The girl who rode a bicycle to school

______________

WHAT’S UP!

It started as one of those memes that social media loves so much, but it quickly spiralled into something more. Hopefully, it will end well for the young girl who was filmed riding a bicycle in the rain on the streets of Kabale.

Children in Uganda, especially girls, suffer all kinds of difficulties in their daily lives, as pointed out by many people. I am not sure how this story will pan out, but I really hope Angel Blessing (what’s her Kiga name?) ends up like Henry Kiyimba, who was mocked for arriving at Makerere University with an iron suitcase, but is now working as an engineer.

What fascinated me about this story is the different ways that Ugandans reacted to it. If there is a PhD student looking for a dissertation topic, here is one for you.

As far as I can tell, the video clip was first posted on TikTok, probably as a curiosity, the way that platform rolls. Then, a one Kwikiriza reposted on X (formerly Twitter), with his main concern being that the girl should not be riding a bicycle. His solution? Fundraise for a bodaboda to take her to school. He proposed that funding should be for at least a year and extended if necessary (The irony is, it turned out Blessing’s father is a bodaboda rider).

Kwikiriza seemed to suggest that young girls should not be riding bicycles; it was not ‘proper’. The reactions came thick and fast, with some insisting the girl was safer riding a bicycle herself than trusting a bodaboda guy.

One said that Blessing was a Mukiga; their girls are tough and routinely ride bicycles up and down Kigezi’s steep hills. So, nothing new or special about that.

Another, very typical Ugandan, said the girl should have waited, until the rain stopped, and then continued to school. That is so typically Ugandan, for everything stops when it rains and in many circles, it is an accepted reason for showing up late (reminds me of the pre-Uber days, when I was caught up by the rain. I called a cab guy to pick me up, and he said: “But it’s raining!”

Another insisted that the girl is a ‘planned kid’, that is why she is riding a bike when others are walking barefoot for tens of kilometres, come rain or shine. Someone else suggested that politicians should give up their helicopters to Blessing (in Kenya, a politician would have probably shown up in a helicopter to deliver new tyres for Blessing’s bicycle)…

Then enters Simon Kasumba. His intellect has never impressed me, for he usually says things before he thinks them through (some wag said he then should be in government, for that’s what folks there do). He said that there is nothing wrong with a girl riding a bicycle, that in fact they should get Blessing a sports bike to make it easier on the hills, and offered to buy a bicycle for any girl who would rather ride herself to school than be taken by a bodaboda.

Amidst all the bombast, Kasumba did have a point: There should be nothing wrong with a girl riding a bicycle. In fact, Kwikiriza was accused of being a male chauvinist, trying to determine what is right or wrong for the female gender.

But the real winner was Sheila Gashumba. Yeah, that Sheila Gashumba. She got in contact with Blessing’s family and offered to pay the girl’s school fees in a boarding school until she completed school. Of course, Ugandans on Twitter (UOT) jumped on that and accused her of all kinds of nefarious things. And apparently, some religious leaders also stepped in, maybe they also wanted in, probably held prayers and fundraising.

What impressed me was Sheila’s response. She explained that she wants to help the girl not because of poverty, but because of Blessing’s “… resilience and determination! Imagine what she can do if she is empowered!!!”

And therein is the real point in this whole saga, the noise from UOT notwithstanding. There are literally millions of young Ugandan children going through worse trials than Blessing to get to school, and dozens of photos and videos were posted showing exactly that. Some featured children younger than five years walking to school while it was still dark; one, especially touching, showed five children perched on one bodaboda being ridden to school.

What is different about Blessing is that ‘resilience and determination’ that Sheila mentioned, some might say even fearlessness. I have no idea if all Bakiga girls are like that, but how many other children would have waited for the rain to stop, and the class teacher would have readily accepted the excuse, ‘it was raining’?

For whatever reason, Blessing decided to ride through the rain, trailers and bad taxi drivers be darned! That is what sets her apart, and with the right opportunities, she will most likely get very far.

In fact, maybe the Old Budonians Club should think of offering her one of those scholarships set aside for promising, but disadvantaged children. Hopefully, her school marks match her determination. For she has done very much for herself, but still has a lot more to do.

Gakyali Mabaga.