Uganda is a country that Sir Winston Churchill referred to as “The Pearl of Africa” in 1907 during his travels to tour Uganda. The country has gone through many tremendous changes in the economic, social and political spheres of life. Uganda offers such a varied experience ranging from British colonial rule, dictatorial regimes and a wide range of civil wars, as well as modern democracy. What you see and experience is only limited by your imagination and sense of adventure. Jenkins Kiwanuka is one of the people who has witnessed these changing situations in the country. In his book titled “The Son of a Ratcatcher”, he shares his memoir, the memoir of one of Uganda’s exceptionally talented journalists who became a noted public relations officer and diplomat in the Foreign Service. from Uganda. A man with no full formal education, this ‘son of a rat catcher’ presents us with a story of great determination, hard work and self-confidence, thus fulfilling the advertiser’s comment that ‘when you follow your passion, success follows. ‘. In his own words, Prof. Samwiri Lwanga-Lunyiigo describes them as memoirs of ‘a tailor, carpenter, builder, clerk, journalist, politician, public relations professional, diplomat and business executive’. “It’s that versatility,” says the professor, “that allowed Kiwanuka to reach the age of sixteen.
Son of a Rat Catcher, although relatively small, is almost everything in life. There is so much to read and wonder about: the very humble beginnings of Kiwanuka; how higher education was lost; how he went from working (as a clerk) at the King’s African Rifles to journalism, foreign service, journalism again, then business as an executive and progressed from that phase to his current working life as a newspaper columnist and author.
Who did you not meet and where did you not visit in your long service in both public and private services? He rubbed elbows (literally) with such figures as Prime Ministers Harold Wilson of Britain, Holyoake of New Zealand, and India’s Indira Gandhi (who served him a glass of water when he fell asleep at a conference), Pope John Paul II (now Saint), Sir Andrew Cohen (former Governor of Uganda whom he drove), Chairman Mao Tse Tung of China, and many others.
As for his exploits in the foreign service, in addition to serving in the Foreign Office at home, he served in our missions in London, Washington DC, New York, Ottawa, Bonn and the Vatican. He wrote tributes to a large number of people who passed away and those of Pope John Paul II, Abubakar Mayanja, Daudi Taliwaku, Dan Zirimenya and James Namakajjo are part of the book.
Kiwanuka ends her book with 20 ‘Reflections’, which are fascinating to read. In fact, if there is a section of the memoirs that the reader should reread, this is surely it. There are many lessons to be learned from these memoirs, the most prominent being that if you have a passion for your life and determination and self-confidence, blue skies are your limit.
This is an extraordinary story of an extraordinary life told by a man with an extraordinary pen at his disposal. I have read many memoirs in my life, but these are among the best I have come across.