🚧 Spare the road

Good afternoon ☀️

A glimmer of hope for Kampala’s roads, your shifty bank balance, (SO MANY) protests, and much much more.

Let's do this 🚀

— Gloria Mbabazi, Shem Opolot

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Headlines

🚧 Spare the road

In great news for your car’s shock absorbers, and in a race to meet their self-imposed deadline of February 2023, KCCA launched Lot 3 of the [long overdue] Kampala City Road Reconstruction Project (KCRRP) funded by the African Development Bank (ADB) for Kampala City infrastructure projects. If you’re worried the crux of the project is the recent cosmetic filling of some potholes in the city with heaps of soil, KCCA Executive Director, Dorothy Kisaka assures you the fillings are meant to patch up the roads and ease traffic flow as the real construction work takes shape.

🔥 Fire guts Kisenyi market

Several traders in Kiganda Zone, Kisenyi II Parish in Kampala Central Division lost billions of shillings in a fire that gutted their stalls and stores on February 13. Fire outbreaks in Kampala City markets almost always follow land wrangles and backroom politics and this case is no different. Traders claim three mysterious fires have gutted the area in the past year and rumors are swirling around notorious land grabbers.

⛓️👨🏾🧔🏾‍♂️⛓️ Prison: a break

After more than 500 days in jail, the Masaka High Court granted Kawempe North MP Muhammed Ssegirinya and his counterpart, Makindye West MP Allan Ssewanyana bail. The two were accused of masterminding the machete killings in the greater Masaka area during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

Rumors that the NUP President, Kyagulanyi Sentamu, aka Bobi Wine negotiated their release were greatly exaggerated, according to Bobi Wine.

🥷🏾The inside job

In a tale that’ll make you squint at the disparity between the “available balance” and “current balance” in your bank app, crooks, with the help of internal bank staff, walked off with $1.8 million (UGX 7 billion) from a man’s account in Stanbic Bank. If you didn’t hate the perpetrators for how they did it, you’d probably respect them.  

🛠️ The dark side of labour externalisation

Uganda Police, citing the need for “express permission” and likely invoking the Streisand Effect, blocked a private screening of a documentary by the African Institute for Investigative Journalism (AIIJ) at Mestil Hotel, Kampala. The documentary titled: On the Go - The Dark Side of Labor Externalisation highlights the horrors faced by some of the scores of young ladies dressed in uniform you might have seen at the airport en route to Saudi Arabia. Here’s the video of the documentary if you want to stick it to the man. Warning: Some of the scenes might be disturbing.

⚖️ (Another) Anti-Gay bill?

It’s that time of the year and renewed calls for anti-gay legislation are ringing through parliament like the bell for morning prep. The latest uproar about homosexuality stems from distracting the public from more pertinent issues the concerns about the reported incidents in schools and the Church of Uganda’s desire to divorce the Church of England due to the Canterbury clergy’s wavering stance on same-sex marriage.

During his speech at the national celebrations to mark Janani Luwum Day, President Museveni said Uganda will not embrace homosexuality.

Janani Luwum was killed in 1977 for criticizing human rights violations during Idi Amin’s regime. Fortunately, we don’t have any of that going on anymore.

💡Let there be light (please!)

Uganda borrowed UGX 9.5 trillion to expand access to power grid connection, but that access stands—likely in the dark as we speak—at 27%. While the Ministry of Energy could use a lightbulb moment to use the borrowed billions more effectively, there probably isn’t enough electricity to power said lightbulb.

🙅🏾‍♂️ Apaa(na)

Prime Minister, Hon. Robinah Nabbanja was kicked out of Apaa township, Amuru district like Polio in the 90s after she gave Apaa residents a three-month eviction notice for allegedly encroaching on a wildlife reserve. The locals chased her and her posse from the meeting in protest of the announcement. Show this to your landlord and say nothing.

Other headlines

Jacob Kiplimo wins the World Cross Country title in Australia

A Ugandan’s body was recovered from the rubble of the earthquake in Turkey

Government will not listen to your complaints about mobile money charges

President Museveni orders probe into cattle raids in Acholi

Government and Sudhir plan a joint UGX 140 billion venture

Uganda launches water bicycling to boost tourism

The team investigating NSSF retreated to mull over the dumpster fire of discoveries in the investigation

Government plans new tax on gold (yep) exports

Beyond Borders

🌍️ Africa

🤝🏾 The 36^th AU Summit: From February 15 - 19, under the theme: "The Year of AfCFTA: Acceleration of the African Continental Free Trade Area Implementation.” trade was the main focus of this year’s summit, with record drought in the Horn, violence in the Sahel and DRC, and a faltering free trade pact stewing in the background like a day’s old coffee.

🇬🇶 Marburg in Equatorial Guinea: Equatorial Guinea confirmed its first-ever outbreak of Marburg disease, saying the Ebola-related virus is responsible for at least nine deaths in the tiny Western African country.

