By Ivan Rugambwa
At 99 years, Mzee Ananiya Akera, ranks comfortably among the oldest Ugandans living today. But unlike most of his peers, he neither uses a walking stick nor does he wear glasses for walking and seeing respectively. For the University of East Africa, mzee Akera of very special significance. He is not only the University’s oldest alumnus, but also the man who attended class and shared a room with Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere; the first and still the only Chancellor of the University.
The University of East Africa came into existence on June 28th 1963 after the independence of the East African countries. Originally, it had first been known as a technical college, and later as a University college affiliated to the University of London in the United Kingdom. At its inauguration in 1963, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, the then president of the republic of Tanganyika, and an alumnus of the University became its first Chancellor. He has remained the only Chancellor of the University up to today, because on July 1st 1970, the University of East Africa was disbanded and gave birth to three independent Universities, one in each of the original three Independent East African countries that is Makerere University in Uganda, University of Nairobi in Kenya and Dar-es-salaam University in Tanzania.
On Saturday June 29th, hundreds of renowned scholars, diplomats, politicians and academics from around East Africa thronged Makerere University to commemorate 50 years since the formation of the University of East Africa as part of the year long celebrations to mark 90 years of Makerere University’s existence. The function was to also pay tribute to the university’s first Chancellor whom speaker after speaker spoke about in glowing terms as one of the most prominent and illustrious sons of Africa to have gone through the gates of the university.
In attendance were the Vice- Chancellors of the Universities of Makerere, Nairobi and Dar-es-salaam, renown Scholar, academic and writer Ngugi wa Thiongo (also an alumnus of the University), government officials; Hon. Jessica Alupo (minister of Education and Sports), and Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu who represented President Yoweri Museveni as Chief Guest. Prominent alumni of the university were also in attendance and included Prof. Apollo Nsibambi, a former student, lecturer and Chancellor of the University, Dr. Olara Otunnu a former Guild President of Makerere University and Hon. Mathew Rukikaire, who was the Guild president at the commissioning of The University of East Africa and also a former Chairman of the University Council among others.
The function also seemed to have aroused the spirit of East Africanness and the eminent need of an East African political Union which the University of East Africa in a way symbolized. Speaker after Speaker spoke about the symbolic nature of Makerere University as the region’s premier University and how it evoked the spirit of East Africanness as it attracted and nurtured students from all over the region.
Reminiscing about the creation of the University of East Africa in 1963, Mathew Rukikaire, the then Guild President noted, “we all hailed the leap forward in our speeches and passionately hoped that this would lead to the ‘promised land’ of an integration of East Africa.” Ngugi wa Thiongo in his keynote address also talked about how as students they had celebrated the independence of all The East African countries as a collective victory. He noted, “Tanzania and Uganda were the first (to be independent) but when finally Kenya came into the mix, we spilled the streets of Kampala and sang along with the masses of the three countries.” He added, “In our euphoria, we allowed ourselves to dream of an imminent East African union.” And as if in a conclusive remark one speaker asked, “Is it impossible to realize that dream?”
In his keynote address, Ngugi spoke of the significance of Makerere University to his literary career. “It was here on this hill that I wrote my first two novels, ‘Weep not Child’ and ‘The River Between’, and numerous short stories.” He said, before adding, “Makerere opened my imagination.” He also talked about the significance of Makerere hosting the first ever gathering of African writers in Africa that took place in 1962. “They had met anywhere else but in Africa, so Makerere was the first ever gathering of African writers in Africa.” He said before adding, “Thus if Makerere was the site ad symbol of East African intellectual community, it now marked the birth of literary Pan Africanism.” He also sought to question the tendency by western media and scholars to tribalise African issues arguing that, “The continued evaluation of events in Africa through the prism of the tribe masks and distorts the real issues driving African realities.” As he completed his presentation, the master of Ceremonies could not hide his elation at seeing Ngugi ‘live’ as he professed to have only seen him on the back of his novels before. The ‘tribe’ of Literature at Makerere university was also not to be left behind, and they presented their tribesman with a plaque, in recognition of his literary accomplishments.
It was then time to remember Mwalimu Julius Nyerere; the man, the president, the Pan Africanist, the Scholar, the alumnus and only chancellor of the University of East Africa. Nyerere the man was remembered as simple, humble and a devout Catholic who attended mass every day of his life. As a scholar and writer he was remembered for his Kiswahili translation of two literary works, i.e.; Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar which he named ‘Julius Kaisari’ and The Merchant of Venice which he named Mabepari wa Venice among others. His other book, Women Freedom; Women are Eagles, not Chickens was also launched and will be going for shs.20,000, whose proceeds will be used to help bright but poor female children to access education at Makerere University.
As a pan Africanist, Nyerere was also remembered for his efforts in ending white minority rule in South Africa, while others referred to him as an East African to the core, who helped unite Tanganyika and Zanzibar hence the birth of Tanzania and who championed the dream of a united East Africa going as far as proposing to delay Tanganyika’s independence until the other East African countries were ready for independence so that they would earn independence as one Political Federation. Rukikaire referred to him as ‘a departed doyen of Makerere alumni fraternity’ and that by the time of his death, ‘he had become an immortalized soul whose life and name are eternally inscribed in imperishable stone.’
The ‘three wise men’ as the three Vice Chancellors were famously referred to on their part talked about the urgent need by their respective governments to prioritize higher education with the Makerere University Vice-Chancellor, Prof.Ddumba Sentamu hailing the president’s efforts to promote research and technology at the University under the Presidential initiative for Science and Technology Scheme. They however mentioned insufficient funding especially to the tertiary institutions and the mismatch between the ever increasing demand for higher education and the limited capacity of the available institutions and resources to meet it as some of the impediments to attainment of quality higher education.
As the ceremony came to a close, memories of their student days at the University seemed to have taken the better of some of the renowned political opponents, as they seemed to have for a moment put aside their political differences to share in the merrymaking. Olara Otunnu- the Uganda Peoples’ Congress President ( visibly enjoying a break from his recent court tribulations) was seen sharing a light moment with some senior members of the state apparatus like Prof. Apollo Nsibambi and Rukikaire,- a scene that left revelers yearning for more.
The function was however poor on time keeping, ending at about 8pm instead of the scheduled 5 pm, even though the master of ceremonies sought to downplay the peoples’ anxiety by reminding them that they were attempting to ‘remember fifty years in five hours.’ The three Universities also made special recognition and awarded some of their prominent alumni, with the University of Dar-es-salaam nominating president Museveni for the award while Makerere University nominated former vice Chancellor prof. Livingstone Serwadda Lubbobi and former Education minister- Namirembe Bitamazire amongst their nominations for the awards.
At the closure of the function, music played as people struggled for a feel and handshake of Ngugi wa Thiongo, while for others, memories came to the fore as they reminisced about the old student days as Ugandans, Kenyans and Tanzanians rubbed shoulders in a scene that seemed to suggest that after decades of separation, East Africans had finally found a home in Makerere University. Indeed for a moment, the borders and the thousands of miles that stood between them seemed to have been defied and for those brief moments, the elusive union seemed at last a reality. And who knows, perhaps Makerere can become the catalyst for this Union.
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