My Blog List
A video released on September 30, 2026 has drawn attention to a handwritten record that appears to contain names and personal belongings of people who were allegedly taken to a security facility.
Lt. Herbert Matanda Mabonga released the video on social media together with footage he said was recorded inside a military safe house. The material has attracted discussion, but the location, date and circumstances surrounding the footage have not been independently verified.
The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) has rejected the material attributed to Mabonga, describing the allegations as fabricated and the documents as doctored. Mabonga’s account and the UPDF’s response therefore present two different versions of what happened.
The handwritten list
One of the things attracting attention is a handwritten record that appears to list belongings of different people.
An entry dated June 26, 2026 appears to be connected to journalist Timothy Kalyegira.
The items listed include:
- National ID
- Absa Card
- Shs5,500 cash
- MP3 voice recorder
- Canon EOS 650D camera
- Chilli
- 1 bar soap – Mukwano
- Powder soap
- Doom
- Brown shoes
- Clearing spray
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| Handwritten record appearing in material attributed to Mabonga. The authenticity of the record has not been independently verified. |
The video does not show these belongings themselves. It shows what appears to be a handwritten record of the items.
The authenticity of the record has not been independently verified.
The questions online
The list has also raised questions on social media.
One person questioned why Timothy Kalyegira would have soap and Doom with him, while another person responded that he was “probably walking back home from the store.”
Another commenter focused on the Shs5,500 listed in the record. One person even asked whether the money was returned to Kalyegira.
These comments do not prove what happened. They simply show some of the questions people are asking about the handwritten record.
Kalyegira had earlier said that he was arrested on June 26 and taken to a basement. He was later charged and remanded to Luzira Prison. His account, however, does not independently prove that the handwritten record is genuine.
For now, the video and the handwritten records remain unverified material attributed to Mabonga, while the UPDF continues to dispute their authenticity.
The questions surrounding the list therefore remain: Who wrote it, when was it written, and can the information in it be independently confirmed?
The death of a Kyambogo University student has left fellow students and the wider university community waiting for answers.
Precious Musimenta was a Bachelor of Accounting and Finance student who was found dead in her room at Sports Pro-Hostel in Banda on Monday, September 28, 2026.
Musimenta was attached to North Hall. The university communicated the death through the Office of the Dean of Students.
Her body was taken to City Mortuary for a post-mortem to find out what caused her death. At the time the university issued the statement, there was no public information about what had happened to her.
The death was also discussed on the YouTube channel of Investigator TV's programme, The Week That Was, on September 28, 2026. Kasozi Philosopher and Gideon Tugume used the case to raise wider concerns about the safety and welfare of university students, especially those living in hostels outside the university.
The discussion touched on hostel security, including concerns about hostels where there may be little control over who enters and leaves. The speakers also talked about some of the challenges students may face, such as stress, health problems, self-medication and lifestyle pressures.
However, these issues were raised as wider concerns affecting students and were not given as the confirmed cause of Musimenta's death.
The discussion also raised questions about whether universities, parents and security agencies are doing enough to identify and respond to problems affecting students before they become serious.
The university's Student Welfare Department was also engaging with Musimenta's family regarding burial arrangements.
At the moment, the most important information is that the cause of death has not been established publicly. The post-mortem findings and any further information from the authorities will hopefully give the university community a clearer picture of what happened.
For now, students are mourning the loss of one of their own while waiting for answers.
When the news of Moses Matovu's death reached my ears, I was already preparing myself to hear that he had died from cancer or some other illness. I was not prepared to hear that the veteran musician had died after an attack.
My connection with Moses Matovu's music goes back to 1989, when my family and I had just returned to Uganda from Kenya the previous year. At that time, we used to listen to his music on Radio Uganda. I remember songs such as Afrigo Batuuse, Emmere Esiridde, Speed Controller and Amazzi Genyama. These were songs I grew up listening to, long before I could have imagined that one day I would be writing about the death of the man behind them.
As the years went by, his music continued to reach different generations. Songs such as Omutanda Gyali, Olumbe Lw'obwavu, Jim, Obangaina, and later Nantongo and Nfunda N'omubi, among other songs, kept his music alive among Ugandan audiences. Matovu was not only a singer; he was also a saxophonist, composer, arranger and band leader who spent decades with Afrigo Band.
That is why hearing that Moses Matovu had died was difficult to take. I had expected news of illness because of his age, but an attack was not what came to my mind.
Moses Matovu died on September 24, 2026, after he was attacked in the Kibuli Market Zone B area of Kampala. He was taken to Kibuli Hospital but later died. Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding his death.
There are two languages I wish I could speak — Lumasaaba and Rutooro.
My father was a Mumasaaba, but I never learned Lumasaaba. My mother was a Muganda. On my mother’s side, my late great-grandmother was a Mutoorokati.
Unfortunately, I never got the chance to grow up with her and learn Rutooro from her. I only saw her three times in my entire lifetime.
Sometimes I wonder how different things would have been if I had spent more time with her.
I thought about this while watching the burial of the late King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV. As I watched the funeral speeches, I kept hoping that Princess Ruth Komuntale would at some point speak Rutooro.
I wanted to hear her speak it.
Perhaps because, for me, Rutooro is more than just a language. It is a connection to someone in my family whom I never really got the chance to know.
It also made me think about how many of us grow up knowing where our families come from, but without being able to speak the languages connected to those roots.
