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Eight still standing as Singleton golf enters penultimate stage

By
Our Reporter
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FLASHBACK: ANNOUNCING THE SINLETON CHALLENGE: Former UGC chief, city lawyer Kiwanuka Kiryowa

There are eight players still competing in the Singleton Challenge golf tournament as it enters its fourth and penultimate round at the Entebbe Club this Saturday, April 8.

Eight pairs remain in the amateurs’ category, while the pros group has eight individual golfers competing.

The eight pros left include Fred Wanzala, Abbey Bagalana, Vincent Byamukama, Denis Anguyo, Phillip Kasozi, Herman Mutawe, Dickson Lagoro and Deo Akope.

In the amateurs category, the eight pairs left are Ray Kahiigi and Ibra Bagalana; Elly Mukasa and Kiryowa Kiwanuka; Dan Kajungu and Collins Nuwagira; Allan Muhereza and Moses Matsiko; Moses Ssebugwawo and Emmanuel Mugabi; Isaac Mariera and John Muchiri; Jadu Patel and Anthony Agaba; as well as Enock Nuwagaba and Paul Nsereko.
The winners this weekend will earn a place in the final round due in May, where the triumphant pair stands to take home the big prize of a once-in-a-lifetime all-expenses paid trip to watch The Open at the Royal Birkdale in Southport, England.

Saturday’s action will be crowned with a 19th hole African themed experience, courtesy of The Singleton.

“The Singleton Challenge has been an amazing journey. It has provided lots of great memories, and as we get closer to its end, as UBL, we feel humbled by the love and support we have experienced at the Entebbe Club,” said Ms Annet Nakiyaga, Brand Manager, Diageo Scotch. “We hope this tourney is the start of more partnerships with the club in the near future.”

The Singleton Challenge takes a four ball better ball mode of play and will tee off at 7am and run up to 2:30pm. There will also be prizes for others not participating in the match play event, that is men’s groups, A, B, C, as well as women’s groups A and B. The green fees stand at Shs30, 000.

The Singleton Challenge teed off in January and will run for five months, with its climax set for May this year.

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New tourism platform to be launched

By
Isaiah Mwebaze
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TO PRESIDE OVER LAUNCH: Tourism Minister Ephraim Kamuntu

The Government and the Tourism Private Sector, with the support of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Uganda are launching the Uganda Tourism Inclusive Business Ecosystem Platform on Thursday April 6, 2017 at the Golf Course Hotel – Kampala.

According to a March 4 release by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), its Country Director Ms. Almaz Gebru, together with the Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities Ephraim Kamuntu and the Representative of the Swiss Development Cooperation, will preside over the launch of the platform.

‘Uganda’s tourism sector has emerged as one of the fastest growing sectors in the country, single largest export earner and generator of foreign exchange. However, the rapid economic growth of the sector has not brought prosperity to all. Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by world leaders call on countries to mobilize all efforts to end all forms of poverty, fight inequalities and tackle climate change, while ensuring that no one is left behind,’ the release indicates.

It adds: ‘Strengthening the supportive ecosystems can stimulate the development of more inclusive businesses and holds the key to unlocking Uganda’s tourism potential. On the other hand, Inclusive Business offers an opportunity for private enterprises to meaningfully contribute to attainment of SDGs and national development whilst realizing commercial success’.

 

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Trump administration toughens foreign workers’ visa rules

By
Agencies
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The US Department of Homeland Security has announced steps to prevent the fraudulent use of H1B visas, used by employers to bring in specialized foreign workers temporarily, which appeared to fall short of President Donald Trump’s campaign promises to overhaul the program.

Trump had promised to end the lottery system for H1B visas, which gives each applicant an equal chance at 65,000 positions each year.

Lobbyists for businesses who rely on H1B visas, commonly used by the tech sector, had expected Trump to upend the lottery in favor of a system that prioritized workers who are highly skilled and would be highly paid in the United States.

The lottery for fiscal year 2018 opened on Monday without changes.

The start of the lottery was seen by those watching the issue as the unofficial deadline for the Trump administration to enact H1B visa reform, and the failure to meet that deadline signals that Trump’s promised overhaul of the system may be off the table or long delayed.

“More oversight is a good start, but employers can still use the program legally to depress wages and replace American workers. That falls short of the promises President Trump made to protect American workers,” said Peter Robbio, a spokesman for Numbers USA, a Washington-based group that advocates for limiting immigration into the United States.

