I survived the ghastly Katuna road accident
Jun 16, 2005
POPULARLY known as Kawonawo, he cuts a firm and reserved figure. He has a magnetic personality and is good at cracking jokes.
By Arthur Baguma
POPULARLY known as Kawonawo, he cuts a firm and reserved figure. He has a magnetic personality and is good at cracking jokes. He is a jolly, happy-go-lucky fellow with passion for evangelism. Like a seasoned preacher, he punctuates his conversations with quotations from the Bible.
His nickname was coined after a brush with death two years ago in a nasty road accident, which claimed 64 people. This was after a successful preaching mission in Rwanda where he converted hundreds.
With a piercing gaze, Steven Senkeezi paces up and down the corridors of the Law Development Centre, Makerere University.
As he discusses his near death experience, the smart student affords a smile. He greets everyone he meets in the corridors.
Senkeezi, the survivor of the grisly 2003 accident on Kabale-Katuna road, went into a coma for over two weeks before recovering miraculously. He suffered from amnesia for over two weeks following the accident. On the fateful day, Senkeezi was rushed to Kabale Referral Hospital, before being transferred to Mulago Hospital.
Just as I am ambushing him for the interview, a young man with a fat nose — who I later learn is called Kayanja, intercepts us.
“Have you heard of another accident which killed 30 people in Katuna? It is a miracle for you to be alive today,†Kayanja says.
Donning a black suit with a white shirt and a matching necktie, he puts on a sad look and plunges into deep thought before narrating his miraculous healing two years ago.
“I don’t suffer any nightmares or hallucinations. My healing was miraculous. Actually, the police report indicated that I was dead,†Senkeezi says.
When Senkeezi reminisces the day he got saved at the age of six, I realise the amnesia is perhaps no more for the young man whose memory is now as sharp as it were before the accident. His face is familiar to every person at the Law Development Centre. The medium-sized student of dark complexion speaks in a low tone.
Following the accident, Senkeezi realised long after leaving hospital that he was involved in a grisly accident, which claimed 64 people on the spot in 2003.
“I am the only survivor who never got any fracture. It was a miracle. I went into coma for weeks but I am back on my two feet and normal,†he says.
After his final exams at Makerere University in 2003, Steven Senkeezi travelled to Rwanda on a preaching mission. On his way back, he was involved in the accident. He had postponed his travel several times before opting to travel on the fateful day.
Last week, the same road claimed 30 people in another horrific accident. Senkeezi was shocked when he got wind of the sad news through a friend in Kabale.
“Recollecting what happened in 2003, I prayed the whole night, but I woke up to screaming newspaper headlines reporting a death toll of 30. It’s a pity that we continue to lose people because of human error,†a sad looking Senkeezi says.
Minutes before the 10:00am accident in 2003, Senkeezi had called a friend in Kampala and chatted about his successful ministry in the country that witnessed a genocide that left close to one million people dead. The next thing he knew, he was at a pastor’s home in Entebbe, about six weeks after the accident.
“He lost his senses and regained his memory after three weeks. He couldn’t recall anything after recovering,†says Pastor Joseph Kibirige of RUN Bible Church and Ministries.
A medical report from Dr Hussein Senyonjo of Mulago Hospital indicated he suffered from retrograde amnesia, blood clots and teeth problems as a result of the accident.
“My teeth became sensitive to both hot and cold things. I had to go for a root canal operation. All this time I missed chocolate,†he says with a chuckle.
He graduated in November 2003 with a Bachelors of Laws degree.
His turning point in life was in 1986 when at the age of six, he gave his life to Christ. Pastor Joseph Kibirige came to preach in their home and the small boy turned to Christ in the presence of his family members. He gave his life to Christ and since then he has never looked back.
His grandfather was one of the first Christian leaders in the Pentecostal movement — the late Ezra Kikonyogo — who was a member of Makerere Full Gospel Church.
“My pastors have been my biggest inspiration; they counselled me and helped me in all situations. When you read the police report, I was dead. The driver of our bus was in the other vehicle. The accident made me realise that it’s just a miracle that my life was spared. God really cares about me and treasures me,†Senkeezi says.
He was a leader all his school days. At the Law Development Centre, he is known for being social and bright.
“He passed with flying colours. He shares discussions with colleagues. He is so knowledgeable about certain topics and he shares it with us during discussions,†says a classmate.
Senkeezi’s mission in life is to become a lawyer guided by Christian values. At the time of the accident, Senkeezi had finished his law degree and was waiting to graduate.
He had been admitted to Law Development Centre (LDC) for a Postgraduate Diploma in legal practice on government sponsorship but could not enrol because of his poor health. He joined LDC again for the academic year 2004/2005 and will graduate in 2006. Senkeezi was born in 1980 to Senkeezi Steven Sali and Ms Jane Ssenoga in Kampala. The fifth-born in a family of seven, he went to Makerere Kindergarten for his nursery education.
In 1986, he joined Buddo Junior, where he finished his primary leaving exams in 1992. The following year, he joined St Kalemba SS for his O’level studies before proceeding to Ndejje SS for A’level.
