He is sweet but I can't call him sweetheart

Apr 10, 2013

Singer Agatha Kafooko also works as a radio presenter and station manager at a radio station owned by her husband, Fred Kafooko. The couple talked to Nickson Turyahikayo about their experience as a celebrity couple that has been together for 20 years.

Singer Agatha Kafooko also works as a radio presenter and station manager at a radio station owned by her husband, Fred Kafooko. The couple talked to Nickson Turyahikayo about their experience as a celebrity couple that has been together for 20 years.

Agatha Kafooko

At 42 years, with four children, what is your trick of looking like a 20-year-old?

l keep myself stress-free and watch what I eat. I eat white meat, vegetables and fibre foods. Some people say a relationship can only be sweet at the beginning.

Do you believe so?

I don’t believe so because I have been with Fred for 20 years and I still enjoy our relationship, as if we have just started dating. We still hang out together and we get away quite often. We really care about each other and he still makes me laugh like back then when we had just met. We work together and we talk a lot. Nothing has changed.

Do you call him sweetheart or honey?

Oh no! At first I could not understand why someone would call a grown man “honey” “sugar” or “sweetie” because it seemed weird. I could only say that to our babies. As time passed, I realised that Fred is actually a sweetheart, but it was too late for me to start using those names because he would have found it awkward.

Nonetheless, we are fond of each other and I understand the pet name thing. I still call him Fred and he calls me Agatha. If I could get myself to say it, I would call him sweetheart because he is, and time has taught me that about him. But it’s hard to teach an old dog what.....

What do you love most about him?

My husband is down-toearth, honest, hardworking, supportive and he understands me. Given a chance, what would you change about him? I might have to think hard and long about that..., may be nothing.

Singer, radio presenter, radio station manager, wife and mother of four. How do you handle all these roles?

It is hard, especially if we do not have the right staff to handle things. But once we have the right people, we get time to do other projects or be with our family. Being a wife and mother is not very challenging now because our last-born is 10 years old and our first-born is in Senior Five. Parenting is now more of counselling than physically doing things such as feeding or changing diapers.

The media recently wrote that you fired a female worker because you suspected her of having an affair with Fred

Hhhmm! Well, tabloids may write whatever they want, but  the people involved usually know the truth. People get fired for not doing their work. Fred has never given me any reason to doubt his relationships with our workers or other women. If your man is doing something with another woman, it cannot take you forever to find out. That is not how he is. We trust each other.

Has he ever complained about your music career or radio job?

He is comfortable with how I conduct myself in the music industry. I do my music at my own pace. Fans call in, saying they love me and I am glad he understands the kind of love they feel for me. Plus, he knows that I have my priorities  laid out; my family comes first. Many artistes are reportedly experiencing problems in their marriages.

What do you think could be the cause?

Misunderstandings happen to everyone, not only in artiste’s families. And the cause could be anything. I know a lot of people who have marital problems and they are not musicians or celebrities. You get to know about the problems in celebrity families because the media give their affairs a lot of publicity.

Is there a side of you that people do not know about?

People do not know that I have political ambitions.

What exactly do you want to do?

I am still doing my research, but just know that before this year ends, you will be called for a meeting about this.

What prompted you to work? You could have stayed at home.

Staying at home would be demeaning, because I have talent. I am also a graduate of Bachelors of Commerce (human resource), so sitting at home was not in my plans. It would be good for one to stay at home and look after their children, but one would get bored when the children grew up.

Do you cook at home?

Quite a lot. Even if I wasn’t a mother or a wife, I would still cook. I love the art of working with food; creating it from scratch and marvelling at the taste and colours. I am actually a chef trained in Canada.

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