Kyambogo Chapel rewards best singers

St. Kakumba Chapel of Kyambogo University has rewarded choirs that participated in Easter Monday singing competitions.

The groups received sh6m and the money was distributed in accordance to their performance.

The adjudicators judged the competitors in accordance to confidence, sound flow, phrases among others in praise songs.

Team D that was crowned the winner of the competition received sh3m, Team A that emerged second received sh1.5m, Team B in third position received sh1m and then teams C and H each walked away with sh250,000.

This was during the colourful ceremony that took place at Kyambogo University on Friday evening. 

The Chapel Chaplain Rev. Eng. Emmanuel Mwesigwa said such competitions are necessary to motivate the students so that the praise and worship God and this will enhance proper spreading of the gospel.

"We created a competition to promote hymns in a generation when contemporary band worship music is slowly eroding this treasurable music genre, which has carried worship and the message of the gospel across many countries," he said. 

Mwesigwa revealed that the chapel has since 2012 been sponsoring needy children through giving them tuition and scholastic materials. He said the chapel spends about sh7m per year on the cause.

"We pay full tuition or half tuition depending on the curse and the level of weakness of a student or his parents to raise school fees. Being an active member in the chapel becomes the added advantage," he said.

"We are glad that one of our sponsored students has started exams. I have a lot of applications for sponsorship on my desk but we only try our best" he added. 

Mwesigwa also said the chapel leaders evaluate the circumstance of the needy student like loss of parents. He said there's one student whom sponsors forced to convert to Islam and when she refused they stopped paying her school fees.

Nakawa Mayor Ronald Balimwezo (R) pictured during the ceremony. Photo by Matthias Mazinga

"The lady came to my office and I felt concerned about her issues and the chapel started paying her full tuition," he said.

On competition, Mwesigwa said he was surprised that some of the members of the winning groups don't regularly attend singing practice.

"The re-known singers are instead the runners up, an indication that the competition has been tight," he said.

Nakawa Mayor Ronald Balimwezo narrated the circumstances under which he got saved. He said he could hardly believe that miracles happen.

"Few years ago, a certain lady told me that God makes miracles. That night while at my friend's place, armed thugs attacked us and I narrowly survived being shot," he said.

Balimwezo added that when he was a district engineer, he got an accident that left one of his legs critically injured.

"If it was not by God's mercy I would be dead, but God saved me and that was my turning point," he stated.

At the same ceremony, the choir groups were awarded certificates of attendance and recognition.