I first met the late John Ssebaana Kizito in April this year (2017) and much as I could visibly notice that he was aging (from his difficulty in walking and talking), he was so much alive, so fun, and so engaged in daily life that it was hard to predict or think that less than four months later he would be gone.
I don’t speak with a lot of grief at his passing on because I believe his life ought to be celebrated.
Born in 1934, the late has been a graduate of Makerere University and the University of Oregon in the US. He was the Kampala City Council (KCC) Mayor from 1999 to 2006 and President General of the Democratic Party (DP) from 2005 to 2010.
Not to mention constituent assembly member, leader of opposition and strong businessman. Surely, I think the nation doesnt just mourn but is grateful on the greater hand.
The late connected with people (especially university students) in an amazing way. He connected whether he knew you or didn’t know you. He was very nostalgic about Makerere University and held the students in very high regard because, I think, he saw a youthful version of him in them. On any day, he could afford a smile just at a mention of this great institution that shaped him.
The country should mourn though, because he has left a time when it most needs him. The deceased radiated honesty and commitment to his ideals, an inspiration that the nation could borrow from right now. He was so open and accessible that he made politics seem so natural and as good as breathing. At a time when changes like the ones the government wants to make to our constitution needed guidance and opinion from leaders of his calibre that have seen it all.
Changes like lifting of term limits, and the soon to be proposed ammendment of the age limit are entirely consistent with the late Ssebaana’s lifelong beliefs, political ideals and convictions. It is rather absurd that the majority proponents of changes like the lifting of the age limit are people that have only seen the regime after 1986.
John Ssebaana Kizito was active even in pre-independence Uganda.
The late was not just attached to Makerere in the nation. His radiant smile extended to all other institutions of higher learning in the nation either directly or indirectly through his businesses like State Wide Insurance Company (SWICO).
Notable among these universities is Ndejje University where he served as a member of the University Council.
His deeply held principles of democracy and transition that made him a superb politician at the city level, transferred brilliantly to national politics. And from the few wonderful conversations we had together, his candle doesnt completely go off, it burns in other lives – mine inclusive.
On behalf of the Uganda Young Democrats (UYD) Chapter of Makerere University and the students’ fraternity at large, our prayer is that the deceased finds comfort in the company of the Lord as his legacy continues to touch each and every individual, young and old alike in the service of our beautiful nation Uganda.
May his soul rest in eternal peace.
The writer is the UYD/DP Chairman at Makerere University.
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