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The Cost of Moral Decay: Children Without Mothers

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By Dickson Tumuramye Last week, Uganda stood still at the news of the brutal killing of Pamela Tumwebaze, the Director of Student Affairs at Uganda Christian University (UCU). A mother. A leader. A mentor to countless young people. Her life was violently cut short in her own home. Beyond the investigations and headlines, beyond the public outrage and mourning, there is a quieter and more painful reality. Somewhere, two young children will wake up and reach for a mother who will never answer again. Long after the news cycle moves on, long after court proceedings conclude, those children will still be living the sentence of a crime they did not commit. And we must dare to ask ourselves a difficult question: If someone can plan evil without thinking about two children left behind, what went wrong in their upbringing? This is not about blame. It is about conscience. Who Is Raising Our Children’s Conscience? Every adult was once a child. Every violent hand was once small and depen...
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WHEN I GROW UP

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 Prim K. Tumuramye Growing up, one of my desires was to see myself maturing and getting into the world of independence. The freedom of adulthood looked luringly enticing. If only time would increase its snail-paced movement, I would soon be out of the prison of being a child. Childhood had its joys and pains.   It was always a bitter-sweet pill to swallow. Today you celebrated the joy of having no worries about old peoples’ problems like school fees, complicated relationships turned situationships and tomorrow you were on the receiving end of punishments and reprimands from elders that only seemed to know giving instructions in parables. The African adage that elders are never wrong made the childhood equation even more complex. Rarely would you be extended an opportunity to explain yourself because that was tantamount to looking elders in the mouth. ‘When I grow up, I will sleep and wake up when I want. I will also buy the things I want and eat only that which appeals to ...
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Preparing Children Beyond the Classroom: Maximizing the Last Days of Holiday

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By Dickson Tumuramye Barely two weeks left before schools reopen, many parents are beginning to shift gears. Conversations are turning to fees, uniforms, books, transport, and change of schools, among others. Teachers are finalising schemes of work. Children are slowly realising that the freedom of the holiday is drawing to a close. Yet amid this visible preparation, there is a quieter, often neglected aspect of readiness that deserves our attention. Preparation is often misunderstood. Many parents equate it with buying scholastic materials, securing school fees, or revising notes. Those things matter, but true preparation goes deeper. True preparation for school is not only about what children carry in their suitcases. It is about what they carry in their minds, hearts, and habits. As parents and educators, this final stretch of the holiday gives us a valuable opportunity to prepare children beyond the classroom, even as education remains firmly at the back of our minds. School ...
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What If This Year Is Not About Doing More, But Becoming Better?

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By Dickson Tumuramye Every beginning of a year comes with noise. Planners sell out, club or association memberships surge, and timelines overflow with bold declarations of what people intend to achieve. Everyone seems to be in a hurry to announce what they will accomplish by the end of 2026. New businesses will be launched, new qualifications pursued, new income targets set, savings and investment culture started, and new adjustments made. Ambition is not the problem. Growth is necessary. Progress matters. Yet beneath the noise lies a quieter, more demanding question that few pause to ask: Who am I becoming as I pursue all these things? The Culture of Doing Without Becoming We live in a society that celebrates output more than character, speed more than depth, and visibility more than substance. We applaud people who do more, achieve more, and acquire more, even when they are exhausted, emotionally disconnected, spiritually depleted, or quietly breaking inside. Many are busy bu...
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Beyond Winning and Losing: The Nation Is Bigger Than Politics

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By Dickson Tumuramye Last week, our country exercised one of the most important civic duties in a democracy, the right to vote. The process concluded peacefully, the results were declared, and the nation has moved forward. For parents, teachers, and stakeholders, however, this moment goes far beyond ballots and results. It is a living classroom. Elections may end in a day, but the lessons children draw from adult behavior last a lifetime. Learning is not limited to classrooms alone. It is formed through observation, conversation, and daily experience. In moments such as these, children and young people learn not from what is written in textbooks, what they watch on television, or what they observe on social media, but from how we respond to national events, especially when emotions are high and opinions differ. Much of civic education happens outside formal classrooms. It takes place at home, in hostels, in staff rooms, and on social media feeds. After elections, our children lis...
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Behind the Screen: How Online Predators Trap Your Children

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By Dickson Tumuramye Many of our children today live in a world where a smartphone, tablet, or laptop is always within reach. They are exploring social media, chatting with strangers in online games, scrolling through TikTok, joining WhatsApp groups, and clicking on pop-ups without thinking twice. While this digital exposure can be good for learning and creativity, it has also created a silent door through which online predators access our children. Many young people fall into traps without even realizing they are being targeted, and by the time parents notice, their emotional, psychological, or even physical safety has already been compromised. How Predators Disguise Themselves Online Predators rarely appear as dangerous individuals. They enter children’s online spaces pretending to be friendly, helpful, or “cool.” In Uganda, many of these interactions happen on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, online gaming chat rooms, and even basic WhatsApp groups. A predator may use a you...
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