khidir Daloum, the WFP Country
Director told The Independent on Nov. 2 that
WFP advocated for biometric verification
of all refugees in Uganda for a long time
because the system ensures that the right
people receive the assistance they need.
“We worked closely with refugees, the
government and UNHCR on the exercise.
Together with UNHCR, WFP set up 72
centres where the verification and biometric
registration exercise took place.”
“As each refugee received a new ration
card and confirmation that they are bio-
metrically verified, WFP provided food or
cash using an iris scan or 10 finger prints
recognition.”
Thijs van Laer, the programme director
for prevention and resolution of exile at the
International Refugee Rights Initiative also
told the UK’s Guardian newspaper that
he hoped that the verification exercise can
be the basis of a more honest discussion
about the number of refugees in Uganda
and about what should be done to ensure
accountable and sufficient funding.
“Now that there is more clarity, donors
should step up their funding, to ensure
that Uganda’s progressive refugee policy is
fully-translated into practice,” he said.
“[But] at the same time, the Ugandan
government should continue to show that it
is willing to improve accountability for the
funding it receives. In the end, it is the refu-
gees who suffer the negative consequences
of any allegations of corruption and fund-
ing cuts.”
Susan Eckey, the Norwegian Ambassa-
dor to Uganda also told The Independent that
she was happy that the “wrongdoings are
being addressed.”
“This is very important for the credibil-
ity of the refugee response in Uganda and
international support for it,” she said.
“In terms of the verification exercise,
we believe that the process has been good.
It is now possible to move forward and
concentrate on the many challenges ahead.
Norway continues to support the refugee
response in Uganda.”
Even refugees like Pecos Musikami, a
Congolese who has been living in Uganda
for over 25 years and now heads the Foun-
dation of People for Peace and Defence of
Human Rights; a Kampala-based refugee-
founded non-profit working in the Great
Lakes region, are hopeful. He told The Inde-
pendent that with credible refugee numbers
available, he hopes resources will now go to
the rightful beneficiaries.
“The ghost refugees were not only in
numbers, they were maintained because
they had to be used to divert resources
which were supposed to go to the real refu-
gees,” he said, “We also hope that from now
onwards, the urban-based refugees who are
not entitled to any humanitarian assistance
will at least get some form of assistance.”
But Cissy Kagaba, the executive director
of the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda
told The Independent that the issue of ghost
refugees is a systemic issue which unfortu-
nately the government has over the years
failed to address.
“The problem of non-existent people has
been going on for far too long in govern-
ment ministries, departments and agencies
and yet all what the government does is
come up with rhetoric which does not cure
the problem once and for all.”
Going forward, Kagaba told The Indepen-
dent that the government should enforce the
recommendations of the verification exer-
cise if it wants to regain its image as a world
model when it comes to refugee response.
Can Katamba save dfcu bank?
What it will take to turnaround fortunes of a bank
with negative publicity and mixed performance
T
By Julius Businge
he new chief executive
officer of dfcu bank
is everything that his
successor is not. He is an
economist, young and top
business executive. He
also holds a post graduate diploma in
public relations.
But can he wither the challenges
that the bank is grappling with – bad
publicity especially on social media
and legal battles?
Mathias Katamba was named
CEO on October 31 replacing Juma
Kisaame, an accountant who has been
at the helm of the institution for the
last 11 years. He has held several
other positions at the bank since 1992.
He becomes the top most bank
executive of the country’s second
largest commercial bank at the time
the institution is facing negative
publicity especially on the social
media ostensibly as a result of its
decision to take-over some assets
and liabilities of Crane Bank Limited
(CBL) from Bank of Uganda last
year. BoU had placed CBL under
statutory management citing under-
capitalisation in December 2016.
It also coincides with the more than
400 former employees of CBL suing
dfcu and Bank of Uganda for breach
of contract that led to their loss of jobs
without compensation.
The employees are seeking for
general and punitive damages arising
from unlawful termination of their
respective contracts of service after
some getting transferred to dfcu.
These developments are coming at
the time the lender’s profit growth
is normalising following the full
integration of assets and liabilities of
the CBL.
Though Katamba, who is set to take-
over the mantle in the first quarter
of next year, remains mum on how
he will stir the institution amidst
the current challenges, economists
including Makerere University’s
Prof. Augustus Nuwagaba and
Economic Policy Research Centre’s
Isaac Shinyekwa, say there is need for
the new captain to rebuild customer
confidence and trust by focusing on
their needs.
They also say he is supposed to
deploy a flexible management strategy
that connects with the changing
business atmosphere.
Prof. Nuwagaba told The
Independent that the new CEO must
ensure that insider lending and
related illegal transactions do not be
part of the bank’s trade during his
tenure.
“Katamba would also need time
to study the management structure
of the bank before implementing
‘incremental change in management’
if his leadership is to be backed by his
juniors,” he said.
However, he added that Katamba’s
success will also depend on whether
the Board of Directors restricts
itself to the oversight role instead of
interfering in the general management
of the bank.
Nov 09 - 15 2018 21
business
“For him to succeed he will need
support of the bank staff and its top
leadership,”Shinyekwa added.
Katamba leaves Housing Finance
Bank (HFB) with his head high as
sector analysts credit him for running
a profitable institution amidst a
volatile economic environment
characterised by high non-performing
loans and decline in profits.
HFB recorded a 23% growth in net
profit to Shs18.05bn in 2016, up from
Shs14.7bn in 2015 and Shs 4.23bn in
2014 as result of high returns from
investments in government securities,
foreign exchange, and fees and
commissions.
However, the bank’s non-
performing loans nearly doubled to
Shs30.58bn, up from Shs16.59bn in
2015 and Shs18.14bn recorded in 2014
even as bad debts written off reduced
to Shs5.83bn, down from Shs8.46bn
and Shs 18.94bn during the same
period under review.
At HFB, Katamba’s one other task
was to ensure that the people get
credit to own homes. This means
that although the bank was supposed
to make some profits, it was not a
priority like other commercial banks.
Tough task ahead
Katamba’s new move implies that he
now has an enormous task to fit in the
shoes of his predecessor. For instance,
dfcu is listed at the Uganda Securities
Exchange and its shareholders will
expect consistent high returns on their
investments throughout his tenure.
The bank is owned by Arise
(Norfund, NorFinance, Rabobank
&FMO (58.70%), Commonwealth
Development Corporation (9.97%),
NSSF (7.46%), Kimberlite (7.35%) and
others 16.5%.
Last year, it recorded Shs114bn as
net profit compared with Shs23.3bn
in the previous year bolstered by the
acquisition of Crane Bank.
He is also supposed to deal with the
negative publicity of the institution
emanating from the Crane Bank deal
in order to mute likely shareholder
panic that could affect its general
growth.
The Auditor General, John
Muwanga, in his latest report, has
faulted Bank of Uganda for not
following proper procedures over the
sale of Crane Bank and closure of six
other banks pointing to possible fraud
in the transactions.
Muwanga said there were no
guidelines, regulations and procedures
or processes for selecting buyers of
assets of CBL.
He said that he could not establish
22 Nov 09 - 15 2018
Mathias Katamba Juma Kisaame
dfcu bank
is currently
the second
largest bank
in Uganda in
terms of assets
(Shs3trilion)
after Stanbic
Bank
(Shs5.4tn)
how dfcu was picked as a buyer
and how terms of the Purchase and
Assumption (P&A) agreement were
reached.
To make the situation even worse,
the Central Bank Governor, Emmanuel
Tumusiime Mutebile and his Deputy,
Louis Kasekende appeared before the
Committee on Commissions, Statutory
Authorities and State Enterprises
(COSASE) on Nov. 01to answer these
queries but was thrown out due to
lack of sufficient documents in relation
to these transactions.
This controversial transaction was
also linked to the surprise resignation
of one of the most influential directors
on the Crane Bank’s board, Deepak
Malik in July 2018.
Board views on Kisaame exit
While representing the views of
the dfcu Bank Board of Directors,
Jimmy Mugerwa, said in a statement
on October 31 that Kisaame has had
notable achievements some of which
include playing a key role in assisting
dfcu limited, the holding company,
realign the shareholding that brought
on board strategic partners like
Arise Investments BV that include
Rabobank, Norfund (later NorFinance)
and FMO.
He also said Kisaame led the bank’s
most successful acquisitions in the
banking industry in Uganda including
Global Trust (U) Ltd Bank (in
liquidation) in 2014 and Crane Bank
in 2017.
He also commended the bank
executive for his professional
and personal commitment during
his tenure and his extraordinary
leadership that increased shareholders
value; growing the balance sheet
three-fold to over three trillion
Uganda shillings, a customer base of
close to one million and a network of
65 branches.
Mugerwa said they believe the
new CEO is “well placed to continue
the progress of the bank, building
on the successes of his predecessor
to the benefit of all stakeholders,
contributing to the very important
business sector in which dfcu operates
and to the growth of the Uganda
economy as a whole.”
Katamba’s profile
He holds amasters degree in
financial management from the
University of London, has also
attended the John F. Kennedy School
of Education at Harvard University
and the Advanced Leadership
Program at the University of
Pennsylvania.
He has over 15 years’ experience in
the finance and banking sector. He has
vast expertise in strategic management
and investor relations, retail banking
and strong business acumen.
He is credited for transforming
Pride Microfinance Limited from
a non-government organization
(NGO) into a Tier III Deposit-taking
microfinance financial institution
(MFI) and the transformation of
Uganda Finance Trust Limited, from
a Tier III, Deposit-Taking MFI into a
Tier 1 commercial bank, Finance Trust
Bank.
Following five years at the helm of
Uganda Finance Trust Limited to 2011,
he took a break in commercial banking
until he was appointed HFB managing
director in 2014.
Prior to his last posting, he was
Managing Partner and co-founder
of Progression Capital Africa (PCA),
a US$40million private equity fund
based in Mauritius.
He also worked in several
capacitiesat various institutions
including Orient Bank, Postbank and
Barclays Africa.

