Resilience Amid Struggle
Despite crushing challenges — unemployment, debt, exclusion — Ugandan youth refuse to be defeated. Across the nation, stories of resilience shine:
• Students starting small ventures to pay tuition
• Artists and writers using creativity to fight injustice
• Entrepreneurs turning simple ideas into solutions
• Activists standing boldly for justice
These are not just tales of survival. They are stories of leadership.
The Power of Unity
Alone, a young person may struggle. But together, youth can:
• Rewrite narratives
• Shape policies
• Demand accountability
Change is never handed down. It is seized and built by those who believe in it.
DOY’s Role
At DOY, we channel this strength through mentorship, sponsorship, and advocacy campaigns. We stand with youth who refuse to be broken — because in struggle lies strength, and in strength lies transformation.
A Call to Rise
Ugandan youth are not just the leaders of tomorrow. They are the changemakers of today.
We invite policymakers, partners, and fellow youth to rise with us. Together, let’s forge alliances, harness resilience, and propel Uganda toward a thriving, youth-led future.
Article 6: Democracy for Sale: How Uganda’s Election Process Betrays Its Youth
Every election season in Uganda, politics morphs into a carnival of cash. Politicians flood communities with envelopes of money, sacks of sugar, bars of soap, and shallow promises of jobs, scholarships, and opportunities. For many struggling youth, this temporary relief is hard to resist. Yet, beneath the handouts lies a darker truth: the auctioning of democracy and the betrayal of Uganda’s future.
Youth, who make up the overwhelming majority of voters, are treated not as citizens with voices, but as pawns. They are mobilized with token payments, T-shirts, or bottles of alcohol, used as foot soldiers to shout slogans, intimidate opponents, or fill rallies. When the votes are counted, they are cast aside — abandoned until the next campaign cycle.
The cost is devastating. Bribery and corruption poison the electoral process, silencing genuine debate and accountability. Empty promises, once celebrated, dissolve into forgotten rhetoric. The cycle repeats: youth remain unemployed, education remains unaffordable, and corruption festers — yet the same leaders tighten their grip on power.
This is more than political malpractice; it is systemic robbery. Politicians steal not only votes, but the future of millions by reducing leadership to transactions. The very demographic that should be shaping policy — the youth — is sidelined, silenced, and sacrificed for short-term gain.
But there is another path. Youth can resist exploitation by refusing to be bought, by organizing, by demanding transparency, and by holding leaders accountable beyond election day. A vote should never be for sale — it is a weapon of change, a tool of justice, and the foundation of democracy.
At Days of Our Youth (DOY), we reject the culture of bribery and broken promises. We call upon young people to rise above being used and dumped, and instead claim their rightful place as active shapers of Uganda’s destiny. Politicians must know: youth are not commodities — they are the nation’s backbone.
It’s time for elections to reflect Uganda’s will, not its wallets. Let us unite to end the politics of bribery and build a culture where leadership is earned by vision, service, and integrity.
