In the early 2000s when he worked as a sports reporter for The Sunrise newspaper at National Theatre, Ramathan Ggoobi endlessly effused about Kenneth Matovu, the gifted New Vision sports journalist and columnist who perished in an accident in 2001.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Ggoobi, then wanted to become the next “Matovu” only that he appeared more interested in analyzing the English Premier League (Manchester United, particularly) than happenings in local soccer which the Vision journalist was famed for.
With time…Ggoobi’s interests changed and he started focusing on economics. At that time he had gone back to Makerere University Business School (MUBS) to pursue further studies.
He started writing a column in the same newspaper in which he gave common sense economic advice on how to improve the economy and better people’s lives. He also started lecturing economics at MUBS.
Then…he caught the bigger media’s attention and started giving interviews as an ‘economic analyst’. He became an instant hit given the simplified way in which he explained economics (devoid of GDP jargon) and how it impacted ordinary folks.
After featuring on a few panels and discussions, Ggoobi caught the eye of Gen Salim Saleh who incorporated him on his Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) team.
One thing led to another and before long, Saleh was taking him to meetings with President Museveni.
Then… Ggoobi was eventually appointed Permanent Secretary in the ministry of Finance and that marked the end of his journalism dream.
Not that he is complaining.