UGANDAN INDEPENDENCE DAY DRUMS GO SILENT, AS THE CELEBRATIONS TURN TO MODERM ELECTRONICS

Drums on display for sale next to OPM grounds in Arua city

By Sunday Amandi,

Arua city

The use of local drums that has historically been the heartbeat of Independence Day celebrations in Ugandan schools, serving as powerful symbols of national pride, cultural identity, and post-colonial freedom is gradually fading away, with most schools in urban areas shifting to the use of the public address system during independence day celebration, with few selected learners as representatives, unlike the past where every learners was considered.

Historically, schools across Uganda relied almost entirely on traditional drums for match-pasts during Independence Day celebrations, but though there is no official statistical percentage, the current rate of schools using drums for Independence Day celebrations reflects a dynamic shift.

Ben Adrole, a teacher at Ediofe Boys primary school confirms that, the significance of the drums in independence day celebrations is going down as the drum is gradually getting silent,

“Previously people used to celebrate his day with some match-past, with the school children singing some songs with the use of drums and so on, this has of recent changed more especially in urban areas, the way of matching with drums those day has not now been there,” Adrole confirmed.

This shift also leaves a big drop in the business in the local drums as the demand by schools in independence celebration seasons has negatively changed.

William Okuyo, who has sold drums in Arua for many years, says, the business that used to be lucrative is gradually disappearing,

“The business in drums used to be good, but now, it’s not moving on well, people used to buy it in good numbers, I used to sale a set at 270,000 shillings, but now I sale it at 230,000 shillings, this change has come because the economy is very hard,”Okuyo stated.

Drums remain highly prominent but are now frequently paired with or substituted by Western electronic instruments for such celebration

Written by newsroom-radiopacis