A Political Lesson from Rugby

Greetings.

The game of rugby, played for close to two centuries, has shaped society and in return been shaped by it. The insistence on maintaining its amateur status (and the underlying class divide in Britain) led to the schism of 1895 that gave birth to two versions of the same game; rugby league (favored by the working class men) and rugby union (favoured by The upperclassmen, who used their position of influence to spread their version to the rest of the British Empire). The other sports of British origin (association football, cricket) took the hard lesson and adopted professionalism without the repercussions of a split. In South Africa, the sport was at the center of the Apartheid system with the native Blacks denied access to the game. Both the game and the country have made great strides from that turbulent past.

It is from South Africa that I'm getting my lesson. However, this is not another trip down to the 1995 World Cup with the iconic Mandela-Pienaar role in uniting the country.

For the first half of the twentieth century, South Africa were the dominant force of the game. They were the only team to have won a series of test matches in New Zealand (1937, long before the 1971 British Lions), and had swept the Home Nations (England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland) - a feat termed as a "Grand Slam" - on four different occasions (1912/13, 1931/32, 1951/52, 1960/61). The key to their success; do the basics right!

A description of rugby play action states "... The team which has possession of the ball will normally try to keep it ... The need to maintain possession means the team with the ball will usually seek to progress towards the opposition by running while carrying the ball ... [or] may choose to kick the ball forward".

Comparing with South Africa's play, the 1912/13 Grand Slam was won on the basis of a "massive pack" led by Billy Millar. Captain Osler's "giant pack and kicking fly-half" delivered the success in 1931/32, with one critic stating, "No one could fail to admire his poise and technique - the tactics were another question."

They have big forwards to advance the ball, gain ground, win the scrum engagements, win the line outs - all these maintain possession and a team can only score with possession. The traditional role of a fly half and fullback included kicking duties, and they've maintained this over time. At the 1999 World Cup they met a much fancied England team in the quarterfinals, and the South African kicker set the world record for most drop goals in a single match. The England coach during that game learnt the lesson and focused on fitness and basics. At the next World Cup four years later he led England to rugby heaven! Clive Woodward emphasized the importance of this to overall success in his interview with the BBC podcast, Don't Tell Me The Score.

By comparison, their running rugby rivals in New Zealand and Australia had not managed a Grand Slam by 1961. New Zealand's first grand slam came in 1978, and a first tour win in South Africa was only secured in 1996! 

Chicanery vs Chickenery

Just this week I stumbled upon a TikTok video of Mukasa Mbidde criticizing the government. In his usual fashion, he was more complicated than eloquent. With all his brilliance, I'm inclined to believe he has a communication problem! In a country with an illiteracy rate of 70%, the population needs a basic version of English that they can comprehend. I think every politician understands this. Museveni definitely does.

Our ruling president has become a master at delivering simple communications. They might be long and dragging, but he'll never be caught using words like chicanery  (I'm assuming that's the word Mbidde used). He even takes time to give an interpretation of his words in the native tongues (sneezing; okwetsyamura). This is not to say that our leader is a genius, but if an English-illiterate person is listening to his speech with his Primary-going child, the child could easily translate the message to the native tongue.

Like South Africa with its three World Cups to its name, there's a reason Museveni resonates with the common man, despite the opposition's futile warnings of do not "Kow-tow to his ways". 

Ceteris. Paribus.

References 

Don't Tell Me The Score - Clive Woodward episode

Sport and the British - Rugby's Great Split

“Bark-cloth and Hoes” – Tales of the Ancient Tax Season

 

Greetings. Tax season is here. And writer’s block is back; it can only mean one thing – I’ll paste an excerpt from economic history.

Amended provisional tax returns are to be submitted no later than 30^th June of every year. June also marks the end of the fiscal year. In the past, before the westernised economy, tax season was usually at the King’s pleasure, as we shall see. If one belonged to a monarchical society, they were bound to pay a higher tax than one who belonged to a decentralised society, headed by an Elders’ council. Buganda and Bunyoro traditional societies levied taxes on their citizens, going towards the King, the chief minister, the county chief and even the queen’s mother was entitled to receiving tax. The Luo states didn’t have that ardous tax system; you only paid a portion to the elders, sometimes respect would suffice!

