By Jonathan Mwesigwa S.
I recall that upon my matriculation in 2009 as a Law Freshman at the Uganda Christian University (UCU), we quite didn’t hit it off with Mzee Fred David Bbosa alias Uncle Bbosa. With my rather extrovert nature, or so some have accused me, I could not, the tremendous benevolence of Buganda’s gods notwithstanding, help offending the entire Library Code as staunchly handed down to us by the Library Staff during the orientation week. I was, for example, a loud charm in my exchanges, thus finding it extremely difficult—even inconvenient, I dare acknowledge—to convey any message in a whisper. I was also the kind, who because of my adoration for books, tendered endless apologies for the unexpected delay in the return of those issued to me. Mzee Bbosa didn’t quite like this, and thanks to his chary reprimands, I wrought myself, for a while long enough to strike a lasting bond with him.
But there were other folks who breached the Code to unthinkable degrees. Some, I hear, were caught in their attempt to exploit the pleasures below their colleagues’ waists, especially after dusk, using the cover of fellow users with whom they shared the reading tables—numerous enough, or so the felons thought, to cram the then little Law Lib, as we were fond of calling it—only to be betrayed by their bodily reactions, or in fact, responses. The felons, of course, argued several defences (read: excuses) in their own favour, such as, “He/she is the one who started it all blah blah blah…” Are you kidding me?
You, too, I’m sure, can imagine how basic such a defence wonderfully crashes! The circumstances are rather grotty and grubby that nobody—not even the Vicar of Christ—would feel good about them the following day, when the sinners interface with him in any of the confession boxes at St. Peter’s Basilica, the holiest place on earth. The fact that they were caught in the act, you would also rule, makes it so much worse!
And so to such let-offs, Mzee Bbosa, an honourable man with a strong mind, affectionate spirit, parental attitude, and strict disposition, would implore the originators to exercise their individual geniuses better when theorising the circs of their fate, not least when they were aspiring to be fully-fledged members of the Ugandan Bar. There are, of course, several other tales of escapades in that Library to which many other users can attest, including the primary victims of circumstances (I, for obvious reasons, have to use this word somewhat sparingly) and their alleged torturers.
Seldom will any authority worth their salt find that the very act of wrongdoing (in flagrante delicto, as the Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago once remarked) relating especially, to sensual misconduct moreover in a public place was entirely committed by one party against the will/consent of the other. Some cases, in fact, are simpler to solve where the alleged victim sat on their rights, and even more nerve-wracking, continued from time to time to enjoy close proximity with their alleged torturer in spite of their tremendous knowledge of the torturer’s antecedents in that regard. It then becomes all too clear that both parties are at/in equal fault—put more aptly in legal speak as in pari delicto.
But I digress. Mzee Bbosa, we have since learned, was over two years ago diagnosed with a Carcinoid tumor, a cancerous condition that has taken a severe toll on his physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual health, necessitating exigent and recurrent medical attention that he mostly received at Nsambya Hospital, a private faith-based facility in Kampala.
Today, he visits Mulago Hospital, a public facility also in Kampala for dialysis at a bi-weekly cost of UGX 350,000 or UGX 700,000 per month without counting the transport fares and other hasty expenses. Funds can be directly sent to his MTN 0772630997 OR his AIRTEL 0701630997. This, truly, has been his plight since the beginning of the year. Frankly, it costs an arm and a leg to treat such malaise and its attendant conditions, the weightiest of them all in his case, kidney failure. Both his kidneys have since been ruled non-functional. Although kidney transplanting has been suggested, Bbosa and his family can hardly keep their heads above water, thus making the envisaged, much-needed, and important surgery plainly improbable. They, for instance, have to pay through the nose so as to afford Temozolomide and Capecitabine among other drugs prescribed for him.
There have, in the recent past, been drives by relatives, friends, UCU staff, and students in this regard. But as you can imagine, whatever yielded from such efforts has since been fast spent, hence this appeal to fellow Alumni and other well-wishers to bank on their goodwill for a refill.
For the Alumni, it certainly would do well for us to recall how, despite the shortage of reading resources and spaces, Bbosa and his colleagues—both senior and junior—managed from time to time to calm tensions midst particular students, who conceivably due to their inflated sense of entitlement, unheeded calls for indulgence, patience, and serenity. There were occasions, too, when some undergrads nearly came to blows with certain librarians, only for such situations to be salvaged by Mzee Bbosa’s calls for a ceasefire, counsel, and rarely, a reference to superiors.
To a great range, Mzee Bbosa enriched our degrees by vouching for the supply of particular texts very much sought-for by Law students and faculty. This, indeed, enhanced their gen, study, and understanding of pretty innumerable aspects of the law. Many students, in fact, demonstrated remarkable progress in their grades, intellectual curiosity, and poise, and in part, very much owe their good degrees to him.
Librarians, like others charged with enforcing the University’s Dress Standards for Students and Staff, 2007, including warning and turning away those who were inappropriately dressed, often courted insult by certain community members who felt well-placed to breach this particular Code. It stressed, among others, how “The reputation of a university depends, in part, on the first impression[s] which its [members] make”, hence the Uni’s “legitimate interest in [their] appearance.” Consequently, devoted wearers of casual attire could only be allowed in the library and lecture halls during all evenings and on Saturdays. Anyway, Mzee Bbosa and associates quite admirably endured the tirades, trusting that sooner than later the offenders would have a change of heart.
Finally, it is crucial to highlight the fact that Mzee Bbosa sympathised a great deal with the victims of the extremely stringent UCU Fees Policy, which to the then VC, Rev. Prof. Stephen Noll, and his instant heir, Rev. Canon Dr. John Senyonyi was non-negotiable! Truly, in the latter’s case, a rumour persists that sense was rather violently cabled into him by students who felt verily vexed by his “UCU is not for poor students…” remarks. Despite this experience, he would in subsequent years write that “The fees deadlines must be understood to be outside the mandate of the Guild President’s lobby…” Moments later, he would not only fib but also controvert himself thus: “I want to thank you, Mr. President that this time you have come up with a proposal concerning the payment of tuition fees. We have been asking the Guild, ‘Can you come up with a proposal?’ and nobody did anything…”
Evidently, it would only take a selfless man like Mzee Bbosa to risk his benefits as a Uni permanent staff, for instance, free tuition for up to four of his biological offspring, by empathising with us in spaces where the matter was being discussed in the hope that the ill-starred moniker, Uganda Commercial University that our Alma Mata had since been christened would soon be discarded. Unluckily, this hope fast died-out when Dr. Senyonyi publicly recapped to our disquiet how “UCU tuition fees is pocket change for my son studying architecture at Dar-es-Salaam…” What a remark of great heavenly quality by a devout churchman!
The writer is a Lawyer; jmwesigwas@gmail.com; @JMwesigwa_S
Do you want to share a story, comment or opinion regarding this story or others, Email us at newsdayuganda@gmail.com Tel/WhatsApp........0726054858
Discussion about this post