Enterprising, Pragmatic Friend, Brother and Father. Health Communities Advocate. Believer that independence in thought leads to free action!
Washington, DC
Joined December 2010
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Joel Ssevume retweeted
A farmer, tired of rats destroying his crops and stealing his grain, came up with a clever but cruel plan. He threw a dead pig into a deep, abandoned well. Attracted by the smell, nearly 80 rats rushed into the well to feast on the carcass. At first, everything seemed wonderful. There was more than enough food for everyone, and the rats ate until they were satisfied.
But when the food was gone, they discovered something terrifying. The walls of the well were too steep to climb. They were trapped. Days passed, and hunger turned into desperation. Desperation turned into aggression. The rats that had once eaten peacefully beside one another began fighting for survival. Eventually, they began killing and eating each other.
One by one, their numbers dwindled until only a single rat remained. Its eyes were bloodshot, and it had survived by consuming its own kind. Then the farmer returned, lowered a rope into the well, and rescued the last surviving rat. But he didn't save it out of kindness or compassion.
The farmer knew the rat had learned to survive by hunting other rats. When he released it into his fields, it would continue killing its own kind instead of eating his grain. The farmer had turned his enemy into his greatest weapon.
And that is the lesson of divide and conquer. Those who control the trap don't need to fight the battles themselves. They simply create the conditions in which others turn against one another.
The rats believed their enemies were the other rats. They never realized that the true enemy was the farmer who had put them there.
The greatest danger isn't always the enemy standing in front of you. Sometimes it's the one who created the conflict and stands quietly watching you destroy each other.
Before you turn against your neighbor because of their political beliefs, ask yourself who benefits from keeping Americans divided. While we fight each other over Republican and Democrat, we may be overlooking those who profit from the conflict. Perhaps the real question isn't which side you're on, but who built the well—and why they want us fighting at the bottom of it.
Joel Ssevume retweeted
...A masterclass from @c_mwanguhya at today’s Installation of the Omukama of @ObukamaBwaTooro .
Speaking in Lutooro and translating throughout the ceremony, Charles delivered with remarkable poise, clarity, confidence and command -making the transition between languages look effortless.
A great orator. A gifted translator. Flowers to you.
Photo: @UgandaMediaCent
#Uganda
Joel Ssevume retweeted
As we mourn the demise of legendary Moses Matovu #PapaMoi the saxophonist, vocalist, and long-time leader of Afrigo Band, one question hangs in the air: Will Afrigo survive as a performing band, become a legacy name forever, or simply turn into the Moses Matovu Band and nothing more?
Matovu, co-founded and led Uganda’s longest-running musical group for more than five decades. Afrigo Band endured political upheaval, changing musical tastes, and the rise of new technologies while remaining a cultural mainstay.
His death forces a deeper reckoning not only about one band, but about what it takes for any entertainment entity to outlive its founder.
This moment takes me back 32 years. Straight from university, a group of visionary young men and a woman left their parent drama club, Omugave Ndugwa’s legendary Black Pearls, to form Diamonds Ensemble and Afri Talent. The characters were Abby Mukiibi, Ashraf Ssimwogere, the late Kato Lubwama, Mariam Ndagire, and the then little-known John Ssegawa. (My own story of how I ended up in Afri Talent is one for another day.)
About ten years later the group began to split. Kato and Ashraf left. I stayed for a time with Abby and Mariam before eventually departing to form my own modest Beyond Borderz Entertainment. Those same characters went on to build distinct and maybe successful entities. Why? Because survival in the entertainment business demands more than talent and early stardom.
We in the arts suddenly become stars, forgetting that we operate in the same ecosystem as the Kikuubo traders, Taxi Boda operators, Hospitality workers, and School owners who struggle every day. Those who endure attach their names to something lasting, think Mulindwa Kitende, Charlie Lubega Guvnor, Mesach Papas, my brother Lule Pakalast, Sozo, Kasuku;
Names become brands only through sustained hard work. It requires dedication, discipline, loyalty to talent, and loyalty to the art itself.
A disciple of the discipline. That is precisely what Moses Matovu embodied.
So the question returns: Can the remaining members of Afrigo Band believe in themselves enough to take the lead?
If the collective effort falters, will individuals step forward and prove they can weather the storm?
I am not optimistic unless those left behind were truly good students of Matovu and understood that Papa Moi was mortal. Tragic events happen. The test is whether anyone was prepared to take on the mantle.
I doubt it.
In Uganda’s entertainment industry, as in any serious business, longevity is not automatic. It is earned through the quiet, daily discipline of treating the work as bigger than any one person.
Afrigo Band has already defied the odds for half a century under Matovu’s leadership. Whether it continues as a living, performing institution or settles into the status of a cherished legacy name now rests with those who remain.
The music will play on in our memories. The harder question is whether the band itself will keep playing. 😳
Joel Ssevume retweeted
The flag is ready, the fuel (@tookeonline Milkshake & Milk Infusion) & (@sumz_snacks nutribite) is ready. Sunday is war time at the @berlinmarathon. May my legs carry me to the finish line
Joel Ssevume retweeted
There’s a lot of running lined up in the next few days. Here’s my plan:
27 Sep. - BMW Berlin Marathon [42km]
04 Oct. - @imarathonug [21km]
09 Oct - @teammatooke C2C [21km]
11 Oct. - The Corporate Run [10km] corporategamesug.com
What is on your list?