When the time to collect taxes was drawing near, the King, the Katikiro, and the Kimbugwe fixed the exact date, and it was then announced in the Lukiiko that the taxes would be collected on such-and-such a date. The King appointed the special tax-collector for each county; to these county-collectors, the Katikiro, the Kimbugwe, the Queen and the King’s Mother each added their own representatives, and the county-chiefs also added a representative. These six men who were appointed to a county went to each part of it; the principal sub-chiefs were first visited by them in person, but they chose and sent other messengers to each of the less important chiefs. The King’s tax collector and his associates returned to the County-Chief’s enclosure, where they were entertained while the work was being carried out by their men.

The first thing to be done was to count the number of houses in each sub-county, and to ascertain the number of the inhabitants; the tax-collector would then settle with each chief what amount he was expected to send to the King. One cowry-shell was brought by the collector’s assistants to represent each house, and after these had been counted, the assistants went back to collect the tax. The amount usually demanded was a fixed number of cattle from each sub-chief, and a fixed number of barkcloths and one hundred cowry-shells from each peasant; of the smaller chiefs each paid a number of goats and also a few hoes. It frequently took two months, or more, to collect the taxes, because the barkcloths and hoes had to be made, and the cattle had to be collected. When this was accomplished, each servant took his amount on the appointed day to the County-Chief; the cowry-shells and barkcloths were counted and tied up in bundles, while the cattle were sent on ahead to travel slowly to the capital.

The King’s tax-collector took the whole amount to the Katikiro, who had to examine it, and to hear the details as to the number of houses and people in each sub-county, and as to how many barkcloths and cowry-shells had been collected from them. If the amount was correct the Katikiro took the whole to the King; if it was wrong, the tax-collector was required to return to the county and to gather what was missing, according to instructions which he received from the Katikiro. The chief of a county received a portion of the taxes for himself and for his sub-chiefs; the King took half for himself, while the Katikiro, the Kimbugwe, the Queen, and the King’s Mother also had their portions. Each sub-chief was given a small portion of the amount which came from his own county; the King, the Queen, the King’s Mother, the Katikiro, and the Kimbugwe kept the whole of what came from their own estates, in addition to the portion which they received of the taxes from the entire country.

The tributary states (Koki, Busoga, Ssesse) paid their tribute through the chiefs under whom they were placed, making their payments in cattle, slaves, ivory, cowry-shells, salt, hoes, etc.  

Ceteris Paribus.

References

Kagwa, Sir Apolo K (1918) Empisa za Baganda. Kampala, New Era Printers. Ssuula 15: Empisa Z’Okusolooza Omusolo, olupapula 131-134.

Roscoe, John (1911) The Baganda. Chapter 8: Government, pp. 244-246

A Conversation About Capitalism

Greetings.

The Covid-19 lock-down has turned most people into policy analysts. Opinions on the current affairs of the country are always welcome, and as such there's been a lot on the declining prices. One individual believed the decelerating prices were a signal of the Covid-19 virus "taming capitalism." This post does bring to light some latent inequality arising gradually.

The conversation that ensued in the comments sections is provided below.

Ceteris Paribus.

Blogs for the Economist

Greetings.

Day 9 of the #UgBlogMonth challenge requires that we share our favourite blogs. Two blogs and two  weekly columns come to mind. One I don't read very much, but because the writer usually presents an opinion that is antithesis to my own (as well as that of one of the other blogs on this list) it's only fair that I share it in true intellectual spirit.

1. Foresight by Dr. Ibrahim Mike Okumu

Dr. Okumu is a Senior Lecturer at Makerere's School of economics, and possibly the only blogging academic in the country. He provides an in-depth analysis of key issues that are very relevant to Uganda and developing countries in general.

2. Greg Mankiw's Blog

With a tag line, "Random Observations for Students of Economics", Gregory Mankiw provides a neoclassical analysis of key global economics issues; his perspective is center-right. He was an economics advisor to George W. Bush.