The White House could not immediately be reached for comment.

In keeping with the practice of former President Barack Obama’s administration, employers and foreign workers will enter a lottery system where 65,000 workers are permitted to enter the United States to work. An extra 20,000 H1B visas are reserved for workers with advanced degrees.

Last year, the lottery remained open less than a week before the program reached its cap.

Tech companies rely on the program to bring in workers with special skills and have lobbied for an expansion of the number of H1B visas awarded.

Proponents of limiting legal immigration, including Trump’s senior adviser Stephen Miller, have argued the program gives jobs that Americans could fill to foreign workers at a less expensive cost.

The measures announced by DHS on Monday focus on site visits by U.S. authorities to employers who use H1B visas.

In future site visits, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agents will investigate incidents where an employer’s basic business information cannot be validated; businesses that have a high ratio of H1B employees compared with U.S. workers; and employers petitioning for H1B workers who work off-site.

 

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Big Brother Naija: Bally out of competition

By
Badru Kasadah
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OUT! Bally-gets-evicted-from-the-Big-Brother-Naija-house

Bally’s hope of winning the coveted prize of N25 million and an SUV finally met a brick wall as he has been evicted from the on-going Big Brother Naija reality TV show.

Bally becomes the ninth housemate including the fake housemates, to be evicted.

This week’s live eviction show will pass as one of the toughest as four popular housemates TBoss, Debie-Rise, Marvis, and Bally were subjected to a popularity contest in less than one week to the end of the reality TV show. TBoss polled the highest votes, leading with about 26 percent, followed by Debie-Rise who polled 25 percent, Marvis with 24 percent and the only male in the contest, Bally polling 23 percent.

On the eve of the eviction show, Ebuka- Obi-Uchendu, the show host, to the surprise of the housemates, announced that they will be hosting very important guests.

This later became the shock of their lives when the visitors turned out to be their family members and in some cases, friends. Amidst tears, the housemates, after about 80 days of separation, sat and watched their favorites eat specially prepared meals, even though they were prevented from touching or speaking with their guests as they were all put in a ‘freeze mode’.

During the eviction show, Ebuka, again invited the housemates’ visitors to the stage and gave them the opportunity to finally speak with each other. The dreaded moment, however, came when Ebuka revealed that this week’s eviction process would be played out differently. He explained that the family member or friend that walks into the house would signal the evicted housemate.

Without wasting time, the guests were ushered to the arena as the nominated housemates anxiously waited for the doorbell to ring, each fervently praying against seeing their ‘person’ come in. It was the shock of the night when Tola, Bally’s friend walked into the house. In a moment of disbelief, the five standing housemates watched as Bally and his ally walked out of the house.

Bally joins Soma, Miyonse, CocoIce, Gift, Uriel, ThinTalLTony, Bassey, including the two fake housemates, Ese and Jon.

Bally, while on stage with Ebuka said: “I’m actually surprisingly okay. I’m not going to lie to you. I mean, I got this far. It wasn’t easy you know. And a week away, it’s not too bad. ”

When Ebuka brought up the issue of his constant nomination of some the housemates, Bally disclosed that he went out for the game.

“The people that are my friends are going to remain my friends forever regardless of what happened in the house. It was the game, to be honest and I had to play the game the way it ought to be played,” he said.

On the hardest part of being in the house, the statistician and DJ said, “You are living with people who are more than tough strangers, different people from different backgrounds, so you have to learn to tolerate these people.”

Meanwhile, the moment of respite came when Ebuka, to the delight of the last five housemates standing, announced that there wouldn’t be a nomination show and head of house task this new week. He also said the housemates will no longer be allowed to campaign for votes in front of the cameras.

Now, the question in the minds of millions of viewers across Africa is who will be the ultimate winner of the Big Brother Naija show? The facts remain that all the housemates are quite popular as their various teams are vigorously canvassing for support deploying different strategies all in a bid to win with their favorite housemates. Who will the winner be come Sunday? Will it be Efe, Bisola, Debie-Rise, or TBoss?

This week’s live eviction show was graced by popular artiste and songwriter, Davido and he treated the guests to two of his current hits, twice on stage.

 

 

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Brig. Sabiiti Muzeeyi to head military police in a new reshuffle

By
Francisco Adongo
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Brig. Sabiiti Muzeeyi

Former deputy commandant of Special Forces Command, Brig. Sabiiti Muzeeyi has been appointed as the new head of Military police.