Uganda’s ease of doing
business worsens
Trade Ministry says the Ease of Doing business
does not reflect true picture on the ground
By Isaac Khisa
U
ganda slide its ranking on the
World Bank’s ‘ease of doing
business’ report for the second
consecutive year, dropping five
places to the 127 position owed to increase
in trade licensing fees and introduction of
property transfer related charges.
The East African nation ranked 122
last year and 115 in 2016 – the best ever
ranking in the last five years, out of 190
economies.
This comes as the Private Sector
Foundation Uganda (PSFU) accused
the government of failing to implement
proposals they present during budgeting
process including improving business
environment to accelerate job creation and
improve in people’s income.
“Uganda made transferring property
more difficult by introducing a
requirement for property purchasers to
obtain an income tax certificate before
registration, resulting in delays at the
Uganda Revenue Authority and the
Ministry of Finance,” said the latest report
released in Washington D.C on Oct. 31.
The report also notes that the government
introduced changes that added time to the
process of obtaining a business license,
slowing business start-up.
At the same time, the government
made it easier by digitizing records at the
title registry, increasing efficiency at the
assessor’s office and making it possible
for more banks to accept the stamp duty
payment.
It also simplified registration for a tax
identification number and for value added
tax by introducing an online system,
reduced the time required for companies
to prepare, file and pay value added tax
through improved efficiency of taxpayer
services and banks as well as time required
for trading across borders through
expanded operating hours at the port of
Mombasa and improvements in customs
processes and in border cooperation.
The 2019 release is the 16th edition
of a series of the global bank’s annual
reports that examines the regulations
and conditions that enhance business
conduciveness and those that constrain
Ranking of EAC Countries in the World Bank’s ease of doing business report
Country/Year 2011/12 2012/2013 2013/14
Rwanda 45 50 52
Kenya 106 109 121
Uganda 119 123 120
Tanzania 125 127 134
Burundi 117 169 159
President Yoweri Museveni (in a whiote shirt) and his Kenyan
counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta open a one-stop border post at
Busia on February 24, 2018.   Courtesy Photo.
it around the world. The World Bank
Doing Business survey focuses on several
aspects that facilitate business including;
the ease of starting a business, obtaining
construction permits, access to electricity,
registering property, access to credit,
protecting minority investors, paying
taxes, trading across borders, enforcing
contracts, and resolving insolvency.
A high ease of doing business ranking
means the regulatory environment is more
conducive to the starting and operation of
a local firm.
Zackey Kalega, a commercial officer
in the Ministry of Trade, however, told
The Independent that the World Bank’s
justifications for the slide in the ranking of
Uganda in the ease of doing business does
not hold water. “In fact, we have reduced
trading licenses fees over the years,” he
said, adding that the global bank could
be getting perceptions of the people with
limited knowledge.
Kalega pegs his argument on the
fact that in 2016 President Yoweri
Museveni assented to the Trade Licensing
Amendment Act 2015 which among
others reduced the licensing rates by
25% countrywide. He said the business
environment has been improving over
business
2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18
62 56 41 29
108 92 80 61
122 115 122 127
139 132 137 144
152 157 164 168
the years. World Bank Group President
Jim Yong Kim said governments have the
enormous task of fostering an environment
where entrepreneurs and small and
medium enterprises can thrive.
“Sound and efficient business
regulations are critical for
entrepreneurship and a thriving private
sector. Without them, we have no chance
to end extreme poverty and boost shared
prosperity around the world,” he said.
Compared with the rest of the east
African states, Uganda has been sliding
downwards while Kenya and Rwanda
have been rising up the rankings over the
last three years. Kenya has gone up six
places during the past year to clinch the
66th position while Rwanda has moved 12
places to the 29th position, beating out such
countries as Holland, Switzerland, Japan
and China. Tanzania fell by 15 places to
144.
Globally, China and India - two
economies with the largest populations -
are among top 10 improvers this year.
Kenya, Rwanda, Afghanistan, Djibouti,
Azerbaijan, Togo, Côte d’Ivoire and
Turkey rounded out the top 10 most
improved list.
Also, Djibouti and India are the only
economies to make the 10 top most
improved list for the second consecutive
year. World Bank says various reforms had
been carried out to warrant the changes in
the ranked positions.
The top five overall are: New Zealand,
Singapore, Denmark, Hong Kong and
Korea. The U.S. ranks 8th, down from 6th
last year.
Since its inception, Doing Business has
recorded business reforms in 186 of the 190
economies it now monitors, with Rwanda
having implemented the highest number
of business reforms over the past 15 years,
with a total of 52 reforms.
Nov 09 - 15 2018 23
 Executive Style
More people to embrace
formal financial services
What was the financial inclu-
T
sion week about?
he Financial Inclusion
Week begun as a con-
cept by a global finan-
cial organisation called
Axion and it has now taken
massive momentum. There
are over 100 organisations that
celebrate this event globally.
They are committed to univer-
sal financial inclusion and are
pushing the agenda of every-
body’s right to financial ser-
vices. This is the third financial
inclusion week and theme was
‘getting financial inclusion
right’. Between 2014 and 2018,
the World Bank released a
global survey which showed
that 300 million people were
included. In Uganda we note
that there has been a lag be-
tween accounts being opened
in banks and the usage of
those accounts. The inclusion
week gives opportunities to
us to discuss these matters and
suggest policy recommenda-
tions to relevant authorities.
Why should Ugandans cel-
ebrate financial exclusion that
has reduced from 43% in 2006
to 22% in 2017?
We are definitely on the
right truck. Uganda’s National
Financial Inclusion Strategy
says by 2022 exclusion should
be reduced to 5% for adults
aged 16 and above. To achieve
that, players need to come up
with innovative products that
will reach down to the people
in rural areas.
How has FSDU’s work helped
here?
We work at macro-level with
policy makers and regulators
to be responsive to the needs of
the people and the industry. We
also work with industry bodies
like Uganda Bankers Associa-
tion, standard setting bodies in
building their capacity. We also
work with individual private
sector like banks, mobile net-
work operators, micro finance
24 Nov 09 - 15 2018
institutions and fin techs to see
what innovative solutions can
we create that excites people to
join the formal financial services
sector.
What is your reading about the
would-be impact of the 0.5%
reduction of mobile money
tax on financial inclusion in
Uganda?
We are glad that Parlia-
ment reduced the tax. There
was an entire distortion that
this tax was going to create in
the mobile money business.
Some people had withdrawn
their money from their mobile
money wallets and tried to find
alternative solutions. It will take
a lot more effort to win peoples’
trust even when the 0.5% takes
effect. But, over time, people
will come back to the system
because it facilitates remote
payments quickly.
How should players within
the financial services sector go
about the high cost of lending?
The cost to income ratio for
banks is anywhere around 75%
and that is high. That means
Rashmi
Pillai is the
programs
director at
Financial
Sector
Deepening
Uganda
(FSDU). She
spoke to The
Independent’s
Julius
Businge
about the
recently held
Financial
Inclusion
Week and
related sector
issues.
the cost to serve the market is
high. Banks need to understand
what is driving costs high. Is
it about the high compliance
supervision requirements from
Bank of Uganda? We at FSDU
are extremely concerned with
these costs and are planning
to actively work with banks to
see that these costs reduce. The
good news now is that banks
no longer have the excuse of
saying they can’t go every-
where because now we have
agent banking.
But many say they can’t stand
the hustle of banking when
they can safely keep their
money home…
I think Uganda is an extreme-
ly cash driven economy. People
have always had cash at home.
However, the distress that
banks have faced in the recent
five years has eroded the trust
that people had with banks. It
is true the cost of basic finan-
cial services is still high. But
one should know that being
financially excluded makes
them susceptible to all kinds
of economic shocks. You may
have your money at home but
nobody knows your financial
position and so you cannot
access credit from financial
institutions.
What major lessons can
Uganda learn from other
countries where exclusion
levels are lower?
The biggest gains of
financial inclusion glob-
ally over the last 10 years
were recorded in China and
India – which are extremely
high populated countries
and had high poverty levels.
But as authorities worked
and economies improved
performance, more and more
people were brought to the
financial sector. What we
need to think about is how
we can link financial inclusion
to income generating activi-
ties. We need to be thinking
about new interesting types
of financing models that also
help people and business grow.
At government level, there has
to be significant investment in
financial literacy, consumer
protection and strengthening of
the informal sector.
What’s your reading about the
future of financial inclusion
in Uganda in the coming few
years?
I think we will have to work
very hard at every single level
including being open to new
types of ideas that don’t risk the
stability of the financial sector.
What more can we expect from
FSDU in the few years ahead?
We are going to support
efforts geared towards for-
mulating interesting types of
regulatory framework targeting
block chain companies. We will
also continue to support efforts
geared towards having shared
infrastructure among players
in addition to giving more sup-
port to fin techs that are trying
out new ideas.
 Business
csr