3. Paul Krugman's Column

Paul Krugman provides a counter opinion to that of Mankiw; he's an opponent of tax cuts which Mankiw is in support of. Krugman is an economist in the Keynesian mold, and his column is published thrice a week.

4. Niall Ferguson's Column 

I've previously mentioned Niall Ferguson's book and recommended his Docuseries, Networld. In his column, published every Sunday in The Times (and Mondays in The Boston Globe), Ferguson provides lessons from the past to guide understanding of our current global economy.

PS: One must be a subscribing member in order to gain full access to The Times and The Sunday Times articles. However, if one registers one is entitled to 4 free articles per month. There's a fellow who spends all his free articles on Ferguson; be like that fellow.

Bonus: Black Econ Girl

For some reason they've not posted new material in the last two year.


Ceteris Paribus.

On Books That Have Shaped Me

Greetings.
It was bound to happen that some days of the #UgBlogMonth Challenge would be skipped. However, on the third day we are expected to present our favourite books. That might be too much of a challenge for me. So I'll flip the topic and list some books that have shaped my world view.
I'd like to point out I do not read a lot of novels. I mainly dabble in the "boring" ancient texts and history.

Arthur Conan Doyle's A Study in Scarlet

Robert Downey Jr's movies of the great detective (especially the Moriarty character) inspired me to seek out the Sherlock books. A Study in Scarlet is the first in the series, and the pseudo monologue in which Sherlock explains his "Science of deduction" was one of my best parts about the book. From deduction I appreciated the importance of data collection and the scientific method.

"It is a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. It biases the judgment."

Niall Ferguson's The House of Rothschild

The Rothschild family were the biggest players in the nineteenth century bond market, and subsequently shaped the modern financial system. Ferguson also debunks some of the conspiracies surrounding the Rothschild family, mostly fueled by anti-semitism. My interest in economic history began with this book, and I've had to seek out other texts in Economic history like Ferguson's The Ascent of Money and Friedman's The Great Contraction.

"Rothschild . . . destroyed the predominance of land, by raising the system of state bonds to supreme power, thereby mobilising property and income and at the same time endowing money with the previous privileges of the land."

Robert Greene's The 48 Laws of Power

I forget which brother provided me with a soft copy to this book, but I recall it was among the first books I read during the A'Level vacation. Greene, like Ferguson, is an impressive researcher, and he draws on examples from texts spanning over 2,000 years of human history to make his case for laws governing strategy and man management. Once I put down this book, I sought out texts written by Herodotus, Plutarch, Miyamoto Musashi, Ovid, inter alia. This ignited my interest in classical literature.

"When you meet a swordsman, draw your sword: Do not recite poetry to one who is not a poet."

Miyamoto Musashi's The Book of Five Rings 

Miyamoto was a Japanese samurai who published his principles on strategy and honour in this text. Honour and Bushido are important to the Japanese, and any gentleman as well. Bushido code is akin to Japanese chivalry, if one may call it that. From this book, at one point I was reading haikus, although I'm yet to complete The Book of Tea.

"... there is timing in the Way of the merchant, in the rise and fall of capital. All things entail rising and falling timing."

Mathias Semakula Kiwanuka's A History of Buganda Kingdom

I read this some two years ago, as part of research for a book in which Kiwanuka was one of the subjects. The book questions some preconceived origins of the kingdom, especially those set forth by the colonial writers. From this I proceeded to seek out other texts by Ugandans (and Africans); Karugire's A Political History of Uganda (I've blogged about his description of pre-colonial trade) and Kaggwa's The Customs.

"... the growth of knowledge is after all a matter of historical recovery."

Ceteris Paribus.

#UgBlogMonth: Why Do I Write?

Greetings.
The #UgBlogMonth challenge landed in my inbox. A lot of great themes for one to write about. However - blame it on writers' block or downright procrastination- I don't think I'll be capable of posting a piece on a daily. I'll attempt to write as much as I can though.

Why do I write?

Frankly, this can be narrowed down to two basic reasons.

