Ugandan Journalist and political analyst Joseph Tamale Mirundi breathed his last on August 13 at Kisubi Hospital.He was later buried on Sunday, August 18 at Matale Kalagala village in Kyotera District. A month after his death, media houses are struggling to replace the motor-mouthed son of Yowana Mirundi and Molly Namatovu whose sharp commentary had become part of Uganda’s social discourse.
At the time of his death, Mirundi had scheduled Radio and TV Shows on 13 media houses saw him criss-cross the city throughout the week.He had a talk show on SK Mbuga’s STV every Monday and Sunday, an appearance on Balaam Barugahara’s Radio 4 with political show host Adam Kungu from 7 – 9pm at which he used to make trendy jokes and attacks.
At 9am – 11am, Mirundi never missed at Beat FM on Wednesdays in Kisement and would appear on Baba TV’s “The Big Story Show” between 9 – 11am the following day. Early Morning on the airwaves of Dr. Joseph Sserwadda’s Impact FM, Mirundi would never miss.
Alongside this traditional Media Houses, Mirundi appeared for online Interviews with SML News UG on Wednesdays, Media Choice TV, Kwezi Media and Kasuku Live. He would appear on Pastor Deo Ssemakula’s HGTV among others.
A fortnight before he passed on, Media Houses had started struggling to cover his space but they hoped that the widely followed former Presidential Press Secretary would return to work.
Save for Mbuga of STV, Balyeku of Baba TV and Balamu Barugahara of Radio 4, no other media house paid Mirundi for his services. He was only sure of Balaamu’s Ugx 150,000 every Tuesday, the rest were irregular.
Inside their boardrooms, Media Houses have been struggling to find analysts of Mirundi’s kind in vain.
When Adam Kungu put up a public request for suggestions on who should replace Mirundi, his audience suggested socialite Frank Gashumba as most Favourite. Others suggested were Charles Rwomushana, Moses Bigirwa, Ssemuju Nganda, Mzee Magara Luttamaguzi, Mukasa Mbidde ,Tamale Mirundi Junior and Simon Muyanga Lutaaya.
But in their assessments, listeners had no consensus on who stood out best. This has left Media Houses on a wild search for a suitable one to replace the widely followed Mirundi whose analysis and views on current and social issues was as entertaining, controversial and provocative.
Who is your choice to replace Joseph Tamale Mirundi on his Media Spaces. Share your views with reasons.
About the Author
Sir Simon Muyanga Lutaaya is a journalist whose career spans over two decades. He is passionate about business, social – economic transformation, and neonatal health. He can be reached on 0703700309 or Email: smlmediac@gmail.com.