Sabiiti who is currently in Moscow in Russia for a military course will replace Brig. Emmanuel Kanyesigye who has been named 4th Division commander in Gulu replacing Brig. Kayanja Muhanga who was sent to AMISSOM.

Brig. Sabiiti after being relieved off his duty as SFC deputy commandant was supposed to travel to the United States for another military training but the American authorities refused to grant a visa and in the process, he was sent to Russia for training.

 

 

 

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Stella Nyanzi standing up to oppression – Gen. Sejusa

By
Our Reporter
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BACK WITH A BANG: Dr Stella Nyanzi.

Renegade General David Sejusa has weighed in on the raging diatribe of controversial Makerere University Researcher Stella Nyanzi against the First Lady and Education Minister Janet Museveni, indicating the academic is a revolutionary standing up to oppression.

No stranger to controversy, Gen. Sejusa says Dr. Nyanzi’s tirades against Mrs. Museveni represent ‘a rejection of the established political and social order’ and a snub to the ‘powerful’.

‘Vulgarity in politics is a rejection of the established political and social order. It is the overt way of rejecting the set social conventions normally set by society. It is the rejection of the so called civilised discourse whose content and usage is normally set and controlled by those with the power. Be that power wielded by the state or the church or elders, the bottom line is that they are social norms used by those with authority to keep in check those they rule over’, Gen. Sejusa wrote in a communication titled ‘The Stella Nyanzi revolutionary journey; vulgar politics as a method of resistance’, issued through, the Freedom and Unity Front (FUF) spokesperson, one Vincent Magombe.

Gen. David Sejusa

 

The FUF was formed by Gen. Sejusa in November 2013, a period he was in exile after penning a missive critical of President Yoweri Museveni’s government, in which he indicated that there were plans to ‘eliminate’ top army and political leaders including himself.

In the same document he alleged that Mr. Museveni was hell-bent on being succeeded as President by his son, Major General Muhoozi Kainerugaba.

For long General Sejusa, a former Coordinator of Intelligence Services, has been known for his liberal-minded commentaries on civil-military affairs and this time round  the maverick General says Dr. Nyanzi is mistakenly ridiculed by many, yet she is sane but possibly unaware that in taking on the First Family she is engaging in revolutionary politics.

‘Many are amused as why Stella Nyanzi writes that way. I see many calling her names, mad, gay… my mind tells me Stella Nyanzi is none of all those. She is sane and intelligent,’ the General wrote.

He added: ‘what I am not sure is whether she, herself (Dr. Nyanzi) understands that what she is doing is a well-practiced method of political revolt employed throughout history. And I watched poor Janet Museveni wondering why Stella hates her … and saying she forgave her. Janet, like most people is preoccupied with the words used but don’t know that Stella’s method of resistance is called vulgar politics. Hence, throughout history, vulgar politics has been employed in the fight against the powerful. Vulgar politics is very effective and hard to ignore. Indeed it is an effective political tool for the oppressed’.

According to the General, those in power are usually offended when ‘minnows’ take on them, in the process exposing their vulnerability.

‘Vulgar politics does not serve well those in power. It depicts them in bad light. Yet, for the oppressed like Stella Nyanzi, it serves them well because they lure you in their trap. You cannot ignore them. And because it’s nasty, ugly and mean, it gets under the skin of those with authority. It provokes their raw nerves and they overreact. It’s piercing. As brutal as hot lead! So it’s an effective symbol of peoples’ revolt,’ Gen. Sejusa asserts, drawing parallels to the French Revolution and Jacobinism.

Further, he adds: ‘Therefore vulgar politics should not be merely looked at with moral lenses. It is a political tool imbued with violent revolutionary traits and totally at variance with the common pragmatist liberal ideas of political dissent’.

The General also said that the government has probably failed to internalize the possible ramifications of Dr.Nyanzi’s actions.

‘I doubt the Museveni oligarchy even understand what’s happening, thus the Janet Museveni attempt to forgive Nyanzi. In a rebellion, people don’t seek for your forgiveness nor your understanding. Neither are they afraid of the consequences. So your usual methods may not be effective after all,’ Gen. Sejusa wrote.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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South Sudan backtracks on US$10, 000 work permits

By
Agencies
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SACKED: Former South Sudan Finance minister Stephen Dhieu Dau. Photo credit/gurtong.net

South Sudan will not go ahead with plans to charge foreigners a $10,000 (£8,200) fee for work permits as officially announced in early March.