Huawei contributes Shs 250million towards MTN Kampala Marathon

C
hina-based where it has opera- to support maternal
technology tions. health through the
firm, Huawei, “Huawei considers Marathon. We are sure
has contrib- social good in prioritiz- that with this contribu-
uted Shs 250million ing business develop- tion, Uganda can only
towards the 2018 MTN ment by looking at be a better place,” he
Kampala Marathon. enormous needs in added.
The race slated for developing countries MTN Chief Market-
November 25 seeks to and considering out- ing Officer, Olivier
raise funds to improve reaches that have the Prentout who rep-
maternal health health- greatest impact such as resented the CEO,
care countrywide. the MTN Marathon,” Wim Vanhelleputte,
Huawei’s Managing he said. commended Huawei
Director, Liu Jiawei, That is why today for their willingness
The Uganda Huawei Managing Director, Liu Jiawei, (L) said the company con- we are going to hand to respond to the call
hands over a contribution cheque to MTN Chief Marketing siders improving the over our contribution aimed at improving
Officer, Olivier Prentout toward the planned MTN Kampala lives of the population of Shs 250 million the population.
Marathon.   Courtesy Photo.
csr
TAX
UB, City Tyres launch
Beverage manufacturers oppose URA’s Digital Tax Stamps campaign to help

B
everage
manufacturers have
would be government
property used to safeguard
selecting the tax stamps
vendors.
cancer patients

welcomed President
Yoweri Museveni’s
clarification on application
of Digital Tax Stamps to
their products but added
that the taxman should meet
all the related costs.
“We already pay taxes
to the Uganda Revenue
Authority to enable the
government to invest in tax
stamp equipment and to
pay for the stamps, since
the stamps themselves
csr
MTN unveils Marathon season
government revenues,”
said David Onyango, the
Secretary General of the
Uganda Alcohol Industry
Association.
The manufactures say
application of Digital
Tax Stamps on beverage
producers will increase their
cost of production.
The manufacturers
said they would also seek
clarification from URA over
the procurement process
Meeting soda beverage
manufacturers, Finance
Minister, Matia Kasaija, and
Finance Permanent Secretary
Keith Muhakanizi on Oct.
24, President Museveni said
Digital Tax Stamps should
only be applied to imported
products.
URA plans to rollout
Digital Tax Stamps next
year to curb smuggling,
counterfeits and illegal
beverage production.
U
ganda Bikers (UB),
City Tyres, Café Javas
and brainchild Burson-
Marsteller have joined
hands to raise funds towards
the purchase of better bedding
facilities for cancer patients in
the Busoga region, through a
new campaign.
The campaign dubbed Share
A Bed Campaign 2018, was
launched by Italian Ambassador
to Uganda, Domenico Fornara,
at Café Javas, in Kamwokya on
October 27.
Fornara commended UB and
her partners for collaborating to
provide support to needy cancer

M
TN Uganda
has unveiled
the 2018 edition
of the MTN
Kampala Marathon with
a new and better route for
runners.
The marathon slated
for November 25, will also
have an additional three
road races in Mbale, Gulu
and Mbarara.
“This year, it will be 15
years since we launched the
MTN Kampala Marathon.
It also marks the year when
we significantly adjust the
marathon as we aim for global
status and improve the running
experience for all participants,”
Anthony Katamba, MTN’s
General Manager Corporate
Services said.
“The addition of the regional
road races is meant to also
indicate the presence of MTN,
everywhere you go in the
country.”
patients in Busoga.
The marathon UB President, Donato
that will feature four Laboke, said the association
race categories, the was conducting the campaign
popular 5km family for the second year running as
run, 10km run, 21km part of its social responsibility
half marathon, and the programme.
42km marathon, seeks “The cause we are launching
to improve the country’s today is part of our commitment
maternal health. to fight the cancer scourge in
Launched 15 years Uganda by promoting palliative
ago, the MTN Kampala care through partnerships and
Marathon has raised support from ordinary people,”
he said.
close to Shs 3bn which has
benefitted several causes and Through the SHARE A BED
Campaign, he said, UB and its
communities.
This comes as MTN partners intend to raise enough
money to buy at least 150
Uganda, which commands
large market share of the mattresses that will be donated
to cancer patients under the care
country’s telecom industry,
marks 20 years in Uganda. of Rays of Hope Hospice Jinja.

Nov 09 - 15 2018 25
Business

Key sectors post impressive

growth – Stanbic
By Julius Businge of domestic demand is counter

T
he Stanbic Bank Pur-
chasing Managers’
Index (PMI) has posted
56.6 in October up from
54.2 in September, recording
above the 50.0 no-change mark
for the 21st successive month.
This reading is the high-
est since the survey began
in June 2016. Four of the five
monitored sectors saw business
conditions improve in October
with the exception of industry.
Total Uganda dealer Tushar Mashru (L), Total Wampewo Station Manager, New orders continued to
Richard Jjuko (2nd L),  with a customer participating in a ruffle draw of the expand at the start of the fourth
Total Uganda “Extra Mile” promotion at Total Wampeewo station on Nov. quarter of 2018, extending the
02. Lucky Winners of the draw will get free full-year car service. current sequence of growth
which began in February 2017.
The latest rise was attributed
to higher customer numbers
and improving demand in the
economy.
Jibran Qureishi, the regional
economist for East Africa at
Stanbic Bank said the Ugandan
economy remains on course to
grow above 6.0% in 2018.
“Good rains expected in the
fourth quarter could support
the agrarian sector and sub-
sequently economic activity...
despite rising output costs for
firms, the strong momentum
Officials from Motorcare Uganda Limited (on the right) standing opposite
Winstone Katushabe (2-L), the Commissioner for Transport at the Ministry
of Works and Transport at the unveiling ceremony of the 2018 Nissan
Navara pickup in Kampala on Oct.26.   Independent/Julius Businge
balancing this,” he said.
Alongside higher purchase
prices and staff costs, respon-
dents also noted increases in
prices for fuel, water and elec-
tricity. This resulted into higher
prices for materials such as
food, ink and stationery.
Despite increases in new
orders, backlogs of work
continued to decrease due to
the expansion of workforce
numbers. Employment has
risen throughout the 29-month
survey history mainly in
agriculture, construction and
services sector staffing levels in
the latest survey period.
Stanbic’s head of fixed
income Benoni Okwenje said
Ugandan companies raised
their purchasing activity for
the eighth successive month in
October, linked to rising new
orders.
He said this is interesting
because it indicates Ugandans’
purchasing power is still strong
in spite of inflation. The survey
is sponsored by Stanbic Bank
and produced by IHS Markit.
It covers the agriculture, indus-
try, construction, wholesale &
retail and services sectors.