When I spoke English instead of Lumasaaba during my father's burial, the audience murmured. Being his heir, I once attended a clan meeting to solve a family dispute. The chairperson's question about whether I understood Lumasaaba made me feel uncomfortable. You see, Lumasaaba is divided into three main dialects: Ludadiri, Lubuuya, and Lusaano. I told the chairperson that I understood the Ludadiri dialect better. My father spoke the Lubuuya dialect. You see, Ludadiri is similar to certain Luhya dialects that I heard when growing up in Western Kenya. This similarity can be explained by the fact that both Ludadiri and some Luhya dialects contain many 'zi' and 'ka' sounds, as opposed to "tsi" and "kha" sounds common in the Lubuuya dialect. For example, in Lubuuya the traditional brewing dough is called "tsimuma," while in the Ludadiri dialect, it is called "zimuma." The Lubuuya dialect that my father spoke is more difficult for me to understand.
I wish I could speak both Lumasaaba and Rutooro. But perhaps I can start learning both. After all, sometimes finding your way back to your roots begins with simply learning the language.
Don't Be an "American" Robot
Most AI is "Westernised." It is trained on
information from America and Europe. Without the user's input, the work will
sound generic. Here is how to keep it legit:
Request AI to give you an outline of the topic you are
working on. Then add to it notes from your own research and include Ugandan
examples.
AI may not understand Ugandan examples, so you have to
provide them yourself.
The Rules of Honesty:
- AI is a tool, not an author.
- Say if you used AI.
Do not put private information in AI tools because many
of them save what you type, so your private details could be kept for a long
time or shared by mistake.
Real student work usually has a few small mistakes or
looks a bit untidy. But when a paper has perfect points, very formal headings,and no typos at all, it can look like a computer made it in seconds.
Although a smart student can be neat, AI formatting is
often too consistent in a weird way. For example, every single paragraph
is exactly five lines long or uses very "robotic" headings that no
human would naturally think of.
Sometimes AI uses things like "extra commas"
in every single sentence or puts in dashes or semicolons where a Ugandan
student would normally just use a comma.
Some students are so "lazy" that they even
copy the AI’s own formatting notes, like "Would you like me to expand any
of these sections into a more detailed report?”
Even a perfect student paper usually has a "voice”,
that is, a way of explaining things that feels like a person. AI formatting
often feels robotic. It has no soul.
If someone lacks knowledge, the AI controls them. If
someone is an expert, they control the AI.
Everyone is using AI, but few know how to use it
without losing their academic soul.
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| Namirembe writes her blog post about AI ethics Photo by Timothy Kalyegira |
- Asking AI to write an entire assignment is unethical. It is like paying someone to sit one’s papers.
- AI can be a "professional conman." It might create fake facts just to fill space or give you citations for books that don't even exist in any library. This is called hallucination.
- If one has a brilliant point in their head but they are struggling to find the right academic English, one can ask AI to "rephrase this sentence to be more formal."
- After finishing your draft, paste it into the AI and say: "What are the weaknesses in my argument?" This helps one fix gaps before they actually submit.
- If one’s notes are disorganised, they can ask AI to arrange them in a logical way. This helps one structure one's thoughts so they can study more effectively.
- When you are staring at a blank page, and the deadline is knocking, ask AI for an "outline" or "structure" for your essay topic. It gives you the "skeleton," but you must provide the "meat" and the local examples.
- The Golden Rule: If you would be "ashamed" to tell your lecturer that you used AI for a specific part of your work, you are probably crossing the line into cheating!
I Can Smell AI from a Mile Away (And the Lecturer Can Too!)
I’m going to be honest: I am sick of reading and
listening to AI-generated group presentations. Whether it’s an AI image that
looks 'too perfect' or a 2,000-word essay that sounds like a robot, I can smell
it a mile away, and I’m tired of it. This is not to say that I’m not
guilty of using it too. I’ve used these
tools myself, so I know exactly how the 'shortcut' trap works. But if I
can tell it’s fake, believe me, your lecturers can too. Here is how to tell
when someone is being lazy:
- If
your coursework is full of words like delve, tapestry, pivotal, or shaping
the landscape, you’ve been caught. Real students don’t write like
that!
- AI work often feels "flat" because every sentence is roughly the same length, whereas real people mix short, punchy points with longer explanations to give their writing a natural rhythm.
- AI
is always too nice. If you ask it "Who is the real king of Ugandan music?" it will give a neutral view about the different musicians in Uganda. Real people have
strong, local opinions; AI doesn't.
- Look at those AI-generated posters. Are there six fingers on a hand? Do the people in the background look like thin millet porridge? If the signposts are written in a strange language, it’s a fake.
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| An Ai generated image |
Why the above image is fake news:
Although the main poster is clear, the Stabex board behind has numbers that look "melted," and the small writing at the bottom is just scribbles that make no sense.
The arm of the man holding the sign isn't actually attached to his body and is bent in a way that’s physically impossible.
There are hands gripping the pole that don't belong to anyone in the picture.
The sign looks like it’s floating in mid-air rather than being held up properly.
You can clearly see the Gemini Sparkle
icon sitting in the bottom-right corner, confirming this image is artificial and was generated by Gemini Ai.
Use AI to Catch AI
To determine if an image was generated by AI:
- Upload the image to an AI tool and and ask if the image was Ai generated.
Some tools look for hidden marks like SynthID or "unnatural metadata."SynthID is a secret digital stamp. It is hidden inside the pixels of an image. You cannot see it with your eyes, but a computer can. This stamp proves the image was made by AI.Unnatural metadata are hidden file notes. These notes look suspicious because they are missing normal camera details, like the lens or flash settings. Instead, they show computer-made labels.
The AI scans for inconsistencies, like shadows falling in opposite directions or skin and surfaces looking too perfectly smooth to be real.
If we use AI to do the thinking, we’re the ones missing out on the mental growth that comes from solving difficult problems.
Coming up next: Using Ai without Cheating