The plan has been dropped in response to criticism that it would penalise aid agencies, the finance minister said.

The controversial measure was announced just four days after famine was declared in parts of the country.

However, the revised fee will be reviewed by MPs and could be introduced at a later date.

Foreign workers are currently required to pay $100 (£80) for a work permit.

South Sudanese officials argued that the fee was one of the lowest in the region hence suggesting the 100-fold increase.

But the fee hike faced criticism with people saying that it would burden aid workers at a time when the country was most at need.

Finance Minister Stephen Dhieu Dau acknowledged the complaint as part of the reason why the fee increase has been dropped.

“The ministry of finance acknowledges these significant issues… and steps are being taken to formulate the best way forward,” Mr Dau said.

Even before the uproar over the fee increase, the officials of the famine-stricken country had been accused of impeding access for humanitarian agencies.

South Sudan is currently facing food shortages and parts of the country are experiencing a famine.

The on-going civil war has compounded the difficulties of dealing with the country’s food problem.

 

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Over 70 percent jobless in EAC – EALA Speaker

By
Our Reporter and Agencies
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SO MANY JOBLESS YOUTH: Rt Hon Daniel F. Kidega, Speaker of EALA addresses the IPU Assembly

Seventy per cent of the people walking on the streets in East Africa are jobles, the Speaker of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) Daniel Fred Kidega has said.

“Statistics in East Africa reveals that 7 out of the 10 persons you see walking in the streets are jobless, while another 6 out of 10 live in informal settlements. Yet, the largest population, the youth, constitute about 8 out of 10 persons and their age range is below 30 years”, Such is replicable in many parts of the globe”, Rt.Hon. Kidega noted.

The EALA Speaker, Rt Hon Daniel F. Kidega consults with Hon Dora Byamukama at the 136th Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly in Dhaka, Bangladesh

The Speaker was addressing the 136th Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly (IPU) taking place in Dhaka, Bangladesh.    The annual event which is themed: ‘Redressing inequalities: Delivering on dignity and well-being for all’ brings together over 50 Speakers and 1400 legislators from the globe.

Hon Kidega implored global Parliamentarians to pay more attention in ensuring promotion of economic stimulus programmes that address social challenges and support local value chains in a bid to narrow the widening poverty gaps and redress inequalities.

The Speaker called on Parliaments to enact relevant legislation to make greater impact.   He informed the convention that EALA had legislated a number of pieces that protect society and address inequalities including; the EAC Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2016, the EAC Gender, Equity and Equality Bill, 2016, the EAC Conflict Management Bill, 2011 and the EAC Human and Peoples Rights Act 2011.

A section of the delegates in attendance at the global Parliamentarians meet

He said the East African Community region had similarly been gravely affected by inequalities. “The State of East Africa Report 2016 depicts not all citizens have seen or felt the benefits of increasing national GDP figures at the individual/family front. If anything, life continues to be harsher and harder. The economic boom has not generated the jobs as was expected, while levels of poverty and malnutrition remain high”, the Speaker said, while remaining optimistic the trend could be reversed.

In many countries, Rt Hon Kidega said, fruits of economic development increasingly failed to reach those who deserve the same – instead benefitting companies, financial services and vested interests. He said the rate of unemployment in the globe was similarly high.

 The 136th IPU was opened by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Bangladesh, Hon Sheikh Hasina at the Parliament of Bangladesh. The Prime minister thanked delegates for electing Bangladesh as the chair of both Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) and Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA). The Prime minister mentioned her government’s short, medium and long-term initiatives for the development of the country and said the government is making stride to build the country in a planned way.

“The 100 Million young people are prepared to make the world a better place. Let us not make them frustrated. They are the face of change and let us globalise human compassion”, he said.

Speaker of the Senate of Kenya, Rt Hon Ekwe Ethuro addresses the Assembly where he called for urgent international action to save millions of people from famine and drought

The Emergency items include a call for urgent international action to save millions of people from famine and drought in parts of Africa and the Yemen jointly presented by the Republic of Kenya together with Belgium and the United Kingdom. Speaker of the Senate of Kenya, Rt Hon Ekwe Ethuro, presented the merged proposal to the Assembly yesterday.

“We need to request for international organisations to come to the aid of the affected nations.  Without global action, people will simply starve to death”, the Speaker remarked. The Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda, Rt Hon Rebecca Kadaga and the Speaker of the Burundi National Assembly, Rt Hon Pascal Nyabenda also addressed the Assembly.