Weekly share price movement (Nov 02, 2018)

Security Nov 02 Oct. 26 Movement
BATU 30,000 30000 00
BOBU 140 140 00
CENT 1,398 918 54.2
QCL 259 253 2.4
DFCU 849 849 00
EABL 6,644 6,950 4.4
EBL 1,444 1,438 0.4
JHL 15,824 15,850 0.12
KA 436 426 2.3
KCB 1,398 1,484 5.8
NIC 16 16 00
NMG 2,576 2,579 0.1
NVL 349 350 0.3
Vivo Energy staff led by the MD Gilbert Assi (standing middle) poses in a
group photo after the final draw of the Shell V-Power activity. Winners SBU 33 33 00
will be flying to Maranello, the home of Ferrari at the end of this month. UCHM 20 24 16
UCL 22 23 4.3
UMEME 345 347 0.6
ALSI -- -- --

26 Nov 09 - 15 2018

By Marcelo Sánchez Sorondo
Two tasks for today’s abolitionists
Trafficking humans and their organs, and forced labour
and prostitution, are crimes against humanity
T
he scourge of human
trafficking is an issue that
leaders of all faiths must take
very seriously. One of the first
things that Pope Francis did when
he was elected in March 2013 was to
write to me, in my capacity as head
of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences
(PAS), requesting that we study
modern slavery and its solutions.
Nine months later, Francis convened
religious leaders from around the
world to declare that trafficking
humans and their organs, and forced
labour and prostitution, are crimes
against humanity. In September 2015,
world leaders echoed this conclusion
when the United Nations General
Assembly unanimously adopted the
Sustainable Development Goals –
which include a target to end these
practices.
For these and many other reasons, it
is a moral imperative that the world
work together to achieve the vision set
by our religious and political leaders.
With millions of people still victimised
by modern forms of involuntary
servitude, there is no time to waste.
Abuse in all of its forms – whether
torture, rape, forced marriage, or
forced labour – does more than
cause physical damage. It strikes at a
person’s soul, leaving wounds to our
self-confidence and ability to trust
others that can be even more painful
and profound.
To grasp fully the depravity of this
type of “moral violence,” think of
friends who love, approve, and affirm
one another, and how important
those actions are to their individual
and collective existence. Victims of
human trafficking cannot experience
this type of friendship easily, because
the degradation and humiliation they
have suffered can lead them to believe
they are unimportant or someone
else’s property. As a result, they are
often unable to offer or receive the
support and affirmation that true
friendship requires. These disabilities
extend to victims’ participation in
marriage and family.
leaders
across sectors
must raise
awareness
about modern
slavery and
work hard to
implement
solutions
Christ’s message of fraternity,
coupled with the anti-slavery
movement that began at the end of the
eighteenth century, eventually led to
the abolition of legal human bondage
around the world. International
treaties – like the Slavery Convention
of 1926 – made many forms of slavery
illegal. However, slavery continues
under new names, stirring less
public outrage or attention than past
violations of civil liberties. While
human rights became a defining
feature of the post-World War II era,
victims of modern slavery still suffer.
Negative feelings can be helpful in
efforts to prevent social exclusion.
Indignation might disarm us, but it
could also mobilise us to take action.
When people observe the intolerable
contrast between what is expected
in terms of human rights and what
victims of modern slavery actually
endure, it becomes harder to ignore
the unfair distribution of dignity in
our societies. And, once we commit
to unified global action – as Francis’s
sweeping encyclical, Laudato si’,
has urged – ending modern slavery
COMMENT
becomes possible.
To ensure dignity, freedom, and
social participation for everyone,
global leaders must work to effect
change across political, religious, and
cultural boundaries. The PAS has
identified two areas that need special
attention.
First, to support victims more
effectively, the world must move
away from interfaith dialogue and
toward collective action. Although the
religious cannot always pray at the
same altar, the world’s religions can
and should act in unison to promote
human dignity, defend universal
freedoms, and aid those in need.
Second, leaders across sectors
must raise awareness about modern
slavery and work hard to implement
solutions. Legal professionals
– including police, prosecutors,
and judges – should make human
trafficking a criminal-justice priority.
Local officials, such as mayors, must
become more involved in addressing
the problem. And national and
provincial governments should
introduce policy changes from the top.
Most important, all of these efforts
must be coordinated to make certain
that victims are never treated like
criminals.
When Francis met with leaders at the
PAS in April 2014 to discuss human
trafficking, he called the issue an “open
wound on the body of contemporary
society, a scourge upon the body of
Christ.” That is what many of the early
abolitionists thought, too, and it is up to
every generation to continue the work
they started. As the Talmud puts it, “You
are not obligated to complete the task,
but neither are you free to abandon it.”
Monsignor Bishop Marcelo Sánchez
Sorondo is Chancellor of the Pontifical
Academy of Sciences and of the Pontifical
Academy of Social Sciences.
Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2018.
Nov 09 - 15 2018 27
feature
The wastewater opportunity
Harnessing data, awareness and investment
to tackle Africa’s wastewater woes
By Agencies
W
ith an estimated 56 per cent of
Africa’s urban population liv-
ing in slums, wastewater man-
agement on the continent is a
problem that needs urgent attention.
In the streets of Kibera, one of the world’s
largest informal settlements on the outskirts
of Nairobi, in Kenya, the water that flowed
through the streets was used by locals on a
28 Nov 09 - 15 2018
daily basis. Its nasty smell was no deterrent,
given that there was no choice… until resi-
dents were offered a cleaner option.
Nelly Misango, a young mother who
used to cook and wash with the polluted
water says her children have fallen sick sev-
eral times. “This water had a lot of effect on
us. My children would complain of stomach
aches, but when I changed the water to the
treated one I found a lot of difference.”
Misango is not alone: 700 million people
lack basic sanitation, and 300 million lack
access to improved drinking water sources,
according to the 2017 World Water Devel-
opment Report. Wastewater can contain
dangerous chemicals, pharmaceuticals,
microplastics and pathogens – a hazardous
cocktail for the people and animals who
consume it, and for the environment.
While wastewater is an obvious health
hazard in urban areas, in the countryside its
effects are less visible: population growth

and increased economic activity are leading
to land-based pollution from pesticides,
heavy metals, pharmaceuticals and plastic
particles, most of which ends up in rivers,
lakes or the sea.
Challenges include poor infrastructure,
lack of reliable data, poor governance with
weak enforcement of legislation and low
levels of investment.
However, wastewater can be an oppor-
tunity, and ecologically and economically
beneficial. For instance, nitrogen, potassium
and phosphorus can be recovered for agri-
cultural use as fertilizer and reusing treated
wastewater relieves pressure on increas-
ingly scarce clean freshwater sources.
UN Environment, together with the
African Development Bank and Norwegian
non-governmental organisation GRID-
Arendal, has started to raise awareness and
develop solutions, through a joint project
called `The Wastewater Management and
Sanitation Provision in Africa: An Oppor-
tunity for Private and Public Sector Invest-
ment’.
“Wastewater is a very rich soup which
can become a health hazard if badly man-
aged, or a source from which humans can
generate wealth, if well managed,” says
UN Environment wastewater expert Bir-
guy Lamizana.
The three-year project – which runs from
November 2016 to the end of 2019 – aims
to develop an atlas on wastewater and
sanitation provision in Africa. The atlas will
provide information on the current situa-
tion and trends, help identify policy and
legal gaps, strengthen institutional capacity,
and highlight opportunities for private and
public sector investment.
The project has produced several out-
reach materials such as policy briefs and a
detailed story map that depicts the situa-
tion in Kenya.
In October, project partners and interest-
ed parties visited the Human Needs Project
in Kibera and saw an example of good
wastewater management and a school
regularly affected by wastewater pollution
from Nairobi River.
feature
“Engaging Global Wastewater Initiative
members and relevant stakeholders at this
stage of the project is very important,” says
Lamizana, “as we all advocate for turning
wastewater into a valuable resource for the
benefit of people and the environment.”
What is UN Environment doing?
Globally, 80 per cent of wastewater ends
up in our seas, rivers, lakes, and wetlands;
2.6 billion people do not have access to ade-
quate sanitation; and 2.2 million die of diar-
rhea each year as a result. Under the Global
Programme of Action for the Protection of
the Marine Environment from Land-based
Activities, UN Environment is preventing
degradation from land-based activities.
The Global Programme also hosts and
acts as the secretariat for: The Global Part-
nership on Nutrient Management, The
Global Partnership on Marine Litter, and
The Global Wastewater Initiative.
The Global Wastewater Initiative is get-
ting people to move away from waste
removal and towards resource recovery. It
focuses on capacity-building and training,
promotion of best practices and technolo-
gies, awareness raising and communication,
and addressing data gaps.
Financing wastewater improvements can
be challenging, so UN Environment is in the
process of setting up a facility to engage the
private sector to upscale business models for
wastewater management. It is also develop-
ing scientific knowledge and policy recom-
mendations to support decision-making.
The Wastewater Management and Sani-
tation Provision in Africa project is sup-
ported by the African Development Bank
through its Rural Water Supply and Sanita-
tion Initiative (funded by the Governments
of Burkina Faso, Canada, Denmark, France,
Italy, Switzerland and the Netherlands),
and the Multi-Donor Water Partnership
Programme (funded by the Governments
of Canada and Denmark). The project is
also funded by the Government of Norway
and UN Environment, and technically sup-
ported by GRID-Arendal.
Nov 09 - 15 2018 29
feature
Fatty foods and alcohol
Why do you crave fatty foods after drinking
even whenyou know it’s a bad combination?
By Agencies
Y
ou know the drill: You’ve been
good all week, watching what
you eat. So you accept that
happy hour invitation from
your co-workers to have a few drinks
on Friday night without any guilt.
However, as the night progresses, it hits
you: that ravenous hunger that only
comes out after you have had a few adult
30 Nov 09 - 15 2018
beverages — the drunk munchies, aka
the “drunchies.”
As Urban Dictionary defines them,
the drunk munchies are “The craving to
consume mass quantities of absorbents
after a session of moderate to heavy
drinking. The effects are twofold:
slowing down the rate of alcohol being
introduced into the bloodstream, and
depleting the amount of any easily
available food around.
When a person has the “drunchies,”
the foods they eat are often high in fat,
salt, and carbohydrates. Fried foods
like French fries, hot fried chicken, and
roasted or grilled pork or goat ribs are
typically at the top of the list.
Why?
Here’s the short version of the
explanation: Alcohol makes you more
pliable to the moment and your brain

