Tribute to OB John Magezi by Dr. Frank Nabwiso

[Bernard Wanyama]

TRIBUTE TO THE ILLUSTRIOUS MAGEZI FAMILY FOR ITS CONTRIBUTIONS TO BUSOGA AND UGANDA

 
"Naye ggwe okoleddeki Uganda kasooka ova e Mwiri" (But you, what have you done for Uganda since you left Mwiri)", Ambrose John C. Mwanja Magezi asked me teasingly.
 
"What about you?” I replied immediately.
 
Then both of us laughed heartily as we left the 9th graduation site at Busoga University in Iganga on Friday, 30th September 2011.
 
We walked slowly with John’s wife, Lady Justice Anne Magezi (who had just relinquished her post as honorary Chancellor of Busoga University to Rt. Rv. Dr. Michael Sosan Kyomya (the current Bishop of Busoga). We went to the Busoga University Boardroom where we had lunch together with a number of distinguished personalities from within and outside Busoga,
 
After lunch, John handed me his business card in Kampala and asked me to visit him there, so that we could continue to reminisce about our past. But of course I did not; little did I know that he would be dead by 28th November 2011.
 
The question “what have you done for your country since you left Mwiri?” was always part of the greetings between John and me wherever we met. It originated from my own late father, Ezekyeri Kigya Bulima, who told me that Dr. Ernest Balintuma Kalibbala (Uganda’s first Ph. D holder) embarrassingly asked some body called Yafesi Iyundhu of Mutai village what he (Iyundhu) had done for Uganda after leaving King’s College Budo in the 1920s? According to my father, Iyundhu remained mute, while Dr. Kalibbala (who was then an adviser to Uganda Farmers’ Association) encouraged the Association to fight for independence. Kalibbala had obtained his Ph. D in Social Anthropology at the University of Yale in the late 1930’s.
 
John, the son of Aloni B. Magezi of Luuka became head prefect of Busoga College Mwiri for two years (1963 and 1964) when the school was transiting from an O-Level to an A-Level secondary school. And it was during his holiday in April-May 1964 that he stayed with me at Kyambogo College School where I was teaching at that time. It was also at Kyambogo that I told him about Dr. Kalibbala’s question and from that time, he always teased me about it.
 
After Mwiri, John joined a law course at Nsamizi from where he went to do his barrister studies at the University of London, where he met his dear wife Anne, and after their studies returned to Uganda in the early 1970s.
 
In 1977, John and his family lived next to me in Golf Course Estate on Ngong Road in Nairobi. I recall that our two families lived happily in exile, while hoping that we would one day return to Uganda, because we were sure that Idi Amin, like other dictatorial rulers, would fall by his own sword. It was also during this time that I noticed another quality in him (besides that of being humorous and generous). Although he used to talk little in our Nairobi Political Group meetingsk, he was one of the most organized minds. Towards the end of 1978, he suddenly left for Dar es Salaam and surprised me when he called me on phone and asked me to be sending once a week, a political talk which could be broadcast by “Mr. Majwala” in Luganda to Ugandans announcing the impending fall of Idi Amin. I complied by sending 15 minutes-talks based on “The Adventures of Don Quixote” the first novel in the world, which was written in the 16th Century by a Spaniard
called Cervantes. Don Quixote was a self-proclaimed knight who had an exaggerated opinion of his abilities and used to engage other people in mad adventures.
 
After the fall of Idi Amin in April 1979, John became a Member of the National Consultative Council (NCC), the then Parliament of Uganda and would have served as Deputy Minister of Commerce by President Lule if he (Lule) had not been overthrown after only 68 days in power.
 
In December 1980, John was elected MP for Luuka County and served diligently as one of the Secretaries of Jinja-Iganga-Kamuli (JIK) Organization which was established to coordinate UPC (Uganda Peoples Congress) socio-economic development activities in Busoga. But after the overthrow of the second UPC Government in July 1985, John decided to devote the rest of his time in private business.
 
John was one of the lawyers of the AES/Nile Power Company which wanted to build the Budhagali Dam in the mid 1990s. He, therefore, knew quite a lot about the Madhvani Family and its economic activities in Busoga and beyond. Before his death, he told me that he was contemplating writing about the Madhvani entrepreneurial acumen, as a follow-up on the late Muljibhai’s book.
 
John was one of the sons of the late Aloni Magezi who distinguished himself as a teacher at Mwiri during the 1930s and later as a chief during the 1940s up to independence time. Aloni was a guitarist and great singer, so it was not surprising that his son John was one of the founders of the Madrigal Musical Society at Mwiri in the early 1960s. Dr. Tuma, who is currently writing the history of Mwiri thinks that Aloni deserves more recognition for his contribution to the school than what has been accorded to him.
 
John’s brother, Daudi Subi Magezi also became Head Prefect of Mwiri in 1967 before he joined Makerere to study electrical engineering. When Amin expelled Asians in 1972, Daudi maintained the electrical engineering which he obtained from the University of Southampton in UK in the late 1970s.
 
Daudi became a Member of Parliament for Jinja East in 1989 and fearlessly ignited a debate in Parliament against selling off parastatals. Unfortunately, he passed away in 1995, leaving behind another gap in Busoga’s political private sector leadership.
 
May the souls of Aloni B. Magezi, Ambrose John Mwanja Magezi and Daudi Suubi Magezi rest in eternal peace.

By OB Dr. Frank Nabwiso

[Kazungu Apollo]

Such a well historically enriched piece of eulogy / tribute to a gallant son of Luuka, Mwiri, Busoga and Uganda. May his soul rest in peace.

 

KAZUNGU DAVID APOLLO

COMMISSIONER - REFUGEES  

OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER

MINISTRY OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND REFUGEES

P . O . BOX 341

Tel. 256- (0) 414 - 230758/68, Mob. 256-0772-411448

KAMPALA,UGANDA

 

"Let the works of my hands and words of my mouth live for glorification of His Name"

---

From: Bernard Wanyama <bwany...@gmail.com>
To: Mwiri Alumni <mwiri-...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 29, 2011 5:56 AM
Subject: [Mwiri Alumni] Tribute to OB John Magezi by Dr. Frank Nabwiso

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[ongom william]

Dr.Frank, the sad news of the death of John Magezi has hit some of us like a sledge hammer. --- On Tue, 11/29/11, Bernard Wanyama <bwany...@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Bernard Wanyama <bwany...@gmail.com> Subject: [Mwiri Alumni] Tribute to OB John Magezi by Dr. Frank Nabwiso

[Richard Adongu]

Dear OBs,

 

It is saddening to learn the passing away of an OB. I thank Dr. Frank Nabwiso for the enlightening eulogy.  I am very thankful for all the contribution that the late has done to Uganda during his life time. May God rest his soul Magezi in etrenal peace.

 

 

Richard Adongu

Hannington House (1983/85)

[kabaaiu deogratias]

Greetings to you all, protocol observed.

 

For some (if not MOST) of us to do anything for BCM, we should clearly define & respect THINK-TANK sessions & the re-known 'BU-MOLOS' (or; re-unions, dinners, fundraisings, open days, awarding ceremonies, bursaries and / or scholarships, open lectures etc.).

 

What an idea Mr. ADONGU Richard. An example is that attached doc. It c'd. be good for one to look @.

 

"Whatsoever you do to the least of My brothers, that you do unto Me ........................."