Saturday, June 19, 2010
Friday, June 11, 2010
When Idi Amin visited St. Mary's College Kisubi
Late Idi Amin’s Visit to SMACK (1970)
Idi Amin as Commander and Chief of Defence Staff (Uganda Armed Forces) visited the school. He came with his officers for two reasons:
1) To offer condolences for the 12 boys who had lost their lives in a road accident involving an army lorry and the school truck.
2) To interest the students to join the National Army as Officer Cadets.
When Idi Amin was taken around, he saw mounted skeletons in the Biology Laboratory. He made an offer of bones of a Tiger for mounting. Mr Sebastian Nsubuga says that, “the dead Tiger’s carcass was brought to him. He removed some of the flesh and put the remains in water to facilitate the rotting. Thereafter, the remaining flesh got off easily, them he used glue to stick the bones together and them the skeleton was put in the current infrastructure.”
It is alleged that the Tiger killed a warden by the name of Matovu at Entebbe Zoo (Uganda Wildlife Education Centre) as he gave it food. It is then that the animal was shot, and eventually the bones donated by Idi Amin to SMACK.
Developments at St. Mary's College Kisubi during Brother Kyemwa's time
The developments during Brother Kyemwa’s time include:
1) As the White Brothers got phased out slowly, there was a challenge to build staff houses for the non – Brother Teachers, hence the construction of the staff quarters found along SMACK Road. These were strategically located at the school land borders. In addition, he expanded, those houses, which existed from accommodating 2 teachers to four, by adding two extensions on each structure.
2) He bought a bus for the school in replacement of the Lorry, which had been involved in an accident in 1964. This innovation excited students very much.
3) A modern Electrically Operated Kitchen was built to replace the firewood one.
4) More Classrooms were built (the two blocks behind the Main Administration Block), the Agriculture block, the Bursar’s block and the 2nd HSc dormitory (near Mugwanya and Kiwanuka Dormitories).
5) A Parlour for the students was built (currently it is the school canteen).
6) A cement/concrete basketball court at the western end of the main athletic field was made, it was offered by an American Peace Corp Teacher’s family.
7) The school uniform was re-established consisting of a white shirt and Grey trousers supplied at the school. Sports uniforms were also supplied according to house colours and badges. Navy blue shorts with golden lining on either side were added for all students.
8) House Masters slept in their houses using the central dormitory cubicles between the two wings of each dormitory. These lived closer to the members of their houses as a family.
9) Every Wednesday, sick students would be accompanied by the school nurse in the school bus to Entebbe Hospital where they would be treated free of charge.
10) Interschool dances Sosh were normally held during daytime to avoid traveling at night due to rampant acts of insecurity during the 1970’s.
11) A second Water tank was put up.
12) The school excelled in Sports.
13) St. Mary’s College maintained academic excellence in the country.
“Assumed Right of Way”
A personal account by Brother Anthony Kyemwa of one of the challenges he had as Headmaster during the Late President Idi Amin’s time.
One morning in the 1970’s, a soldier in Army Uniform came to the Headmaster’s Office at St. Mary’s College. He wanted to force me to bring back a student whom I had sent home indefinitely because of gross misconduct pending the next Board of Governors meeting. He made his way past a number of students waiting at the Headmaster’s Office and closed the door behind him.
He then inquired from me about the boy in question whom he said was at his residence at Entebbe Military Barracks. He wanted him back into the school immediately. I asked if he was the parent or a relative of the boy. He retorted saying that he had come from the Intelligence Military Wing. I told him that he had taken a wrong procedure. He would have to go through his Commander to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence who would, in turn, talk to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, down to the proper officer who would finally contact me about the matter at hand.
He told me that the Intelligence Military men had “right of way” to anyone in the country! He followed his statement by picking up the telephone to speak to his officers. I was quick to ask him whether or not he would foot the bill of the call, because all school expenses had to be accounted for. Without answering my inquiry, he went ahead and pretended to be talking to somebody at the other end. I asked him for his identity card and he handed me one from the pocket of his trousers. I read his name and the number of the card. The moment I started writing down the information, he snatched it away from me. I thought that was a weakness on his part. He told me as he went out that Johnny must be back in school the following day!
I quickly wrote down his name and number of the identity card he had just shown me and called up the officer concerned at the Ministry of Education to inform him about the incident. He blamed me for letting the Military man into my office to which I answered that he had forced himself into my office.
He asked me if I had taken down any information about him and I gave him the above information. I also described his hands, which bore white scars like somebody burnt by fire or acid.
After several weeks, the soldier was brought to my office; his wrists cuffed and between two military men and an officer who had led them. The officer asked the would-be prisoner to repeat what he had ordered me to do about the student I had sent home. The victim did not give any answer; instead he bent his head and looked at the floor. The officer apologized for the intrusion of the soldier in school matters, and the group walked out.
One morning in the 1970’s, a soldier in Army Uniform came to the Headmaster’s Office at St. Mary’s College. He wanted to force me to bring back a student whom I had sent home indefinitely because of gross misconduct pending the next Board of Governors meeting. He made his way past a number of students waiting at the Headmaster’s Office and closed the door behind him.
He then inquired from me about the boy in question whom he said was at his residence at Entebbe Military Barracks. He wanted him back into the school immediately. I asked if he was the parent or a relative of the boy. He retorted saying that he had come from the Intelligence Military Wing. I told him that he had taken a wrong procedure. He would have to go through his Commander to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence who would, in turn, talk to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, down to the proper officer who would finally contact me about the matter at hand.
He told me that the Intelligence Military men had “right of way” to anyone in the country! He followed his statement by picking up the telephone to speak to his officers. I was quick to ask him whether or not he would foot the bill of the call, because all school expenses had to be accounted for. Without answering my inquiry, he went ahead and pretended to be talking to somebody at the other end. I asked him for his identity card and he handed me one from the pocket of his trousers. I read his name and the number of the card. The moment I started writing down the information, he snatched it away from me. I thought that was a weakness on his part. He told me as he went out that Johnny must be back in school the following day!
I quickly wrote down his name and number of the identity card he had just shown me and called up the officer concerned at the Ministry of Education to inform him about the incident. He blamed me for letting the Military man into my office to which I answered that he had forced himself into my office.
He asked me if I had taken down any information about him and I gave him the above information. I also described his hands, which bore white scars like somebody burnt by fire or acid.
After several weeks, the soldier was brought to my office; his wrists cuffed and between two military men and an officer who had led them. The officer asked the would-be prisoner to repeat what he had ordered me to do about the student I had sent home. The victim did not give any answer; instead he bent his head and looked at the floor. The officer apologized for the intrusion of the soldier in school matters, and the group walked out.
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