thinks you are starving.
In those moments, you want what
tastes good — fats, salt, and carbs. You
are not thinking about all the work you
have been putting in to conquer that
half-marathon coming up in a month
because alcohol dampens your larger,
outer, thinking-person brain and lets
your smaller, inner, drunk-brain do the
decision-making.
What causes the ‘drunchies’?
A study published last year in Nature
sought to help explain why after
drinking alcohol — a calorie-dense
substance — the brain still thinks it
needs food.
Examining the brains of mice, they
found that Agouti-related peptide
(AgRP) neurons — special neurons in the
front of the brain that deal with hunger
and other functions — are activated
during intoxication.
In other words, your brain, while
under the influence, thinks it’s starving.
Dr. Chirag Shah, a board-certified
emergency medicine physician and
medical reviewer for PollMed, says the
study might help explain why humans
get hungry after drinking alcohol.
He advises that drinkers do a little pre-
party planning, namely by not keeping
“temptation foods” around.
“It’s much harder to eat something
that is not easily accessible,” Shah told
Healthline. “Keep healthy snacks around
as a substitute. If you do end up eating
something, at least give yourself the
option of eating something that might
not be as unhealthy.” But, fast food and
other late-night meals are easily available
24 hours a day.
Also, now that third-party delivery
services can make your favorite fried and
fatty foods show up at your doorstep
with a tap of an app, avoiding bad food
takes more than willpower.
So what, exactly, are drunk people
most often in the mood for?
Recently, the folks at Mattress Advisor
— who regularly ponder why people
aren’t asleep yet — surveyed more
than 1,000 people on their after-hours
snacking tendencies in a study called
Late Night Bites.
It wasn’t unusual for people with
the “drunchies” to find fast food after
midnight. That is bad for your waistline.
However, registered dietitian Suzanne
Dixon knows when people have been
drinking, the “drunchies” are not going
to make them feel like they want a
sukuma wiki salad.
“People go for the worst possible
foods (for health) when drinking,” she
told Healthline. “Drinking can make
you overeat junk food, which is likely to
make you gain weight over time. But the
problem is even worse than that.”
Dixon says macronutrients, the things
in the diet that provide calories, are
important to consider. For instance, carbs
and proteins have about four calories per
gram and fat has nine. Alcohol has about
seven calories per gram.
“Alcohol is actually closer to fat in
terms of the calories it provides,” she
said.
So, before you decide to order a second
platter of barbequed goat ribs or a bowl
of cow hoof (molokony) soup next time,
either during or after a night of drinking,
Dixon encourages you to do a little math.
Let’s say you have three or four drinks
(that four beer bottles), which can add
up to a lot of calories, especially if those
drinks end with “…and Coke.”
“Now, add in the overeating junk
food after those drinks and you get the
feature
picture,” Dixon said. “It’s pretty tough
to avoid weight gain if every weekend
is filled with 500 calories of drinks and
1,000 calories of junk food.”
How to avoid the ‘drunchies’
While taking Dr. Shah’s advice about
keeping healthier snacks around is a
good first step, Dixon says if you truly
don’t want to blow a week of good
choices with margaritas (tequila, orange
liqueur and lime juice cocktails) and a
pizza craving box, you have to keep your
brain trained on the long term because
the “drunchies” will make you go for the
things you typically avoid with intention.
“For many people, when they are
not drinking, they are focused on their
longer-term goals. This could include
maintaining a healthy body weight
or losing weight, getting to the gym
regularly, and eating healthfully over
all,” Dixon said. “These are all goals
generally incompatible with eating
burgers, fries, pizza, chips, and other
high-calorie foods on a daily basis.”
The simple killjoy answer in avoiding
the “drunchies” is avoiding the “drun”
part, or, in other words, do not drink
alcohol to the point of getting drunk.
Dixon says this will avoid the brain
chemistry changes that send the “I’m
starving” signal that may lead you to
overeat.
“Remember, trying to not give in to the
‘drunchies’ is like denying a biological
imperative to eat when your brain is
telling you you’re starving. Perception is
everything,” she said. “It doesn’t matter
that you aren’t starving. Your brain is
telling you otherwise and that’s a very
powerful signal to deny.”
The same goes when your brain thinks
it’s not getting enough non-alcoholic
beverages.
In order to control what you might eat
later, Dixon highly recommends staying
hydrated by alternating a full glass of
water with every drink.
Another is to set your intention on
what you plan to do that night and the
next morning.
“If you go out to get blitzed, it’s
unlikely you’re going to avoid the
‘drunchies’,” Dixon said. “If you go out
thinking, ‘I’m going to have a great time
with friends, have a couple of drinks,
and make it to the gym tomorrow
morning,’ you are less likely to succumb
to the peer pressure to have much more
alcohol than you’d like.”
That, overall, is a better long-term plan
than what you’ll probably come up with
while waiting in line at a drive-thru at
two in the morning.
Source: Slightly edited article from the
internet
Nov 09 - 15 2018 31
feature
Self-medical tests
Why some are safer than others
By Glenda Mary Davison
Recent media reports revealed that digital home
pregnancy tests being sold at leading pharmacies
in South Africa and the UK were consistently
giving false positive results. Both countries
acted quickly. The home pregnancy kits,
reportedly manufactured by a large international
manufacturer were immediately recalled.
T
he incident led to lots of
questions being asked about
home tests and what had
gone wrong. These included
whether the tests were well
regulated and whether or not
they were safe.
Home pregnancy tests measure the
hormone human chorionic gonadotropin
in the urine of pregnant women as early
as seven to 10 days after conception. A
false positive is rare but it can happen. The
reasons are usually because the user didn’t
follow the manufacturer’s instructions,
the kits had expired or the user was on
medication that affected the outcome.
In this case it’s clear that the device itself
was at fault.
Home pregnancy kits are just one of a
range of point-of-care medical diagnostic
tests. These include tests used by health
care professionals in a small clinic,
hospital, or at a patient’s bedside as well
as those sold over the counter and used
at home by the patient themselves or a
caregiver.
Diagnostic tests performed in rural
clinics or at the bedside have huge
advantages, and can result in improved
clinical decisions and treatment.
Consequently, the market for point-of-care
testing is expanding rapidly and is now
worth billions of dollars.
One of the main challenges has been the
quality and accuracy of the final results. To
fix this, organisations such as the World
Health Organisation and the International
Federation of Biomedical Scientists have
published guidelines for the validation and
use of a range of tests, particularly those
32 Nov 09 - 15 2018
used by health care facilities.
But there are very few guidelines for
over-the-counter diagnostic tests. And
regulation is patchy in many countries. So
it’s not surprising that false results happen.
In the absence of proper regulation of
over-the-counter medical tests, patients
need to take extra care when using them.
They need to follow the manufacturers’
instructions closely. But they also need
to confirm the result at an accredited
laboratory and consult with a health care
practitioner.
And governments need to take action
to improve regulations so that faulty
kits do not get sold. In South Africa this
would require consultation with all role
players and the expansion of the current
regulations to include all home based tests
being sold at retailers.
A wide array of tests
The demand for over-the-counter
diagnostic tests, performed by patients
themselves, is increasing. These include
tests for pregnancy, glucose and HIV.
In 2017 the first home test kit for HIV
became available in South Africa. The kits
were welcomed because they increased
the number of individuals who could
simultaneously know their status and
Governments need
to take action to
improve regulations
so that faulty kits do
not get sold
present for early treatment. This could
ultimately result in a reduction in the
spread of the virus.
Guidelines for HIV home testing
have been included in the South African
National Strategic Plan for HIV, sexually
transmitted infections and tuberculosis.
The guidelines emphasise that test kits
should be approved by a regulatory
body similar to the Food and Drug
Administration in the U.S. and meet
international quality standards.
In addition, the South African Health
Products Regulatory Authority has
published regulations covering medical
devices and in vitro diagnostic medical
devices. These include issues such as their
importation, transportation, registration
and manufacture.
But, with the exception of HIV, home
test kits are not adequately monitored and
managed.
Where to next
The era of individuals taking control of
their own medical decisions is here to stay.
Home based diagnostic tests should be
accepted.
Although guidelines for HIV home
testing have been developed, there are
huge gaps when it comes to other testing
kits. This includes pregnancy tests.
Authorities in South Africa – and in other
countries – should up their game and
provide guidelines and regulations on the
quality, training and use of all point-of-
care testing.
Glenda Mary Davison is Associate professor,
Cape Peninsula University of Technology

