The Youth of 1962 Speak to Uganda’s Generation of 2025

Dear Young Ugandans,

We write to you from October 1962, the night before the flag was raised. We are your grandparents when they were still teenagers. We are your ancestors before they became black and white photos and village stories. We are the ones who danced barefoot in celebration, believing the future belonged to you.

We did not know TikTok, crypto, or electric boda bodas. We did not know Wi Fi, elections on TV, or smartphones in pockets. But we knew something you still know today: we wanted freedom to mean something.

We thought independence would bring roads paved in hope, leaders who lead with humility, and communities rising together like the chorus of Oh Uganda, Land of Beauty. But we also knew this truth: a flag does not change a country, people do.

Now, 63 years later, we ask you: What does independence mean in 2025? Is it choosing to build instead of complain? Is it creating jobs with ideas instead of waiting for jobs that do not exist? Is it TikTok content with purpose rather than performance? Is it demanding honesty from leaders while practising it among your friends? Is it loving Uganda beyond sports finals and moments of outrage?

We never imagined an Uganda where a student in Mbale could debate someone in New York on Twitter, or where a creator in Gulu could inspire millions in seconds.

But we also never imagined that mental health would weigh heavier than colonial chains, that unemployment would become the new enemy, or that freedom of expression would sometimes feel like shouting in a locked room.

We believe in you. Independence was never a date. It was a relay baton. We fought for land. Your parents fought for stability. You must fight for relevance not with guns, but with code, campaigns, music, movements, and businesses, voices that refuse to whisper.

Here is the challenge we leave you: Do not just celebrate 9th October with flags and captions. Ask yourselves: What are we doing with the freedom they died for? What kind of Uganda will write a letter to 2087? Are we consumers of independence or custodians of it?

We raised the flag. You must raise the standard. As Independence Day draws close, do not just remember history. Interrupt it. Rewrite it. Extend it.

Because we did not dream for you, we dreamt you.

Faithfully,
Youth of 1962