Kigezi High School (KHS) which is making 100 years this year since it started in 1922, was my most unlikely of schools to join. The first time I joined it in senior two in 1991, I was coming from Jinja senior secondary school.
The story of my Jinja days and why I left is long. I won’t tell it here. But when I returned to Bukinda during the Christmas holidays of 1990, the year of Italia World Cup, my father decided that I was not going back to Jinja.
One of the reasons was that for the two years I had been in Jinja, I had turned from a student to a fishmonger at Masese landing site. Circumstances had introduced me to making money at the age of 13 and for some reason, I had started viewing going to school as a disruption to my fish business. I was 15.
The first choice after leaving Jinja SSS was to go to Bukinda Secondary School, a three kilometer walk from home. It was easy to get a place there, because the headmaster Mr Amos Rwansheija, was and is a family friend. I had also been with his children, Hilda, Hebert, Harriet and Herbert in Primary School at Nyabirerema–and I often visited their home.
He knew me as a bright boy, but was surprised.when he looked at my school reports from Jinja SSS. In senior one first term, I had been number one our of 480 students out of the 12 streams of S2. But by the end of senior two, I was the 48th out of 400 students. Clearly, there was a problem, he observed.
As Rwansheija conversed with my parents about my declining perfomance, an idea came. ” We should take him to a boarding school. I can get him a place at Kigezi High School,” Rwansheija said.
They agreed.
The following morning was Monday, and Rwansheija took me on his Honda Motorcycle cycle, through Kyobugombe, Nkumbura, Kaharo, to the top of Kabaraga hill, before starting the cold descent down, overlooking Nyagagyera, Nyabushabi and Muyumbo–to the Kyanamira valley onto Kabale town.
We then rode up Rugarama Hill, and lo and behold–we were at the gate of Kigezi High School.
At first, I was straight away impressed by the smartness of students: the girls in their starched green skirts and milkwhite shirts and the boys in neat khakis. At Jinja SSS, we wore black trousers.Some big headed boys even could afford to come in layer–non uniform. I should inform you that Jinja SSS was perhaps the first school in Uganda where kids would first go to ride a bicycle boda boda in the morning and come to school in the afternoon.
The school operated a shift system, where S1, S3 and S 5, studied from 8 1pm and the even number classes, S2,4 and 6 studied in the afternoon. Also, at the time, Jinja SSS was a boys school, and perhaps had the highest enrollment of any school in Uganda. We were 2000 students. I envied St James SSS, a neighboring school which was mixed and had girls.
So, seeing smart and beautiful girls made me happy instantly.
Rwansheija then led me to the HM’s office. We sat in the waiting area for a few minutes before we were called in. In that short time,a man of average age had been in and out of the office carrying letters. I would later know that he was popularly known as ‘bad news’ by students.He was nick named this name because everytime he came looking for you in class or went to put a notice on the noticeboard, he would be carrying bad news: suspension, punishment or something like that.
Anyway, after a few minutes, we were called into the head masters office. And there he was: uncle Henry Turyagyenda.
Rwansheija and Uncle Henry chatted–they were friends and then he introduced me. He then refered us to John Birihanze, his deputy in charge of academic affairs. BZ was not in office, but had left Jimmy Twinomugisha, handling the office.
When Jimmy looked at my report forms, he declared that I had to repeat senior two. That hit me like a tonne of bricks.
Me, repeating? no way. I refused.
He then explained to me why I would have trouble in senior three. First, he said students had chosen subjects to take in senior three, and Kigezi High School was offering subjects that we had not done at Jinja SSS. Students had been doing commerce, additional mathematics which I had not done. He also explained that in order for me to restore my best performance, I needed to retreat and come back with a bang.
After almost 30 minutes of soul searching, I accepted to repeat senior two.
But that was not enough. I still had to sit a test to join senior two. That test was set for the next day. I stayed back with a relative in Kabale town. On that day, we sat the senior two entry test with the likes of Ainebyoona Bosco, Doreen Mbabazi and several others.
We passed the test and we were admitted to Kigezi High School in senior two in January 1991. I was put in S2C where I found Mutamba James, Asasira Godwin, Chris Abesirwe, Paul Ndimurungi, Sancho David, Sober, and several others. I was also allocated to stay in Bwakonsya, where we found Maninga Rogers as our House Captain, Masiko Elinathan Chief, Ivan Asiimwe, Tukamushaba Emmy, Katukusi, Rwomushoro Julius, Masanyu Julius, Ampeire Isaac and others.
I had a great time right away from the start, apart from the hunger that seemed unending. We were always hungry..Almost every student cried of enjaara.
The teachers were great. Chalujumba taught us English. Andrew Turyatemba taught us CRE. BK taught Chemistry. Mallet taught us Wood work. Robert Katebarirwe taught us Geography. Uncle Onney taught us Fine Art. Kabs taught us Maths. Rwamuhanda was there for Physics while Gills handled Biology.
These teachers were really legends. They cared about our well being. They taught us selflessly and wished us well. They took pride in our success.
Unfortunately after the first term, I started having trouble paying fees. I was in debt. But the true parent headmaster uncle Henry torolated me and many other to study even without completing paying tuition. I can recall the lines of parents at his office pleading for their children not to be chased for delayed payment of fees, some saying they will clear after the harvest of sorghum, or selling Irish potatoes, muramba or after selling goats or sheep or cows.
It is perhaps for this reason that uncle Henry took no nonsense when he found a student, whose parent had been in office to plead, getting involved in unbecoming behavior like drinking waragi behind the library, or sneaking out to watch films in Kabale town or camping on lovers street to hug and squeeze the opposite sex.
Sadly, after only one year in senior two, I could not return for senior three, and instead went to Lake Bunyonyi SSS-a long story for another day.
To his credit, for which I am eternally grateful, our headmaster uncle Henry looked out for me, wondering why I had left KHS. He sent a message through teacher Katebarirwe, who was the only teacher that knew my whereabouts. He asked to come to see him–.that was in 1992. When I arrived, uncle Henry told me that the school board and administration had considered me for a half bursary and wanted me to return and go to S3.
I mulled over the offer, and after a lot of soul searching, I turned it down and promised him that I would perform very well to qualify to be admitted for A Level.
Indeed that is what happened. At Lake Bunyonyi SSS, I was able to excel at the O.level exams, scoring 17 aggregates and returning to KHS for A level. I finished A level in 1995, scoring 21 points that took me to study Mass Communications at Makerere University on a full Government Scholarship.
In many ways KHS shaped me, with the last leg opening the doors to what has become my profession–Communications, Public Relations, Advocacy, Writing and story telling.
@j_mucunguzi
julius.mucunguzi@gmail.com
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