Thrown in the Desert Island: How Bravo Shoes Community Support Discovered a Soul Born Out of Incest

If this was a well-kept secret, it is an elephant. Tracing the innocent young victim of circumstance and saving him from the cocoon of conservativeness and fire judgement, was not for the heart fainted.

On our journey to Budaka, roads led us to Kavule Village Kakoli Subcounty where we tracked a family with suspicions of incest incidence which led to a new unusual human being at home, let’s call him JOHN to avoid stigma.

Incest is an inappropriate sexual activity within the family. It includes relationships between the father and children, the mother and children, brothers and sisters, grandparents and grandchildren, and uncles and aunts with nephews and nieces. The average age of incest victims is approximately 11 years old, with the majority of victims experiencing their first encounter between the ages of 5 and 8. Incest is rarely a one-time incident.

It evolves over time into various types of sexual activity. Incestuous families typically lack social skills and are often isolated from contact with community organizations and other families. The parents are usually not happy with themselves or with each other.

By Ugandan standards, you would expect people to have big hearts. They are welcoming, warm-hearted, and hospitable people who not only give a place on their dining table but have loads of respect for their guests as well.

On reaching Kavule, it was the opposite, the Bravo Shoes Community Support Team was welcomed with interrogations and suspicious eyes. Usually, there is no road in the home according to the African setting but this was the opposite. Something here was not going right!

With courtesy we identified ourselves and why we had come.

“How are you,” Yesigye Bravo greeted a young man in a white sleeve with shots. Did he respond positively with an intriguing question? On why we are here!  Before Madina Nawula the 48-year-old grandmother and the head of the homestead came into the picture.

Where is John? They bring John, a 7-year-old boy!

How are you, John? Am fine, he replies

Do you want to go to school; he says yes! Before his grandmother shows up!

“Am the grandmother, his mum is not home, she got married elsewhere. We don’t know the father of John but I can’t abandon him,” she said before explaining the circumstances which forced her daughter to disappear from home.

The family of sixteen members lost a father a few years ago. It has homesteads with the main home and seven other grass-thatched houses belonging to grown-up youths.

One of John’s uncles Maki Abubakar said that his sister, Aisa Naula got pregnant between 2012 and 2013 while she was in Primary 7.

“She got at 16 years, she got ashamed because she still in school and decided to keep quiet on who is responsible for the pregnancy. She didn’t tell us, when they press her, she said she will commit suicide if they keep asking her,” Maki explained.

However, neither Madina nor Maki rule out the possibility of incest unfortunately for her according to the family, Aisa refused to speak up and went on to get married where she gave birth to 3 other children before she left that marriage to go and exile herself in Kampala.

“We left her and we chose to take care of the kid. We have never seen anyone claiming paternity,” Madina explained with concern.

Asked if the cases are common in Budaka, Madina further explained in the affirmative without ruling out that her stepdaughter could have been the victim as well.

“These cases are common here; it could be true but we have no proof yet. People here do these things,” she added.

In order to confirm this allegation, the Bravo Shoes Community Support Organisation team headed to the Town Council where we caught up with the area LC 1 Chairperson Changu Yakobo.

Yakobo confirmed that in his village of over 800 people, some incest cases have been reported and some of them have been handled in secrecy within the family because people are over-congested in the houses.

“We asked the girl but she said she doesn’t know the owner of the pregnancy. We tell our families to be responsible, where we get cases like these, we punish them. I have so far handled one case in my office in the last 8 years but that doesn’t mean they don’t happen,” he said

Yacobo was happy with the BCSO gesture of taking John to school and applauded the organisation and its efforts to change communities.

John will be taken care of by the Bravo Shoes Community Support Organisation team and the school will be identified soon. He dropped out of school during Covid 19 lockdown and he has since not been able to return to difficulties surrounding him.

Recently media reported, a family in Mbale -Eastern Uganda was in turmoil following allegations of incest between a prominent sheikh and his daughter.