In attendance also are a delegation of the Parliament of Rwanda led by the Deputy Speaker and legislators from the Transitional Assembly of the Republic of South Sudan.

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) is the global organization of national Parliaments, and EALA is an Associate Member of the IPU.

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Top ANC officials meet over finance minister sacking

By
Agencies
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What next for President Jacob Zuma.

Senior members of the ANC have met to discuss the political fallout from President Jacob Zuma’s controversial sacking of his finance minister and markets showed their displeasure at the move.

The ratings agency Standard and Poor’s quickly weighed in with some downgrades and the rand fell about 2 percent at the start of trade.

Zuma faces a confrontation with other leaders of the ANC after he dismissed the internationally respected Pravin Gordhan at midnight on Thursday. The sacking threatens to split the upper echelons of the ANC down the middle.

S and P downgraded South Africa’s sovereign debt to junk, to BB+ from BBB-, and said: “In our opinion, the executive changes initiated by President Zuma have put at risk fiscal and growth outcomes.”

The rand, after its two percent fall, later recovered to trade 0,5 percent weaker, as the market factored in the strong resistance to Zuma. Government bonds also weakened.

The firing of Gordhan drew public criticism from Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe and treasurer Zweli Mkhize before Monday’s regular meetings of the party leadership.

Analysts suggest those meetings could set up a showdown between Zuma and some of the party’s leaders. If so, Zuma still has the support of chairwoman Baleka Mbete and deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte, marking a straight split among the party’s ‘Top Six’ leaders, sources said.

Spokesman Zizi Kodwa said the meeting of the Top Six was still taking place and the party’s national working committee would meet today before a decision was taken on how to handle the fallout from the sacking of Gordhan.

“The ANC must remain and it must emerge stronger than it was last week,” Kodwa said, but declined to give further details.

An important signal will be whether the party calls for an early meeting of its NEC. The committee is the only body that can remove the leader of the party, other than its party congress, which occurs only every five years.

In November, Zuma defeated a no-confidence vote at a meeting of the executive committee, which was called after an anti-graft agency asked for an investigation of alleged influence-peddling by the wealthy Gupta family, whom Zuma has called his friends. Zuma and the Guptas have denied any wrongdoing.

Any such meeting by the NEC ‘is the much more important event for markets to focus on’, Nomura analyst Peter Attard Montalto said.

The opposition leader Mmusi Maimane, head of the Democratic Alliance, has called for a no-confidence vote against Zuma, and urged South Africans “to join this Friday’s march for change” against Zuma in Johannesburg.

A handful of protesters from civil society groups gathered outside the Treasury in the capital Pretoria to criticise Zuma’s sacking of Gordhan.

The new finance minister, Malusi Gigaba, said he would pursue “tough and unpopular choices” to help a flagging economy.

 

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Fresh changes at the Daily Monitor

By
Benjamin Gavara
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EATEN BIG: Ms Flora Aduku.

Daily Monitor, the flagship product of the Monitor Publications Limited has restructured its staff in a bid to give a competitive edge over competitor.

Daily Monitor new paper has often restructured its staff and the latest is part of the ongoing restructuring aimed at improving quality and creating effectiveness.

Sources at Nation Media Group (NMG) in Nairobi told EagleOline, that within a few months’ time, all NMG platforms in Uganda will operate under one platform and this could be the beginning of the process that will see NTV, East African, Monitor, KFM among other work under one roof.

“This is to bring to your attention a few re-designations in the newsroom, specifically in the features and production sections, over the last few weeks. The re-designations are aimed at improving the quality of our products/content, creating efficiency and putting the best hands in the best place” reads a massage from top editorial bosses.

In the new changes, Ms Shelia Wamboga who joined the paper four years ago from Red Pepper becomes Seeds of Gold Editor while Ms Peninah Asiimwe who as well originates from Red Pepper becomes Education Magazine Editor replacing Mr. David Gumisiriza who moves to production desk as a Sub Editor.

Ms Flora Aduku who has stood with the paper for long time will manage daily features in addition to weekend. Aduku has been assigned the daily features docket on top of her weekend docket after Mariam Nakisekka who was daily features Editor exited the company.

“Apologies for not having communicated some of the earlier changes immediately as they happened. However discussions were held with the individuals members involved immediately the changes were effected.

Congratulations to those who have been given new assignments. Let’s accord them all the necessary support”.

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