Providing HIV services
Why integrating HIV with non-HIV facilities cannot work
A girl gets tested for HIV in Uganda where attempts to integrate HIV services with general
health service have failed. Shutterstock
By Henry Zakumumpa
I
n many countries in sub-Saharan Africa,
HIV services are still offered separately
within health facilities. These HIV clin-
ics have their own dedicated staff and
infrastructure such as waiting areas, a sepa-
rate patient flow system and they typically
run on designated days of the week. This is
known as a vertical model and was touted
as a pragmatic emergency strategy to over-
come sub-Saharan Africa’s weak health sys-
tems in the quest to rapidly enroll millions
on HIV treatment.
Vertical HIV clinics are very common in
sub-Saharan Africa. Studies conducted in
Kenya, Swaziland and Zambia suggest that
stand-alone HIV clinics are the rule rather
than the exception in the region.
Stand-alone HIV clinics have depended
substantially on donor aid especially from
the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for
Aids Relief (PEPFAR). But over the past five
years, there have been persistent reports of
declining international assistance to scale up
HIV services in sub-Saharan Africa. This has
been one of the main drivers of calls for inte-
grating HIV services with non-HIV services
to avoid duplication and promote long-term
programme sustainability.
Numerous studies have been done evalu-
ating the integration of HIV services with
other health services such as sexual and
reproductive health service or those for non-
communicable diseases. In addition, several
policies, including World Health Organ-
isation guidelines, have outlined ways in
which HIV services can be integrated into
general health services.
But research we conducted across eight
geographic sub-regions in Uganda shows
that the country is not prepared for this inte-
gration. This is because general clinic staff
do not have specialist HIV knowledge, as
well as the fact that sheer numbers of HIV
clients will make it difficult. We argue that a
more nuanced approach should be taken.
Why not
Our study identified a number of poten-
tial challenges in doing away with stand-
alone HIV clinics.
Firstly, we found that HIV-related stigma
was widespread among health workers. For
example, we found that some health work-
ers in the labour ward of a public health
centre refused to touch HIV positive expect-
ant women.
Secondly, we found that HIV-positive
patients were discriminated against. In one
large hospital we visited, the pharmacy
prioritised patients who paid for their medi-
cation while HIV patients were treated last
because they do not pay.
Thirdly, health workers maintained that
HIV disease management is a specialty skill.
They argued that requiring all health work-
ers to learn how to manage HIV treatment
overnight was not feasible because of con-
tinuous updates in HIV treatment protocols.
health
Also, the one-on-one touch by clinicians
in HIV care would be hard to maintain in
general clinics.
Fourthly, there’s the problem of numbers.
HIV clinics in Uganda were described as
“a hospital within a hospital” because of
the large patient volumes. Uganda has 1.6
million people living with HIV with 898,200
enrolled on antiretroviral therapy in 2016.
This suggests that the sheer volume of HIV
clients at health facilities is too large sim-
ply to be merged with the general pool of
patients.
What we found
Most studies evaluate integrating HIV
with non-HIV services under experimental
settings. Our study is different in that the
majority of health facilities we surveyed had
actually experienced having specialist HIV
clinics, as well as been through the experi-
ence of integrated care.
Several hospitals we visited had reverted
back to a stand-alone clinic model after
failed attempts at integrating HIV with
non-HIV services. Health workers and
patients cited a number of reasons for this
happening. These included: The chaos
that ensued when all hospital laboratory
services were brought under one roof. This
included multiple accounts of HIV patient
samples being lost, the increased workload
while implementing an integrated package
of services, and a shortage of physical space.
Others included the ability of health facili-
ties to conduct HIV and non-HIV laboratory
tests concurrently, the absence of counseling
rooms when facilities were integrated into
general out-patient services (this affected
the ability to offer HIV positive patients’
privacy), and increased waiting times in
integrated facilities.
What next
Our study suggests that a wholesale
switch to integrated health services is not
feasible and a more incremental approach is
advisable. From our findings it is clear that
the health system in Uganda is unprepared
for integrated care.
Retraining health workers, preparing
people for the changes and shortages of
space are among the issues that need to
be addressed. Blanket integration poli-
cies are impractical and need to be tai-
lored to country context.
Henry Zakumumpa is a PhD Candidate,
Makerere University
Nov 09 - 15 2018 33
 ART | BOOKS | SOCIETY | TRAVEL | CULTURE
Art legend Katarikawe
dead at 80
His intuitive style on canvas earned him
global fame as Africa’s Chagall
J
By Dominic Muwanguzi
ak Katarikawe, one of
Uganda’s most celebrated
artists who died recently
at age 80, was in the early
1960s an ordinary, illiterate
chauffeur of a Makerere
University Kampala don; David Cook.
But he had an undiscovered talent in
art, possibly inherited from his mother
who was a sought after decorator of
huts in their rural village of Kigezi-
Kabale in the South-western part of
Uganda.
Young Katarikawe often helped his
34 Nov 09 - 15 2018
mother paint the huts of the locals, an
occupation that to this day remains
central to the Bakiga culture. So when
he started work as a chauffeur, Cook
must have somehow caught a glimpse
of Katarikawe’s art.
An excited Cook, who was from the
literature department, introduced him
to the Makerere University School
of Fine Arts where Katarikawe met
great artists like Sam Ntiro, Theresa
Musoke, and Eli Kyeyune. All had
one mission; to teach Katarikawe art.
But, since he could not read or write
English, Katarikawe failed to learn
and soon jumped out of the claws of
formal art training to hone his own
style.
He mixed his knowledge in
traditional indigenous art practices
and motifs with the modern bits and
pieces he had picked from Makerere
to create such visually compelling
artworks that it was impossible to
dismiss him as artist despite his
handicaps.
He also had many stories to tell.
So when he picked up art, he told
them through his work. In fact, he
told several stories for each of his
works. So when you asked him what
message underlies his painting today

he would tell you this story
and tomorrow a different
one altogether. That is how
fascinating he was as an
individual and this trait
shows up in his paintings
which are emotively and
intuitively powerful.
He developed a distinct
blending of traditional
motifs with modernist styles
of paintings. He appears to
have caught the minimalist
bug and often concentrated
on a particular aspect of
his subject to inspire a
specific emotion within the
viewer. Mainly, he used
the drawings of the long-
horned Nkole bull with a
wide-eyed stare that over
time became associated with
his persona as an ambitious
and resolute individual who
was determined to become a
successful artist. It explains
how this former chauffeur
of a university don, without
any formal training, became
an art master.
He extravagantly applied
primary colours and
secondary colours on the
same canvas. Needless
to say, his technique
was purely defiant of
the classroom approach,
especially in picture
construction and colour
scheme. In the end, his
drawings looked childlike or
amateur doodlings with no
care of proportionality.
Yet it appears, the more
amateurish his style was, the
more it earned him admirers.
Soon he was being labeled a
`legend’ within the local and
international art community.
At his homecoming show
at Makerere Art Gallery in
2005, Katarikawe sold out
his show with collectors
scrambling for artworks
that went for more than US$
20,000 per painting. Until
recently, Katarikawe was the
most expensive artist from
the East Africa region.
One of his friends, world
renowned batik artist
Nuwa Nyanzi told The
Independent that Katarikawe
was so fixated on perfection
that he often remained
quiet when interacting with
English speakers – because
ARTS
he did not want to be caught
making a mistake. But he
freely communicated with
the Germans and other
European nationals since
their knowledge of the
language is not so good,
Nyanzi said.
Nonetheless, Katarikawe
had a universal
communication on canvas
whose eloquence no
handicap could deter.
His work has often been
described as “intuitive with
an ease in communication”.
In fact such spontaneity
has earned him a label of
“Africa’s Chagall”. Marc
Chagall is renowned for his
long dreamy compositions
on canvas that transported
the viewer to a reverie
world.
The artist also enthused
that he created from the
heart and not head, and
therefore his paintings
were a manifestation
of love. From a critical
perspective, Katarikawe’s
paintings portray a fantasy
world where both human
and animals live side by
side in harmony.
Jak Katarikawe died aged
80 years and his work in
East Africa can be found at
Watatu Gallery in Nairobi
and in a Museum of
African Art in Germany.
Nov 09 - 15 2018 35
 Kenyan wants to make Uhuru, Raila handshake day national holiday
The National Assembly
has received a petition from
a Kenyan who wants the day
President Uhuru Kenyatta and
Raila Odinga shook hands at
Harambee House be gazetted
as a national holiday. According
to the petitioner, Paul Muga,
Parliament should amend
Article 9(3) of the constitution
and list March 9 the National
Peace Day. Mugo supported
his petition by holding that the
handshake between the two
leaders was a good show of
peace, co-existence, nationhood
and cohesion hence needs to be
remembered. His petition was
forwarded to the Committee of
Justice and Legal Affairs which
is expected to go through it and
deliver a report to Parliament
in less than 60 days. Uhuru
and Raila excited Kenyans
across the world following the
handshake through which they
agreed on nine a point agenda
to bring to an end political
rivalry that had been hindering
the country’s economy.

