THE CHURCH MOUSE. “Man, there is a lot of freedom beyond your imagination. There is no gate or any security to restrain your movements so you can choose to either go to class or not. Luckily, the books are so easy and so you can even pass without reading. Of course, it is common knowledge that there is no dressing up in any uniforms so you can always choose to dress up the way you want. Socially, there is a lot of fun and you can even choose to go clubbing on a daily basis. It is ok to get drunk and nobody will ever question you. Then, the number of girls is far more than the number of boys. In fact it is a ratio of 3:1. As a result, the girls usually starve and often end up proposing to boys themselves. If you are smart at the game, you can even “play” five (5) girls and they never get to know. Basically, it is a different and fun life that can never be described in words” were the words I heard from Timo (not real names), a University student that had come back in our village for his end of first semester holiday after asking him about how life at campus was. At the time, I was still in high school looking forward to joining campus and so had to know how life KASHOZI (Makerere University) was. Just like any other young man, I got excited about his response and couldn’t wait to see all that with my two (2) eyes. Nonetheless, stepping at campus was not that easy given that A` level examinations were tight and so I had to use extra effort. Indeed, I burnt the mid night oil thought A` level, wrote my exams and once the results were released by Mathew Bukenya (secretary of Uganda National Examinations board) in march 2005, I found out that I had passed so with flying colours. The president and his cabinet sat in a crucial meeting at the state house and decided that my efforts could only rewarded by footing my university tuition and accommodation fees. Of course, my parents had no objection to this decision and so in august of the same year, I reported at campus as an expectant fresher. In the first week, I was thrilled about everything I saw and it felt as if I had stepped on another planet. The people, climate, buildings, cars etc were totally different and so I knew that I was in for a good deal. A week later, classes began but what I saw was so different from what I expected. The students were so many and getting a seat was a struggle. Thus, one had to always wake up so early and ensure that he is at the lecture room by 7.00pm. Back to primary School! Then, the lecturers immediately gave us hard assignments commonly known as course works and so one had to start up reading right away which was also not expected. As for the daily clubbing, it wasn’t that possible given that shopping for my ka room had drained all the money I had on me and so was broke in the first weeks. The girls were there in plenty, in all sizes, tribes and colours but they were simply too sharp for me. To me, all of them were minding their own businesses and so approaching them was not easy. Besides they looked expensive and so for anyone to date any of them, he had to be ready to cough money. So since I was as poor as a church mouse, I had to KUSIMIRA HAMUTIMA NKENKONE (admiring from the heart like a castrated goat). …. When it came to the Dining hall aka Mess, it was even worse. Makerere University Business School (MUBS) used to serve meals to all government sponsored students. Residents were always served lunch and supper whereas non residents were only served lunch. I happened to be a non resident and so was only entitled to lunch. Unfortunately, the dining hall was small and couldn’t take in all the students at once. Getting inside there for lunch was different story. The day they would prepare fish or chicken, it would be a struggle for the fittest. Before the hall could be opened, students would pile in front of the door slowly but surely. The moment it would be opened, it would be a scramble. Whereas I thought that campusers were mature, what I saw was unthought-of. Managers (as we used to refer to ourselves) would forget about everything else and push each other left, side and center to ensure that they entered first. To make it worse, girls were not left behind. They would also participate in the fights like there is no tomorrow. That is when I discovered that what a man can do, a woman can do and therefore, there is no need for affirmative action. As you know very well, “WAZA MUBADYA ESHWEHERA, NIWE ORAKOZA” (If you visit a place and you find the hosts eating flies, you also join the table). I immediately adjusted, threw away the gentleman in me and joined the battle for food. The good thing at the mess was that whoever fought tactfully and most would be rewarded with eating first and vice verse. In fact, the last people always missed out on food. It is not any different from the battle of life. If one is to achieve a lot genuinely, he also has to be willing to participate in the scramble for opportunities since the winner usually takes it first and all.
Posted on: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 07:39:07 +0000
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