interview

Kampala — THE Kamuswaga will be installed on his hereditary seat of Kooki this Saturday. Many questions are being asked as to about who really is the Kamuswaga Prince Apolo Nsansa Kabumbuli II. We bring you a brief of his humble background.

"My father died in January 1986 and I joined St. Charles Lwanga SSS, Kasasa in May 1986. Subsequently I dropped out of school at the end of first term 1987 as my widowed mother could not provide the school fees. In May 1987, I was stuck at home having failed to return to school. It was then when I saw a familiar vehicle come to our compound, the Kamuswaga says. "Mr Kirkwood got out of it and told me to pack my things because I was to go back to school. I was overjoyed because my dream was to get my education. In the subsquent three years, Mrs Elizabeth Bruce, a friend of John Kirkwood, paid my school fees. Even when I left St. Charles Lwanga, Bruce continued to sponsor me. This sponsorship enabled me to assume my role as the Kamuswaga, and through this, I was pleased to introduce Kirkwood to His Excellency the President in 1995." "I was not the only orphaned student at Kasasa who was assisted by Kirkwood who came to live among us. His late mother, Janet Kirkwood, was a regular visitor to Uganda and we could see where Kirkwood's care for the disadvantaged came from. Mrs Kirkwood was always bringing something for someone in Uganda hence he made a difference in their lives," adds the Kamuswagi. "I recall a couple of messages that Mrs. Kirkwood taught us at St. Charles Lwanga. The first one was that "privilege comes responsibility" hence those of us who have benefited from education are responsible for caring for those less fortunate than ourselves. The second message was that she and her husband had deliberately only had two children so that they could care and provide for them as best as they could. One of the main reasons she had the money to afford trips to Uganda was because they had been responsible in having only two children, and had been able to reinvest profits from their farm to help it grow. She said they were then reaping the rewards of their hard work earlier in life. Kirkwood came to Uganda as a volunteer teacher after serving in Kenya. In 1988,John returned to care for his mother who had terminal cancer and registered the Tofta Educational Trust with the Charity Commissioners in England. Later, the was registered as a NGO in Uganda. Currently, the NGO is sponsoring about 160 disadvantaged students from Uganda and Kenya to obtain their secondary and tertiary education. Kirkwood started the construction of the Lords Meade Vocational College in Njeru near Jinja. I see a long line of beneficiaries of this project. They include not only the disadvantaged students, but also students across the country whose parents are unable to pay their fees. "There is very little one can say when a stranger comes into one's life and plays such a major part in transforming it. I knew at my father's death that I was a cultural leader, and I wondered what sort of leader I could become with merely primary education. I am most grateful that Kirkwood, through Bruce, financed my secondary education and assisted me to become what I am today. The two of them have changed my life, and the future of my people, the Kooki,' the Kamuswaga says. Kamuswaga's background. Kamuswaga Apollo Ssansa Kabumbuli II was born in 1971 to the late Edwrad Mazinga. He is the grandson of Kamuswaga Yoweri Kayemba, who was deposed from his throne in Kooki county after the abolition of traditional kingdoms as a result of the 1966 crisis between the then central government and the kings. Kamuswaga attended Kimaanya Primary School in Masaka, but dropped out of school soon after his father's death. He was saved by a good Samaritan who sponsored his secondary education at Kasasa Secondary School and later Makerere High School. Kamuswaga later went to the US, where he qualified as a graphic designer. He has established many friends in the US, Canada and other countries as well as in Uganda.