Uganda is standing at a dangerous crossroads. On one path lies honour, gratitude, and national pride. On the other lies shame, betrayal, and the destruction of our best minds. Today, the government seems determined to march down the wrong road — by threatening to send Prof. Wasswa Balunywa to Luzira Prison.
This is not just about one man. It is about the kind of nation we want to be. Do we reward those who build? Or do we break them?
For decades, Prof. Balunywa has been a builder. He took a forgotten department of less than 150 students and turned it into Makerere University Business School — a thriving institution with over 20,000 students and more than 1,500 staff. He created opportunities where there were none, fought for quality education, and produced graduates who now power our economy.
And for this, his “reward” is prosecution over the so-called irregular recruitment of three staff members. Three. Out of thousands.
It would be laughable if it weren’t so dangerous.
The Smell of a Witch-Hunt
Let’s be honest. This case is not about protecting the public interest. It is about humiliating a man who refuses to fade quietly into retirement. It is about silencing a voice that still has the courage to speak truth about our broken education system.
Even in retirement, Prof. Balunywa has been busy — mentoring young leaders, shaping national education policy debates, and boldly calling for the scrapping of colonial-era exams like PLE and UCE. While many retreat into silence, he has stayed on the frontlines of ideas.
And this is how we thank him? By threatening him with a prison cell?
A National Warning Shot
This prosecution is not just an attack on Prof. Balunywa. It is a warning shot to every honest public servant: “No matter what you build, no matter how you serve, one day we can destroy you.”
It tells the young and ambitious: Don’t try too hard, don’t dream too big, don’t challenge the system — because your legacy can be dismantled overnight.
If we allow this to happen, who will dare to reform our failing institutions? Who will invest decades of their life into building something great, if they know the endgame is public humiliation?
Beyond Busoga — A National Treasure
Yes, Prof. Balunywa is a proud son of Busoga. But his work belongs to all Ugandans. His graduates are in boardrooms, government offices, and businesses from Kampala to Kigali. His leadership lifted the name of Ugandan higher education across East Africa.
To attack him is to attack a part of ourselves — the part that still believes in excellence.
History’s Judgment Will Be Harsh
We have seen this story before. Heroes smeared in their old age. Builders replaced with destroyers. Nations losing their best minds because of petty politics.
Mark my words: history will remember Prof. Balunywa for what he built, not for these small, suspicious allegations. But it will also remember Uganda — and whether we stood up for him or stood by in silence.
A Call to Action
This is not the time for quiet grumbling. It is the time to demand that the charges be dropped. It is the time to insist that Prof. Balunywa be given the honour he has earned. Name a lecture hall after him. Put him on the national education reform council. Give him the space to continue mentoring the next generation.
Because if we let this injustice go unchallenged, we will be sending a clear message: in Uganda, loyalty and excellence are dangerous. And once that message sinks in, the dream of a better country dies.
Hands off our heroes.
Honour them while they are still alive.
Prof. Wasswa Balunywa must be celebrated — not caged.
The writer Susan Adong is a former MUBS student.
