03/12/2021
I have lately concerned myself with the news about the takeover of our one and only Entebbe international airport after I'd seen a clip about the said news on a certain platform called WION as had posted earlier and a photo showing the terminal with a board reading 'Welcome to China EBB international airport' .It's really worrying news for people who normally use the airport and not so worrying to a lot of us , ordinary Ugandan a who've only seen a plane in the air.I heard some people kind of like approving of China's decision to takeover saying 'kalyonso, mwewolaawola nnyo anti ne musukka'.Anyway, those were pretenses.Deep down in their hearts lies that kind of innate fear of conspiracy, especially from a foreign country because we are getting used to the local one ☹️.I have a belief that majority of Ugandans can really recognize and willingly ditch false information if they are effectively communicated too, effective communication being none of the government's business.That's the government's Achilles foot that propagandists have leveraged.Which is sad for a country as such,lagging way behind in virtually every dimension but the cause population explosion.You know what it is, don't ya😉.Yeah, we ranked first followed by a far well off Switzerland.If it's rumors,I do to assert as true regardless.Check photo below👇at end of text.
Back to the issue,spoiler alert,it was a false hype.The Chinese embassy spokesperson,whose name you, and I, care not about( you wouldn't read it, would you?)dismissed the rumors saying that China-Uganda cooperation has always adhered to principles of openness, transparency, mitigation, and debt reduction through friendly negotiations.And that China has not taken over any asset from any African country as a result of failure to pay debts.What had actually caused the hype is that Beijing had rejected renegotiations to ammend some clauses of the $200million agreement that was signed in 2015.Clauses of which I have not the slightest of the idea about.The minister of works and transport ,Gen.Katumba Wamala,also came out yesterday to deescalate stress saying that in the agreement,the loan is to be paid in 20 years and we were given a Grace period of 7 years before starting any payments,which by simple mathematics end next year( which is coming in about a few weeks from now.I can't believe! 🤔 Ne guno guweddeko gutyo😏?Eeh,2021, you've been a long heckuva ride baaba)
China has been accused by western powers for it's debt trap diplomacy in a bid to make debtor countries conceding political or economic influence.Beijing however says there's more of myth trap rather than a debt trap.Many countries, especially African countries have preferred to acquire loans from China mainly through its Export Import (Exim)Bank to the World Bank because of it not imposing restrictions on its debtors.China is the leading creditor to Uganda accounting for about 75 percent of the loans of which are all concerned with development of infrastructure;Entebbe international airport,Isimba HE Dam, Kampala-Entebbe Express way,Karuma HE Dam and the Malaba to Kampala section of the East African Standard Gauge Railway(where's that?), followed by France,this for the oil extraction process I guess, followed by UK for the Kabaale international airport in Hoima and lastly Japan for the newly constructed Nile cable bridge in Jinja.
I saw a tweet saying that Uganda has a total debt burden of Ugx66 trillion and by a simple estimate, everyone is supposed to pay Ugx1.5 million(babies inclusive of course.Oh including people who have oxygen for lunch ☹️,Uganda ekaaye!)Anyway🥱.I think the ordinary person can now concern themselves with other stuff . Remember there's the nseenene guy, escalating fuel prices,bombs, extrajudicial killings,ADF.Buli omu agumye munne.Uganda..Uganda.Whoever is bewitching you will never see heaven.Hmmm🤔
Nze binsanga wano!
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