My primary goal for writing is "narcissism", for lack of a better way to put it. It's an opportunity to gain an excessive interest in my own opinion, and share that opinion with the rest of the world, on my terms.

The lesser reason for writing is how terrible I was at summarizing, as far back as the O'Level English exam section on summarizing. Part of me believed the information was very important, and I always believed in giving as much important information as possible. I therefore write as a challenge to myself, to provide essential information via the shortest route possible.
Perhaps it's the ghost of Narcissus in me that makes it difficult to breakdown information to essential details. I can only hope for a better fate than what Nemesis had in store for Narcissus.

Ceteris Paribus.

Reference
Ovid's Metamorphoses. Translated by Dryden et al; London, 1815

Reading (or Listening) Recommendations for the Lockdown

Greetings. It’s barely two weeks since our first confirmed case of Covid-19 and the country is in total lockdown after a series of presidential directives. The situation is very pressing to sole proprietors, small businesses and large corporate organisations. Several countries are on lock-down as well, and boy, do the LDC economies (and formerly LDC economies) love aggressive implementation of these directives. There are several videos and news stories circulating of how the lock-down and preventive measures are being implemented; from spraying chemicalsupon migrant workers in India to caning passengers in Uganda.

As we attempt to stay home and keep everyone safe, I have listed some recommended reading, video and audio material relevant (or not) for this period.

Reading materials

Buganda n’Ensimbi Zaayo by Ernest Bakaluba (translated as Buganda and its Systems of Currency). Published in 1958, the 20-page monograph details the evolution of the currency system in Buganda prior to the advent of the colonial-era rupee. From the sanga (ivory bead), to the nsinda (blue bead), and then finally to the cowrie shells. The writer also gives a conversion rate i.e. 1 nsinda was equivalent to 100 cowrie shells, etc. Luckily today in this pandemic scare, mobile money and other modern financial innovations make it possible to access money at a time when the dreaded disease could be transmitted through exchange of physical cash. 

However, Eagle Press, the publisher of the text, is no longer in existence and the only two surviving copies in the public domain can be accessed at the Africana Collection of the Makerere University Library …. I guess you have to read this once the pandemic has been mitigated.

Financialliberalisation and its implications for the domestic financial system by Michael Atingi-Ego and Louis Kasekende. Earlier this week, President Museveni appointed Dr. Atingi-Ego as the new deputy governor at the Bank of Uganda. The world of PhD-level economists in Uganda is a very small club and as such he replaces a man he has previously collaborated with on three scholarly articles, Dr. Louis Kasekende. 

Their 2003 paper published by the African Economic Research Consortium, surveyed the effects of financial liberalisation on the banking sector (conducted after the privatisation of Uganda Commercial Bank), and recommended the linking of the banking sector with the micro-credit institutions. In the following year, the Financial Institutions Act and the Microfinance Insitutions Act were enacted, with no less a referral than the two scholars. These pieces of legislation stipulated the categorisation of institutions under the bank of Uganda’s supervision, including commercial banks (tier I), credit institutions (tier II) and micro-deposit institutions (tier III).

Podcasts

50 Things That Made theModern Economy: Episode 12 – Antibiotics. The BBC is a treasure for podcasts, covering current affairs, documentaries business, history and drama. This particular podcast series tells the stories of inventions, ideas and innovations which have helped create the modern economy,condensed in sub-10 minute episodes. The episode on “Antobiotics” is very relevant in our hygiene-conscious times, charting the evolution of antibiotics and why today more antibiotics are injected in healthy animals than sick humans. 

Documentary Series

Networld by Niall Ferguson. The self-proclaimed “international man of history” has an interesting timing of his documentaries. The Ascent of Money (adopted from his book) was published around the time of the 2008 financial crisis, detailing the evolution of money and its role in business and politics. In this three-part documentary series, released in March as the Covid-19 epidemic was taking root, Ferguson explores the role of human behaviour, disruptive technology and the profit motive in changing our world. 

Adopted from his 2015 book, The Square and the Tower, Ferguson highlights how every individual has a personal social network and this will determine the probability of getting sick during this period.

Ceteris Paribus.