thegeek

NO, THE DIASPORA DOES NOT WEAR PRADA… Uganda please, the Diaspora does not wear Prada! We are not strutting down some Fifth Avenue runway, sunglasses on, accents confused, loyalties for sale. No. The diaspora is that stubborn, beautiful mix of Luganda proverbs, Alur pride, Banyankore Kweterana humor, Teso Kere, and Acholi resilience to name a few - served with a side of airport goodbyes and Sendwave remittances. We are Ugandan. Full stop. No designer label required. Now, let me take you back - because Uganda’s policies have always had a way of arriving like an unexpected thunderstorm in 'Jjera-wood' (read: Najjera). On April 18, 1979, after the fall of Amin, banks were heavily looted. Dimes withdrawal became tricky. Banks reacted and said, “My friend, you can only withdraw 5,000 shillings.” You looked at your own money like it belonged to government. Then Obote II gave us the famous “chit system” -where sugar became rarer than a polite boda boda rider in Kyanja. Suddenly, connections were currency, and omuntu wa wansi was left negotiating life like a man buying Rolex without chapati. But even those…even those did not attempt what this Sovereignty Bill is flirting with: the audacity to look at a Ugandan abroad and whisper, “Foreigner.” Foreigner? Me? The same me who supports my kith and kin in Uganda? The same me whose December ticket alone probably funds that car chasing birds at Entebbe’s runway? The same me whose burial plot is already quietly reserved somewhere in Pakadha between my brother Alfred and Francis grave and that barkcloth Mutuba tree? My friend, what flavored shisha are we smoking? This is where the Prada analogy enters, kubanga we must educate each other small-small. “The Devil Wears Prada” whose sequel launch premiered in New York yesterday, taught us that evil doesn’t always look like a monster in the tunnels at Clock Tower. Sometimes it is well-dressed, well-worded, and dangerously convincing. Policies too can come dressed in fine language -sovereignty, protection, order -yet underneath, they quietly rearrange your rights like furniture in a house you built. Today it is the diaspora. Tomorrow, it is anyone who thinks too loudly. My good friend and @SmackObs @PhillipKarugaba said it best in those spirited Uganda Global Conversations sessions moderated by @SmackObs Timothy Gaburungyi and on another space hosted yesterday by @rkabushenga - rights are not seasonal. They do not expire at Entebbe Airport. The Constitution did not say, “All Ugandans are equal…until you board Emirates.” And let us not pretend this is abstract. The kadama sends 500K home - hardware shops smile, contractors eat, boda bodas fuel up, data bundles are purchased, and life…moves. Mwebereremu. You pull one thread, the whole sweater unravels. This bill, my friends, is that small pebble in your shoe. Ignore it, and soon you are limping. Entertained by it, and one day you are crawling. So no, Uganda - The diaspora does not wear Prada. We are not devils in designer suits. We only wear #Ondaba brands. We are your sons, daughters, investors, critics, lovers, so Ugandan, and loudest ambassadors. And if loving #Uganda loudly is now a problem - then perhaps the problem is not us. Kill the bill in @Parliament_Ug. Before it learns how to wear a suit. #StopTheSovereigntyBill #Ondaba #SovereigntyBill – at Edison, NJ