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KAMPALA � As celebrations went on in Kololo to
mark the country�s 42nd Independence Day anniversary, many Ugandans
went on with normal business.
A mini
survey by The Monitor in Kampala�s business district showed that most
shops were open as usual. Most people said they were too poor to
celebrate the day.
Mr Mesach
Migadde, a secondhand shoe vendor in St. Balikuddembe Market, said he
did not have the luxury to celebrate independence when he had nothing
to eat.
�Let
those in government celebrate,� he said. Mr Andrew Kalule, a
businessman at Nakivubo Mews, said, �Independence in poverty is
useless. A nation without money is not independent.�
Mr
Abubaker Male, a 53-year-old butcher, said the day did not make much
difference because �we are still in the hands of the whites in IMF and
the World Bank�.
�So what
kind of independence are you talking about?� he asked. Mr Patrick
Ssevume, a boda-boda rider, said he did not take Independence Day
seriously because even the government does not. �In the past, there
used to be flags everywhere in the city on Independence Day.
�Look
around now, what is there in the city to show that today is
Independence Day?� he asked. Mr Lule Swaib, who sells agricultural
chemicals, said Ugandans could not be independent when they are not
yet economically independent. | 
