It is difficult to make members of the ruling party, NRM and those of the opposition to agree on anything. They are constantly at loggerheads over everything. However, 12 -year-old Derrick Mwiine seems to possess some magic, for he managed to unite them on something.
Derrick Mwiine, the boy whose song, "Pearl of Africa" was launched by none other than President Museveni, has completed shooting a draft of his documentary, "Welcome to the Pearl of Africa". And the documentary boasts of a cast from both the ruling party and the opposition, inviting tourists and investors to come to Uganda.
The documentary showcases the various tourist attractions in Uganda such as Kasubi tombs, chimpanzees and birds. Did you know that Uganda has over 1,000 bird species? The various services, which have to be available for the tourism sector to operate smoothly are showcased.
Mwiine is the narrator in this documentary and he does so in a childlike way. He seems to have a grasp of the issues that affect tourism and he managed to collect an impressive cast.
His interviewees include Edwin Muzahura from the Uganda Tourist Board, Minister Kabakumba Matsiko (Information and National Guidance), Finance Minister Syda Bumba, Army Spokesman Felix Kulayigye and Norbert Mao (Gulu LC 5 Chairman) among others.
Mwiine, in his not-so-grown-up-way urges tourists and investors to come to Uganda because "the food is tasty", "the education is good" and "the media is independent. Every place the government deems important has a radio station".
The documentary is too long, however; a whole two hours of it can make one impatient and too much time is spent showcasing a particular place.
Still, look out for this budding talent.
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It's wonderful!
DISMAS NKUNDA: Appreciating the beauty of childhood Print E-mail Columnists Written by Dimas Nkunda Wednesday, 12 August 2009 18:31 Maybe age is catching up. Maybe its not having something sober to look at that made me turn to children over the last week. There are two events that brought out the child in me.
The first was a girl and a boy. The two are not related. One is a university student only 22 years and the other a Makerere College senior one student. Both were brought together for what they consider a noble cause. They wanted to tell the world about the beauty of Uganda.
When Nathan Muhiire, the father of upcoming star Derrick Mwiine asked me to be one of the long casts of people to interview about the upcoming documentary The Pearl of Africa, I first hesitated, after looking at this list that included who is who in Uganda.
I felt I was a nobody to feature in the documentary for it had big names that I found too intimidating. Nathan insisted, reasoning that there was a reason he wanted me to feature. It was much later that he told me why.
The documentary, the first version of which I have watched, features both government officials, ambassadors accredited to Uganda, prominent hoteliers, scholars, clergy, civil servants and ordinary people like us, but most importantly the beauty that only Uganda can boast of.
In my travels, I have insisted to many who ask, that politics aside, there is simply no country as beautiful as Uganda. This country with its lakes, mountains, wildlife, valleys and gorges, waterfalls, birds and the people, the population of Uganda-is under normal circumstances, indeed a very blessed country.
But the central thesis for The Pearl of Africa is not what we talk but rather who is behind this innovation. It began as a fairy story. A young boy called Derrick Mwiine began by recording a song about the beauty of Uganda called Pearl of Africa that President Museveni launched in 2007.
Sparked by this, Derrick decided to put out a documentary that would sell the beauty of his country to the rest of the world. Copies of his CD were given free to many of the CHOGM delegates at the summit in Kampala.
The cast of the documentary is as interesting. Other than the usual names, I asked them why they included people who could not have been normally allowed to speak about Uganda. There are opposition figures such as Prof. Latigo and Gulu LC V Chairman, Norbert Mao. And that was the catch.
It was intended for people who have public integrity. Fair enough, I thought. But the most interesting part is that the documentary is being edited by another young person. The editor, Alex Catherine Nagawa is a second year 22 year old student of Science and Quantitative Economics at Makerere University.
She began her editing career while she was in her senior six vacation. And she produced the music that launched Derrick Mwiine to what he has become at such a tender age.
My second part was a childrens gala by Kampala Junior Academy over the weekend at Didis World. As I sat with the many parents, indeed I wondered how less we think of the teachers who manage to turn our children into things one would never imagine. They acted this play in which a commoner- a cleaner - ends up becoming the king after all those born in line to take over failed major tests. Humbling, if you ask me, for the princess insisted that the cleaner was the man she wanted to be the king; not the flashy princes.
The play, the dances from all regions, the candour and confidence with which these kids took to the stage, their sheer numbers and one imagining how much time, patience and calmness that makes these teachers transform them, touched a cord.
In there also lies the unusual that we are not privy too. That in planning and preparing these kids for such a six hour concert there is more than meets the eye.
I can imagine the kind of respect the teachers instilled in these kids who ordinarily would want to do only what they want without being prompted. But again, maybe that is where we the old ones take things for granted.
Parent after parent were later to be seen after the show running around to catch a glimpse of their kids who by all measure were having fun, after a day of good performance. All dressed in the same uniform, you couldnt tell which was your kid.
One parent, a friend, was running up and down checking whichever kid passed him to aver whether actually that was his kid. In desperation he told the older of his kids that he would sit in one place and when they are done with the many games that Didis World offers, they would then find him.
It is those things we normally take for granted that in this age and times makes one appreciate where we all came from or indeed where we are headed. For the Nagawas, Mwiines and the kids of Kampala Junior Academy, the future might not be completely lost after all.
The author is a human rights expert and specialist on refugee issues nkundad13@yahoo.co.uk