Restaurant serves meals of notorious criminals on death row This 78-year

Do you fancy the last meals like armed robber and double- cheeseburgers with fries and old won’t stop
requested by infamous death murderer Gary Mark Gilmore, a salad with Thousand Island
row inmates before their Judy Buonoano, Florida’s “Black dressing ordered by death row lifting weights!
execution? If yes, then Ningen, Widow”, or real-life killer clown inmate Joseph Paul Jernigan,
a pop-up restaurant in Tokyo’s John Wayne Gacy. Among the or the steamed vegetables and Calvyn Fortuin was
Shinjuku district in Japan had many items on the menu were fresh strawberries savored by
lifting weights every day
you in mind when it opened the steak, potatoes, milk, coffee murderer Judy Buonoano prior
at the age of 14. They were
recently to serve the last meals and shots of whisky requested to her execution. The menu was
made by his father out of
of infamous American criminals by Gary Mark Gilmore, the two withdrawn on Oct. 28.
concrete and cement. With
every bead of sweat, his
Colored polish for teeth anyone? Kanye West inspires Halloween costumes fortitude grew. Fortuin
became a bodybuilder,
The simplest way to describe Chrom 11, have served addicted to competing,
is as a nail polish for your teeth. It lets as inspiration to winning multiple awards
you color your chompers in 10 various those celebrating. that line a shelf in his
colors, does not smudge and lasts for And we haven’t home today. Sixty years
up to 24 hours. If you’re bored with even mentioned later, there’s no end in
your pearly whites, or just want them the boxy look sight. Fortuin still hits
to match the color of your fingernails that he wears in his homemade gym three
or your outfit, you can now use an the “I Love It” hours a day, five times
innovative ‘tooth polish’ to paint video. In fact, a week at the age of 78.
them any way you like. The formula Jeanette Paras, of Bodybuilding isn’t a spec-
for Chrom was reportedly created by Paras Pumpkins tacle for him; it’s a way of
dentists and consists of a grain alcohol in Dublin, Ohio, life, and he is now passing
base and pigments similar to high- chose West as on his knowledge to the
quality coloring. It doesn’t stain the the subject of the youth in his community.
teeth, it’s not permanent and it doesn’t giant celebrity “By having a healthy
have any taste so you can enjoy your
pumpkin that body and a healthy mind
favorite foods while looking freaky.
she creates and you can achieve anything
displays every in life,” Fortuin says.
year. “I select Fortuin also teaches body-
basically what’s building at his gym. Age
If the recent as a bottle of currently the is of no matter to him.
Halloween sparkling water hot topic of
season in the U.S. and then wearing conversation
were a movie, a Make America and dominating
Kanye West Great Again the news,” Paras
might be the star. hat worn by tells Yahoo
The rapper’s supporters of Entertainment.
appearance President Trump, “Frankly, Kanye
on the Sept. as well as his moved up
29 episode of eye-popping quickly on the
Saturday Night visit to Trump in list, probably
Live, in which the Oval Office after the visit to
he performed at the White the Oval Office.”
while dressed House on Oct.

36 Nov 09 - 15 2018
 New Mercedes-Benz A200
sets new benchmark
A
s is the norm with every new mod-
el now introduced in the modern
era, the Mercedes-Benz A-Class
has grown a little by being 120mm
longer, 16mm higher and 6mm wider, but
20kg lighter.
And in the quest for ever better efficiency,
which every manufacturer is under pres-
sure to keep improving to save the planet,
the car is the aerodynamic leader in its class
with a Cd figure from only 0.25.
What this number is, in a nutshell, is the
drag coefficient of the car, which translates
into how easily the car cuts through the air.
The more brick-like your car, the more
drag and the more power you need to do
the same speed compared to a car with less
drag.
0783 614601/ 0753 614601
Using more power means using more
fuel and that translates into more money.
So, despite the aggressive looks, the A200
is not a 2.0-litre turbocharged GTI killer.
That’s a job for the A250 Sport. The A200
runs a 1.33-litre turbocharged petrol engine
which generates 120kW of power and
250Nm of torque with a slick shifting 7G
DCT dual-clutch transmission doing duty.
This provides for more than enough go
for your everyday drive and with a claimed
fuel consumption of only 5.2l/100km it is
perfect for this job.
With the tradition of technology transfer-
ring down from the state-of-the-art, high-
tech, S-Class, the interior is not only bigger
with increased shoulder, elbow and head-
room, it is modern and jam-packed with
The Largest 7 Seater 4x4 In Uganda
Mercedes Benz GLS
sales@spearmotors.co.ug
technology that was unthinkable in an entry
level model not so long ago.
And then you get MBUX, a new multi-
media system that learns and adapts to suit
the user through artificial intelligence, so
the more you interact with it, the more car
becomes just like you.
In addition, MBUX offers intelligent
voice control with natural language com
prehension.
By using the phrase “Hey Mercedes”,
you can adjust the air-conditioning,
send a text message or find the quickest
route to where you want to go. Scary,
but it is the future.
Source: Internet
Only available at Spear Motors Limited
www.spearmotors.co.ug
Nov 09 - 15 2018 37
Profile
Richard Todwong: On being
powerful but simple
By Agnes E Nantaba Todwong got a job with Uganda Revenue did alongside being deputy SG of the

R
ichard Todwong, the powerful dep-
uty secretary general of the ruling
NRM party, maintains a simple and
humble personality - a rare thing
for a politician. Todwong served as MP for
Nwoya County, was minister without port-
folio in charge of political mobilisation, and
commissioner at the Constitutional Review
Commission.
He says growing up in a large polyga-
mous family in tumultuous times taught
him the value of team work, community
work, organization, and unity.
He was born in 1973; just two years after
Idi Amin toppled the first Uganda Peoples
Congress (UPC) government and started
harassing its supporters. Todwong says his
family was targeted because his father was
a UPC mobiliser.
The hostile environment meant pushing
his father to hide from the family for close to
three years only surfacing to pay a visit and
disappear mysteriously again for fear of his
life and the family. That was until the 1980
election when Obote returned to power.
Todwong recalls living in the village until
he had to join Primary One in Anaka in
town. “You could only be allowed in town if
you were a civil servant, business person, or
student,” he recalls.
He missed school for three years due
to the political unrests and resumed and
completed primary education from Bishop
Angelo Negri, a Catholic-owned school run
by Verona sisters. The school had a second-
ary section so it was easy for him to cross
over. Four years later, Todwong was to
proceed with advanced secondary educa-
tion. He says the plan was to proceed with
education in London at a time when many
Acholi’s were getting asylum in the UK. But
Todwong says he was unlucky.
“The person who offered to buy me a
ticket didn’t do it on time,” he says.
So he ended up at Progressive Secondary
School in Kampala. From there, he joined
Makerere University pursuing a Bachelor’s
degree in Economics and Political Science
graduating in 2000. He returned for a mas-
ter’s degree in International Relations and
Diplomacy.
During the days of his first degree,
Todwong was involved in Makerere Uni-
versity students’ politics.
Immediately after his first degree,
Authority as a revenue officer and was party. By the end of the parliament tenure,
elected to head the staff union which a sort Todwong decided to concentrate on party
of trade union. Then he developed interest work.
in stepping out of organisational politics to He says he is still being courted to repre-
public politics. sent his constituency but is yet to decide.
But in 2001 he was appointed Commis- “The party position is a better place to
sioner with Constitutional Review Com- learn and appreciate the challenges that
mission at only 28 years. For three years, he leaders go through because we interact with
served at the commission until he returned these things daily,” he says, “So it’s more
to URA. As a member of the commission, satisfying.”
Todwong says he was exposed to issues Todwong is married to Barbara and
around leadership including traditional together they have three
institutions, decentralisation, and the role of children.
local governments.
“I became excited about the politics,” he
says, “I realised that it’s better to be in poli-
tics than to collect revenue”.
He resigned at a time when many were
fighting to join URA, but chose to gamble
in politics. In 2006, Todwong contested for
the Gulu Municipality parliamentary seat
and lost.
President Yoweri Museveni, however,
appointed him presidential advisor in
charge of Greater Northern Uganda. He
kept the job for the next four years and says
it exposed him to another constituency, a
rural one in Nwoya. He contested in 2011
and won. Two years in
parliament, he was
appointed minister
without portfolio
in charge of politi-
cal mobilisa-
tion; a role he

