Uganda’s Love–Hate Relationship with Change
Ugandans love change until it actually shows up. We shout about transformation in bars, debate it in taxis, and type furiously about it on Twitter, but the moment someone brings a shovel, a bulldozer, or even a new idea, we collectively panic. Suddenly, the same people who cry “we deserve better” are the ones screaming, “leave our potholes, our ditches, our leaders alone!”
Take the Nakivubo Channel for example. A city tycoon is pushing for its modification, a noble idea meant to make Kampala look slightly less like a flooded cattle kraal and more like the cities we keep quoting in WhatsApp arguments. And yet, what do some of us shout? “No! Leave our ditchy, dirty, stinky channel alone! How dare you clean up our identity?” Apparently, some Ugandans want tourists to land at Entebbe and be welcomed by a fragrance best described as Eau de Nakivubo.
Then there are the roads. Ah, the roads! Trucks appear, trying to expand, smooth, and create something drivable. Suddenly, people cry out as though someone has announced that they will be collecting everybody’s lungs. “No! We love our dusty, bumpy, squeezed roads! Don’t touch them!” Never mind that we spend more time on our roads than with our own families. Apparently, traffic jams are part of our heritage! And need we discuss how often we are squeezed off the roads by those in power rushing to serve us?
And politics? That is where the climax of the drama unfolds.
Remember Jennifer Musisi? While she was ED, many could not wait to chase her away. We sang choruses of “Musisi, leave us alone!” Only for her to exit and, voila, suddenly the internet was begging her to return. It turns out we only recognize good leadership after it is gone, like an ex we mocked but later stalked on Facebook.
So here we are, a country that prays for change in the morning, resists it in the afternoon, and begs for it to return in the evening. Until we can agree on whether we want clean drainage, smooth roads, or leaders who are functional in office, Uganda will remain the nation where change is both our best friend and our worst enemy.