What is the Marburg virus?

Like Ebola (but less fatal), the Marburg virus originates in bats and spreads between people via close contact with the bodily fluids of infected people, or surfaces, like contaminated bed sheets.

The case-fatality rate for Marburg ranges from 23% to 33% versus 53–88% for Ebola.

🇨🇲 Cameroon President turns 90: In a depressing peer into the looking glass for Ugandans everywhere, Cameroonian President Paul Biya, who has been in power for 40 years and is seeking another 5-year term, turned 90 this past week.

🇹🇿 MV Mwanza Hapa Kazi Tu: Tanzania floated East Africa’s largest ever locally-made freshwater passenger and cargo ship named MV Mwanza Hapa Kazi Tu. “Hapa Kazi Tu”, also late President John Magufuli’s campaign slogan, translates to “It’s only work here” The ship boasts a capacity for 1200 passengers, 20 small vehicles, and 3 trucks.

🇳🇬 Currency and Chaos: President Buhari extended the cash notes swap deadline for a further 60 days as chaos continues to plague Nigeria as elections loom.

🇿🇦 South Africa’s woes: Dubbed the world’s most unequal country by the World Bank, South Africa’s recent crime statistics indicate an alarming increase in violent crimes such as murder and rape.

Furthermore, the nation is also battling rising inflation and rampant load shedding presided over by ESKOM (South Africa’s UMEME) which makes Uganda’s “power” struggles look like child’s play. The problem of power cuts in South Africa is so bad that President Ramaphosa formed a Ministry of Electricity. South Africa is the second largest producer of electricity in Africa behind Egypt.

Other headlines

Kenyan troops to hunt down bandits in North Rift region

Tanzania kicks off debate on legal reforms

UAE strengthens trade marriage with Tanzania

UN flags Zimbabwe’s “draconian” Bill

🗺️ The rest of the world

🇮🇱 Israeli protests: Nearly 100,000 Israelis protested a potential judicial overhaul outside the parliament this past week. The protesters fear the overhaul would give Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nearly unchecked power and weaken the court. Israelis shouldn’t look to Uganda to see how it all ends.

🇪🇺 A Wave of protests in Europe: Hundreds of thousands of health workers in Spain protested the recent deterioration of the public health system | Nearly 1 million French citizens protested the administration’s pension reform | Health workers in the UK staged the biggest demonstration in the history of the NHS | Thousands of teachers in Portugal took to the streets to clamor for better social services to keep pace with rising inflation

Is this a sign? Gather ye pitchforks; we march at dawn!

🇺🇸 Tesla to open charging network: Part of a US government initiative to get at least 500,000 electric vehicle chargers operating throughout the US by 2030 and abate range anxiety, Tesla has agreed to make 7,500 of its chargers available to drivers of vehicles made by other automakers by the end of next year.

What is range anxiety?

The US government initiative aims to accelerate the move towards electric cars by quelling range anxiety. Range anxiety is the fear drivers have of not reaching their final destination due to low charge and ending up stranded. So, like going to the club with your phone at 30% and expecting to magically find your Uber driver later.

🇮🇳 Air India record plane deal: Air India ordered the highest number of passenger planes ever. The order for Boeing airplanes includes 190 737 Max jets, 20 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, and 10 widebody 777X planes for a total of 220 aircraft. The entire delivery could cost Air India $34 billion.

🇺🇸 The Super Bowl Rihanna Concert Show: In a sideshow to Rihanna’s halftime concert, the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 to win Super Bowl LVII. The viewership numbers on the day tell the better story: Rihanna - 118.7 million viewers versus The Super Bowl - 113 million viewers.

N’ebigenderako

American fighter jets intercept 4 Russian warplanes before the jets entered US airspace in Alaska

Aid shortages in the aftermath of the Turkey/Syria earthquakes

YouTube CEO steps down after 9 years

TikTok to run trivia games with $500,000 up for grabs

Actor, Bruce Willis diagnosed with dementia

Pharrell Williams named Creative Director at Louis Vuitton, succeeding the late Virgil Abloh

The oldest bible, Codex Sassoon to sell for close to $50 million

Progress made on male contraception but it might be a hard pill to swallow (for men, of course 🙄)

Train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio spilled toxic chemicals resulting in mass evacuations. Here’s proof we’re in a simulation

🎳 Games and Puzzles

This week’s challenge is courtesy of Braingle.

Turn the word "THINK" into "BRAIN" by changing one letter at a time - each new word must be a real word.

Answer at the bottom

Procrastination corner

💔 Will good romantic comedies ever return?

🏠 These architectural works of wonder will blow your mind

🌼 What your city could look like

✈️ A retired Boeing 737 converted into a private villa

😈 Read: Why every character on TV is an anti-hero these days

Riddle answer

Answer

THINK
THICK
TRICK
TRACK
TRACT
TRAIT
TRAIN
BRAIN

Have a good week!

— Too Long; Didn’t Read (TLDR)

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