Mariam Nagudi accused her husband Sheikh Abdul Karimu Ssemakula of neglecting her and shifting his affection to his 17-year-old daughter Halima Namakula (not a real name).

Under Section 149 of the Penal Code Act, incest is an offence punishable by 7 years in prison. however, if the other person is below 18 years old, the sentence is life in prison. The section stipulates that a person commits incest if they have sexual intercourse with another person with whom, they are biologically related.

The 2014 Annual Police and Traffic Report shows that in 2014, there was an increase of 25 cases of incest compared to 2013. 57 cases were reported in 2014 and 32 in 2013.

In 2017, Police has recorded up to 13 cases of incest in its office in Namutumba district in Eastern Uganda. However, elders say that many of these cases are not reported to the police.

 

Pinky, Sam Bright MUHINDO’s Best Friend Swears in as new Head Girl at King Solomon Junior School

Blessed with a morning shore, Friday 24th was a day to cherish, the Bravo Shoes Ambassador took to the pulpit and made a historical oath to take a charge of over 600 students at King Solomon Junior School in Bulenga, Mityana Road.

Charlene ‘Pinky’ Irunga Kwikiriza a Primary 5 student sworn in as the new incoming Head Girl in the warm company of Sam Bright MUHINDO, the Bravo Shoes Community Support Organisation (BSCSO) Education Ambassador, who was a special guest of honor.

“I, Charlene Irunga Kwikiriza, solemnly swear to serve as a prefect, performing my duties without fear or favor. I will abide by all the school rules and regulations as well as act as a good example to all my fellow pupils, so help me God.” She signed out.

They say that leadership comes from God, this teaches that legitimate leaders have authority, in the sense of a right to direct others regardless of their weight or height.

The story of King Solomon in the Bible, book of 1st Kings is interesting, it demonstrates how seemingly a personality and character can transform someone into a responsible person.

According to 1 Kings 3:7-12, “Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern these great people of yours?”

The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this.  So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice,  I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.

This is the character of Pinky, a 9-year-old charming loving girl, with the embodiment of a distinguished leader and a selfless unselfish being flowing in her veins and blood.

Name someone who cares deeply about others’ well-being but not for their own? I will bring you Pinky

“Specifically, Pink is a person whose only purpose is to help others, not caring about what happens to herself (physically or otherwise), though without actively seeking pain but feeling the pain of others,” said Anne Kaka, the mother of Charlene as she described Pinky.

There are no words that can describe her gratitude towards her daughter but through this essay, I will describe some of the characteristics that make her own role model.

Pinky has already shown this by raising Sam Bright MUHINDO as a young brother by holding his hand from the dungeons of life Bwera- Kyasenda, Kasese District in Western Uganda.

It was an important day in the history of the school and in the life of young Pinky and the day attracted the cameras from KSTV, a local television station.

Sam Bright MUHINDO as a guest of honor had the best gift for his elder sister, he gave his signature dance tune and left the students in amazement with a crowd chanting with imitations.

Sam Bright MUHINDO did not stop at that but he gifted his friend with a customized water bottle bearing a picture of Pinky. It was such a surprise! Before he took snacks in the spirit of appreciation and congratulating his hero.

“Pinky is my best friend, her school is King Solomon Junior School and my School is Namuwaya Education Center, end of quotes Sam Bright MUHINDO told his South African-based friend on a what’s App call after the event.

Charlene ‘Pinky’ Irunga Kwikiriza said that former Woman Member of Parliament Kasese District and NTV’s Farida Nakazibwe her role models who inspire her a lot and hoping to meet Nakazibwe one day after getting a chance to meet with Hon. Winnie Kiiza.

Pinky was able to gift her best friends Christine and Samantha and the Head Prefect with a pair of Bravo Shoes each a gesture that left them speechless.

Her best subject is Science and when it comes to food, KFC is her favorite at any time.

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