A bundle of five joys
Mar 23, 2008
THE news of twins in Uganda is greeted with ululations, sumptuous feasts, gifts, floods of wine and erotic moonlight dances. Everybody is welcome to whisper their wishes, dreams and desires. Just name it — twins are believed to have the powers to give or take anything away from you.
By Titus Kakembo
THE news of twins in Uganda is greeted with ululations, sumptuous feasts, gifts, floods of wine and erotic moonlight dances. Everybody is welcome to whisper their wishes, dreams and desires. Just name it — twins are believed to have the powers to give or take anything away from you.
For Swalique Mudodo in Jinja the birth of quintuplets by his wife, Dorothy Namunana, 27 was greeted with a shriek. “As a boda boda (bicycle operator) where would I get money to buy four nappy buckets, two twin cots and 100 cloth nappies?†recounts Swalique. “I even contemplated fleeing from my home.â€
Today, Mudodo says the twins have transformed the couple’s social and economic lifestyles. “There are so many challenges,†says Sowalique, the polygamous husband with nine other children.
Unfortunately one of the twins died before she was even given a name. Traditionally the demise of twins is not referred to as death. They simply “disappearâ€. He still wonders whether her death was caused by him having greeted the news of the quintuplets with anguish.
“I got the message on phone that I had become Salongo (father of twins).†Before he could contain that, another caller informed him that Namunana had got another pair. And by moon rise the number had shot to five.
This is when he cried: “My wife you have killed me.†Now determined to save the lives of the prematurely born Sowali, Fatina, Sarah and Zaituni – Swalique quit the boda boda trade to lend a hand.
A psychatrists advised him to take his wife Namunana for walks because she needs both psychological and physical healing. But with two other wives, this is a luxury he cannot afford.
“That will mean I have to do the same to the others or I risk rivalry in my family,†says Swalique who treats his harem equally by sleeping in every wife’s hut for seven days a month. Since their birth this family’s fame, fortune and needs have skyrocketed.
On the streets of Jinja and at the Mosque, Swalique enjoys celebrity status. He is called owabatano (father of five).
However, Namunana also has her challenges. “For the first week I was completely alone with the five as my husband was out trying to make money.†She stubbornly refused any help trying to be a super mom: “I wanted to prove to my husband that I can singly change their nappies, feed and bathe them.
They are my absolute joy. I believe they are a gift from God.†However, she does not have enough breast milk to satisfy them all. Kind hearts have donated toys, used clothes, baby food and money.
With help from Uganda Twin Association and a kind heart Basajja Baka in Buwekula, the burdened couple has since developed a system to cater for the children.
The couple are being accommodated by Baka who says their bed sit house Namasiiga village was too small to contain the four children a care taker and their parents.
Toyota Uganda, National Housing Corporation, Uganda Soya and Fairway Hotel have pooled resources to help the couple cope with their challenges.
THE news of twins in Uganda is greeted with ululations, sumptuous feasts, gifts, floods of wine and erotic moonlight dances. Everybody is welcome to whisper their wishes, dreams and desires. Just name it — twins are believed to have the powers to give or take anything away from you.
For Swalique Mudodo in Jinja the birth of quintuplets by his wife, Dorothy Namunana, 27 was greeted with a shriek. “As a boda boda (bicycle operator) where would I get money to buy four nappy buckets, two twin cots and 100 cloth nappies?†recounts Swalique. “I even contemplated fleeing from my home.â€
Today, Mudodo says the twins have transformed the couple’s social and economic lifestyles. “There are so many challenges,†says Sowalique, the polygamous husband with nine other children.
Unfortunately one of the twins died before she was even given a name. Traditionally the demise of twins is not referred to as death. They simply “disappearâ€. He still wonders whether her death was caused by him having greeted the news of the quintuplets with anguish.
“I got the message on phone that I had become Salongo (father of twins).†Before he could contain that, another caller informed him that Namunana had got another pair. And by moon rise the number had shot to five.
This is when he cried: “My wife you have killed me.†Now determined to save the lives of the prematurely born Sowali, Fatina, Sarah and Zaituni – Swalique quit the boda boda trade to lend a hand.
A psychatrists advised him to take his wife Namunana for walks because she needs both psychological and physical healing. But with two other wives, this is a luxury he cannot afford.
“That will mean I have to do the same to the others or I risk rivalry in my family,†says Swalique who treats his harem equally by sleeping in every wife’s hut for seven days a month. Since their birth this family’s fame, fortune and needs have skyrocketed.
On the streets of Jinja and at the Mosque, Swalique enjoys celebrity status. He is called owabatano (father of five).
However, Namunana also has her challenges. “For the first week I was completely alone with the five as my husband was out trying to make money.†She stubbornly refused any help trying to be a super mom: “I wanted to prove to my husband that I can singly change their nappies, feed and bathe them.
They are my absolute joy. I believe they are a gift from God.†However, she does not have enough breast milk to satisfy them all. Kind hearts have donated toys, used clothes, baby food and money.
With help from Uganda Twin Association and a kind heart Basajja Baka in Buwekula, the burdened couple has since developed a system to cater for the children.
The couple are being accommodated by Baka who says their bed sit house Namasiiga village was too small to contain the four children a care taker and their parents.
Toyota Uganda, National Housing Corporation, Uganda Soya and Fairway Hotel have pooled resources to help the couple cope with their challenges.