In 1999, he joined Makerere University for a Bachelor of Laws and graduated in 2003.
Ends
POPULARLY known as Kawonawo, he cuts a firm and reserved figure. He has a magnetic personality and is good at cracking jokes. He is a jolly, happy-go-lucky fellow with passion for evangelism. Like a seasoned preacher, he punctuates his conversations with quotations from the Bible.
His nickname was coined after a brush with death two years ago in a nasty road accident, which claimed 64 people. This was after a successful preaching mission in Rwanda where he converted hundreds.
With a piercing gaze, Steven Senkeezi paces up and down the corridors of the Law Development Centre, Makerere University.
As he discusses his near death experience, the smart student affords a smile. He greets everyone he meets in the corridors.
Senkeezi, the survivor of the grisly 2003 accident on Kabale-Katuna road, went into a coma for over two weeks before recovering miraculously. He suffered from amnesia for over two weeks following the accident. On the fateful day, Senkeezi was rushed to Kabale Referral Hospital, before being transferred to Mulago Hospital.
Just as I am ambushing him for the interview, a young man with a fat nose — who I later learn is called Kayanja, intercepts us.
“Have you heard of another accident which killed 30 people in Katuna? It is a miracle for you to be alive today,†Kayanja says.
Donning a black suit with a white shirt and a matching necktie, he puts on a sad look and plunges into deep thought before narrating his miraculous healing two years ago.
“I don’t suffer any nightmares or hallucinations. My healing was miraculous. Actually, the police report indicated that I was dead,†Senkeezi says.
When Senkeezi reminisces the day he got saved at the age of six, I realise the amnesia is perhaps no more for the young man whose memory is now as sharp as it were before the accident. His face is familiar to every person at the Law Development Centre. The medium-sized student of dark complexion speaks in a low tone.
Following the accident, Senkeezi realised long after leaving hospital that he was involved in a grisly accident, which claimed 64 people on the spot in 2003.
“I am the only survivor who never got any fracture. It was a miracle. I went into coma for weeks but I am back on my two feet and normal,†he says.
After his final exams at Makerere University in 2003, Steven Senkeezi travelled to Rwanda on a preaching mission. On his way back, he was involved in the accident. He had postponed his travel several times before opting to travel on the fateful day.
Last week, the same road claimed 30 people in another horrific accident. Senkeezi was shocked when he got wind of the sad news through a friend in Kabale.
“Recollecting what happened in 2003, I prayed the whole night, but I woke up to screaming newspaper headlines reporting a death toll of 30. It’s a pity that we continue to lose people because of human error,†a sad looking Senkeezi says.
Minutes before the 10:00am accident in 2003, Senkeezi had called a friend in Kampala and chatted about his successful ministry in the country that witnessed a genocide that left close to one million people dead. The next thing he knew, he was at a pastor’s home in Entebbe, about six weeks after the accident.
“He lost his senses and regained his memory after three weeks. He couldn’t recall anything after recovering,†says Pastor Joseph Kibirige of RUN Bible Church and Ministries.
A medical report from Dr Hussein Senyonjo of Mulago Hospital indicated he suffered from retrograde amnesia, blood clots and teeth problems as a result of the accident.
“My teeth became sensitive to both hot and cold things. I had to go for a root canal operation. All this time I missed chocolate,†he says with a chuckle.
He graduated in November 2003 with a Bachelors of Laws degree.
His turning point in life was in 1986 when at the age of six, he gave his life to Christ. Pastor Joseph Kibirige came to preach in their home and the small boy turned to Christ in the presence of his family members. He gave his life to Christ and since then he has never looked back.
His grandfather was one of the first Christian leaders in the Pentecostal movement — the late Ezra Kikonyogo — who was a member of Makerere Full Gospel Church.
“My pastors have been my biggest inspiration; they counselled me and helped me in all situations. When you read the police report, I was dead. The driver of our bus was in the other vehicle. The accident made me realise that it’s just a miracle that my life was spared. God really cares about me and treasures me,†Senkeezi says.
He was a leader all his school days. At the Law Development Centre, he is known for being social and bright.
“He passed with flying colours. He shares discussions with colleagues. He is so knowledgeable about certain topics and he shares it with us during discussions,†says a classmate.
Senkeezi’s mission in life is to become a lawyer guided by Christian values. At the time of the accident, Senkeezi had finished his law degree and was waiting to graduate.
He had been admitted to Law Development Centre (LDC) for a Postgraduate Diploma in legal practice on government sponsorship but could not enrol because of his poor health. He joined LDC again for the academic year 2004/2005 and will graduate in 2006. Senkeezi was born in 1980 to Senkeezi Steven Sali and Ms Jane Ssenoga in Kampala. The fifth-born in a family of seven, he went to Makerere Kindergarten for his nursery education.
In 1986, he joined Buddo Junior, where he finished his primary leaving exams in 1992. The following year, he joined St Kalemba SS for his O’level studies before proceeding to Ndejje SS for A’level.
In 1999, he joined Makerere University for a Bachelor of Laws and graduated in 2003.
Ends