Ugandan musician Coco Finger. Image from Coco Finger's official Facebook page.
In a recent interview with the Ugandan newspaper The New Vision [1], Okori Moses (one of top dance-hall musicians, famously known as Coco Finger [2]) spoke about his relationships with women, saying several strongly negative things about Ugandan women. Moses claims he is incapable of settling down with a black woman and only dates them for casual sex.
He said [3]:
Ladies are not easy, that’s what I can say. There a few who understand and that’s why I will never settle down with a Ugandan girl. I prefer whites.
He went on to say [3]:
………………………I would date Ugandan girls for casual sex and not serious relationship.
These statements infuriated Ugandans, as well as many of The New Vision's readers, who lashed out at both the newspaper and the musician.
Moses should be ashamed of himself, wrote [4]Martha Kebirungi:
wats this supposed to mean?? wat does he take us ugandan girls for!!!! he sound lyk he respects neither his mother nor sisters(if any). he should be ashamed of himself. wat if those white girls also prefer him for sex? would he be ok with it? anyway, if he said that he would be ok with it, then he is not worth any value.
Zera Alba wonderered [5] why such people get media exposure:
Why do newspaper editors give such people platform in the first place?
Angelo Bosa warned [6] Ugandan girls to stay away from people like Coco Finger, as it's clear, he says, that such men are just using them:
Ugandan galz muwulila.let him go find white gals.temumuwa wade nakatono.
Ugandan girls, have you heard? Let him go find white girls. Don't give him even a little piece of your bodies.
Kiyemba Harunah issued a warning [7] to women who want to date celebrities:
Ladies who still want date these wannabe celebrities here is Coco finger story,by the way guys remind me he isn't the ex boyfriend to Wagio chic who died last year???? Ohhhhhh
Allan John Damulira, who grew up with the singer, thought [8] the story was cooked up by the newspaper:
The Coco Finger I grew up with, the man I went to school with, the proud father to a beautiful daughter and husband to Okori Gloria [9] can NEVER ever say such drivel. Never.
Similarly, Nicholas Opiyo thought [10] the interview was falsified:
NO NO NO NO THIS IS A PREGNANT BLACKMILKING
MR Moses okori [Coco Finger] is married to a very good african lady with one child. And who are those people making useless news like that.
Let them try to fight coco in their music production than lying the whole world in that way.
On Twitter, senior journalist Grace Natabaalo asked [11],
Why is such garbage published?—> I prefer whites; I date Ugandan girls for casual sex – Coco Finger http://t.co/sz6v5FutdV [12]
— Grace Natabaalo (@Natabaalo) May 7, 2015 [11]
Blogger Harriet Anena called [13] the interview “crap”:
I prefer whites; I date Ugandan girls for casual sex – Coco Finger http://t.co/PSu4ox4Oym [14] >The crap that get into our papers!
— Harriet Anena (@ahpetite) May 7, 2015 [13]
Other Ugandans commented on the newspaper's website. One reader named Dave thought [15] Moses is naive, immature, and in need perhaps of medical attention:
Oh my……young, naive and starting out with the wrong foot forward. I can't believe our young generation has only this to offer. Coco likes whites woow, what a none starter! and his ideal woman has to have a “figure”! what an oxymoron those two don't go together.
What I see is an imuture, confused, self loathing chap, that I hope will man up some day, look at himself in the mirror and regret the words he spewed today. If you haven't seen the beauty of a black woman, you haven't been around! its all naivity and ignorance that is being displayed by this young man.
Young man, you have women issues and if I were you, I would put myself under the care of a competent Psychiatrist rather than scapegoating by blaming it on our Ugandan sisters!
Your inability to make “them” understand is your weakness not theirs!
Check yourself son!
JK considered [16] the comments a sign of self-hate:
I bet he wishes he was born white but too bad…. IMO this is a self-hating, low esteem little prick looking for validation from a ‘superior race’. But hey, I could be wrong.
Later on, Moses came to his own defense, leaving a comment on the newspaper's Facebook page saying [17] that the newspaper wanted to put him down because he prefers black Ugandan ladies:
No no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no plizz .This is not ryt,whoever put this in paper is just trying to look for ways to put me down bt no u can't in the name of God. . . . . . . am a proud black African n proud of our black wemen.i have a happy family wth a black woman n am proud we are blessed wth a beautiful daughter . The fact is i prefer
Black Ugandan ladies to whites.fuuuul stoooooop.
The New Vision has yet to respond to Moses’ claim that he never criticized Ugandan women in his interview.