Joel Ssevume retweeted
....Mufuyi wa Mulere.
#RIPMosesMatovu #UgandanLegend
Joel Ssevume retweeted
On arrival Berlin, for the @berlinmarathon a dream came true. We met Maros Johannes Mosehla, a legend of South Africa running. Just so you know, over 14 @ComradesRace ultras, 80 gold medals from his running career (300 in all), been running since 1963 & he turns 85 soon. I turn 58 soon. His advice to me: don’t eat everything, don’t drink anything & everything & wait for it- don’t sleep anywhere with everyone, you will crash🤣! What a man
@MosesRutahigwa
Joel Ssevume retweeted
Want to be part of something great?
Run for her Economic Resilience this 7th of November, 2026.
All proceeds go to mothers in Katanga and Kawempe!
For registration>> docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F…
Joel Ssevume retweeted
It was a pleasure to receive the Ambassador of Nigeria, Her Excellency Misitura Abdulraheem, at Makerere. The Ambassador held meetings with the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Nawangwe, Nigerian students at Makerere, and visiting professors from Nigeria who have been at Mak for 2 years.
Joel Ssevume retweeted
It is painful and worrisome to realise the risks we face from misdiagnosis and wrong treatment. Is it the quality of our doctors, healthcare facilities, or the system itself? We may all die someday, but while alive, we deserve the right diagnosis, the right care, and the right treatment.
Joel Ssevume retweeted
As former Tooro King Oyo Nyimba is buried today at the tender age of 34, we have to acknowledge the most unusual and surprising fact of his reign that only came into sight with his death; he occupied a place in Ugandan’s hearts that is several times bigger than the quiet relatively small kingdom he led. And he did it without getting in Ugandan’s faces, without noise, or drama. In fact, if truth be told, he did it while not trying to. The irony is that more powerful men and women, who’ve tried one million times harder, for more years, sent thousands to their graves and to gaol, and expended great treasure, will get nowhere near that, and could even end in ignominy instead. He probably didn’t even know it. And so, if one asked the famous Amama Mbabazi-derived question, “how did he did it?”, the only honest answer has to be that it is one of the great mysteries of these our lands. RIP
Joel Ssevume retweeted
Thank you, @TaraSetmayer. We’ll never forget!
I took this photo/video of a steel beam from the World Trade Center at the Shrine of Saint Joseph in Stirling, New Jersey.
📸: @OPP #September11 ##NeverForget #NewJersey
Joel Ssevume retweeted
As I depart NYC back to DC, I find myself particularly reflective on this 9-11.
25 years. And somehow, it still feels like yesterday.
For those of us from NY & NJ, 9/11 will always be personal. Coming from a first responder family, it hits me differently every year.
I remember the fear. The heartbreak. The disbelief.
But I also remember the courage.
First responders running toward danger. Strangers helping strangers. Ordinary people doing extraordinary things for one another.
On one of America’s darkest days, we saw some of the very best of who we are.
So today, I remember the lives stolen, the families forever changed, and the heroes who answered the call.
25 years later, may we never lose sight of their courage or our shared humanity.
Never forget. 🇺🇸
#Sept11 #neverforget
Joel Ssevume retweeted
Stone City Run. Like I said, this is one of my favourite running place. It pushes the best out of me.
Joel Ssevume retweeted
...AFROFEST, Washington, DC! Two nights. Two masters of the Afrobeats party.
Yesterday, @davido set the stage on fire.
Today, @wizkidayo takes the flame.
These two don’t just perform -they know how to turn a crowd into a country!
#Afrofest #Afrobeats
Joel Ssevume retweeted
Old man @AndrewMwenda you say the committee “selected”. How many candidates were on offer?
The Royal Succession Committee of Toro Kingdom met today September 4, 2026 at Fort Motel in Fort Portal City and selected George Desmond Kamurasi (36) as the next king of Toro. He succeeds his late cousin, Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi 1V who died on August 26, 2026 in Texas USA.
The committee, which was selected by the Royal Clan of Toro (Ababiito) on August 28th 2026, is chaired by Omusuuga Charles Akiiki Kamurasi. Composed of 21 members, it has been meeting every day since Monday September 31. Today they met from 11am to 3pm. Out of 21 members, 18 attended today’s meeting out of whom 15 voted for George Kamurasi.
George Kamurasi is the son of George Desmond [Jimmy] Mugenyi, young brother to Patrick David Mathew Olimi Kaboyo 11. He was the second in line of succession to his brother Olimi Kaboyo 11, according to the will of their late father, His Majesty King George Rukidi iii.
This evening I have held discussions with the CDF of UDPF who is also chairman of PLU, Gen Muhoozi Keinerugaba, and the CLF, Gen Kayanja Muhanga, and informed both of these developments. Gen Keinerugaba fully endorses the choice of the Succession Committee of Toro because it is consistent with the customs, all precedents and laws of Toro on succession.
The CDF has said that President Yoweri Museveni supports the decision of the Royal Committee on Succession. He sent a team led by a senior cabinet minister to Fort Portal. After extensive consultations with all the key stakeholders, the committee was convinced that there is a wide consensus around the succession of Kamurasi.
We now await the Omusuuga to make a formal announcement officially to the Babiito clan leaders. I have spoken to Omusuuga who has told me that according to custom, the public announcement is done after the burial. I have made this announcement to avoid social media speculation that may cause unnecessary confusion.