38 Nov 09 - 15 2018

Richard Todwong’s Liteside
Any three things that we
I
don’t know about you?
am very simple; people
often mistake me for
Todwong’s driver. It’s
because I don’t carry titles
and offices with me. I love
that simplicity and humility
which means that power
hasn’t gotten to my head. I
love nature and people and so
I can’t afford to stay alone.
What is your idea of perfect
happiness?
Happiness is internal or
within. It means being happy
with whatever you have,
express yourself with it and
live happily.
What is your greatest fear?
None that I am aware of.
What is the trait you most
deplore in yourself?
At times when I am
emotionally charged, I
withdraw from people for
some time until I cool down.
It is something I am trying to
fight.
What is the trait you most
deplore in others?
Lying and opportunism.
Which living person do
you most admire?
I admire President
Museveni; I have worked
with him as a mentor,
supervisor and a boss.
He is too patient for life
and will give you time
to correct your mistakes.
He has reached a level
of maturity where he
believes that everybody
should be given room
to reform and correct
his or her mistakes.
What is your greatest
extravagance?
At times I spoil my
children because I like
the feeling of having
them receive me with
something.
What is the greatest thing you
have ever done?
I have been able to achieve
a lot at my age; I have been an
MP, Commissioner, minister
and now Deputy Secretary
General. There is nothing more
I am yearning for.
What is your current state of
mind?
I am contented.
What do you consider the most
overrated virtue?
We are so much focusing
on theoretical politics than
practical.
What does being powerful
mean to you?
Power can be broken down
to mean those who want to
be defined by their titles or
what they do, those who think
everything is about them and
the humble ones. Once you
allow your character to lead
your passion, you will succeed.
But to me being powerful is the
ability to persuade others and
get things done fast.
On what occasion do you lie?
I have never told a lie;
perhaps others take my being
frank and open as pride.
What do you most dislike
about your appearance?
I am a perfect creation.
Which living person do you
most despise?
So many of our friends in
opposition; they seem not to
understand certain traits in
leadership. They leave people
with a lot of expectations and
when they are not met, it has
negative implications on the
country. They focus on the
problems or blame but never
offer solutions.
What is the quality you most
like in a woman?
Decency in word, action, and
deeds.
What is the quality you most
like in a man?
Honesty and let your words
be bankable.
What or who is the greatest
love of your life?
I love President Museveni for
giving me every opportunity
to be what I am. I also love my
parents and children.
When and where were you
happiest?
I am happy every time I
return to my village, sit around
the fire place and play my local
instruments to church music. I
am also happy every time I am
around a happy community
and when NRM wins an
election.
Which talent would you most
like to have?
Wisdom to interpret nature
and apply it in day to day life
What do you consider your
greatest achievement?
Being educated and
informed; I read a lot to help
myself. I have also made
friends beyond my tribal
boundary; I am not an Acholi
limited.
Where would you most like
to live?
Uganda is the most beautiful
country to live; I don’t think I
can live elsewhere that is not
Uganda
What is your most treasured
possession?
I don’t treasure worldly
things; whatever I have should
make me happy and if it
doesn’t, then it doesn’t belong
to me.
What do you regard as the
lowest depth of misery?
The experience of staying
with my father in the same
compound but only see him
once a week was traumatizing;
especially the fact that we
didn’t know where he was
Nov 09 - 15 2018
Q&A
staying. He survived death
four times under Amin’s
regime because our family was
a target for genocide. It is not
something anybody would
wish to go through.
What is your favorite
occupation?
Being a Secretary General is
very challenging and tough but
I enjoy solving a challenge and
eventually turn out victorious.
What do you most value in
your friends?
Traits that improve me;
I only befriend those with
qualities that I don’t have
because it helps me to learn
from them. Such friends add
value to my life and work.
Who are your favorite writers?
I like reading stories written
by African authors. I have
read books by Pecos Kuteesa,
president Museveni, Janet
Museveni and Dr Martin
Aliker. The stories are told and
written by indigenous authors
who were part of the walk.
Which historical figure do you
most identify with?
Jesus, because he lived a
simple life for a short time
and his messages are still
applicable today. He lived
a simple life as if he was not
the son of God so if what we
read about Him is true, he is a
dream man.
What is your greatest regret?
I don’t regret anything
because whatever decision I
have taken in life was made
consciously.
How would you like to die?
I wouldn’t allow anyone to
take care of me on the death
bed; I want to go at once.
What is your motto?
Challenge myself in all ways
and gather more knowledge.
39
Global comment
By Kaushik Basu
Why is democracy faltering?
Far-right politicians like Trump and Bolsonaro have
exploited frustration-fanned anger, tribalism
J
air Bolsonaro, the president-elect
of Brazil, is a far-right, gun-loving,
media-baiting hyper-nationalist. The
fact that he would be right at home
among many of today’s global leaders – in-
cluding the leaders of some of the world’s
major democracies – should worry us all.
This compels us to address the question:
Why is democracy faltering?
We are at a historical turning point.
Rapid technological progress, particu-
larly the rise of digital technology and
artificial intelligence, is transforming
how our economies and societies func-
tion. While such technologies have
brought important gains, they have also
raised serious challenges – and left many
segments of the population feeling vul-
nerable, anxious, and angry.
One consequence of recent techno-
logical progress has been a decline in
the relative share of wages in GDP. As a
relatively small number of people have
claimed a growing piece of the pie, in
the form of rents and profits, surging
inequality of wealth and income has
fueled widespread frustration with
existing economic and political arrange-
ments.
Gone are the days when one could
count on a steady factory job to pay the
bills indefinitely. With machines taking
over high-wage manufacturing jobs,
companies are increasingly seeking
higher-skill workers in areas ranging
from science to the arts. This shift in
skill demand is fueling frustration.
Imagine being told, after a lifetime of
body-building, that the rules have been
changed and the gold medal will be
awarded not for wrestling, but for chess.
This will be infuriating and unfair. The
trouble is that no one does this deliber-
ately; such changes are the outcome of
natural drift in technology. Nature is
often unfair. The onus for correcting the
unfairness lies on us.
These developments have contributed
to growing disparities in education and
opportunity. A wealthier background has
long improved one’s chances of receiving
a superior education and, thus, higher-
paying jobs. As the value of mechanical
skills in the labour market declines and
income inequality rises, this difference
40 Nov 09 - 15 2018
is likely to become increasingly pro-
nounced. Unless we transform education
systems to ensure more equitable access
to quality schooling, inequality will
become ever-more entrenched.
The growing sense of unfairness accom-
panying these developments has under-
mined “democratic legitimacy,” as Paul
Tucker discusses in his book `Unelected
Power’. In our deeply interconnected
globalised economy, one country’s
policies – such as trade barriers, interest
rates, or monetary expansion – can have
far-reaching spillover effects. Mexicans,
for example, do not just have to worry
about whom they elect president; they
also need to concern themselves with
who wins power in the United States
– an outcome over which they have no
say. In this sense, globalisation naturally
leads to the erosion of democracy.
Against this background, the ongoing
transformation of politics should not
be surprising. The frustration of large
segments of the population has created
fertile ground for tribalism, which politi-
cians like Trump and Bolsonaro have
eagerly exploited.
Mainstream economics is founded on
the assumption that human beings are
motivated by exogenously given prefer-
ences – what economists call “utility
functions.” Though the relative weights
may differ, all individuals want more
and better food, clothes, shelter, vaca-
tions, and other experiences.
What this interpretation fails to account
for are “created targets” that arise as
we move through life. You are not born
with an essential drive to kick the ball
through a goal post. But once you take to
soccer, you become obsessed with it. You
do not do it to get more food or clothes
or houses. It becomes a source of joy in
itself. It is a created target.
Even becoming a sports fan is similar.
Nobody is essentially a devotee of Real
Madrid or the New England Patriots.
But, through family, geography, or
experience, one might become deeply
connected to a particular sports team, to
the point that it becomes a kind of tribal
identity. A fan would support players
not because of how they play, but
because of the team they represent.
It is this dynamic that is fueling trib-
alism in politics today. Many who
support Trump or Bolsonaro do so not
because of what Trump or Bolsonaro
will deliver, but rather because of their
tribal identity. They have created targets
related to being part of “Team Trump”
or “Team Bolsonaro.” This damages
democracy by giving political leaders a
license they did not have earlier. They
can do what they want without being
constrained by the will of the people.
It is not immediately clear how we
can rectify these problems, protect the
vulnerable, and restore democratic legiti-
macy. What is clear is that business as
usual will not cut it.
The Industrial Revolution – another
major turning point for humankind –
brought massive changes in regulations
and laws, from the various Factories Acts
in the United Kingdom to the imple-
mentation of income tax in 1842. It also
brought the birth of modern economics,
with major breakthroughs by the likes
of Adam Smith, Augustin Cournot, and
John Stuart Mill.
But we are at a historical juncture
where the subject of political economy
deserves a rethink. The dinosaur did
not have the capacity for self-analysis
and headed toward extinction 65 mil-
lion years ago. We, too, run the risk of
civilisational collapse. But, luckily we
are the first species with the capacity for
self-analysis. Therein lies the hope that,
despite all the turmoil and conflict we
see around us, we will ultimately avert
the “dinosaur risk” and pull ourselves
back from the brink.
Kaushik Basu, former Chief Economist of
the World Bank and former Chief Economic
Adviser to the Government of India, is
Professor of Economics at Cornell University
and Nonresident Senior Fellow at the
Brookings Institution.
Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2018.
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