What you need to know:
- Earlier, the young Kadaga said she wanted to pursue Law like Ms Kadaga.
The former Speaker of Parliament and Third Deputy Prime Minister, Ms Rebecca Kadaga, Wednesday met her 17-year-old namesake, a student in Jinja District.
The young Rebecca Kadaga, a Senior Four student at Jinja Progressive Secondary School (JIPRA) in Jinja City, earlier told Monitor that she wanted to meet the former Speaker, who is a mentor to her but such an opportunity seemed a long shot.
“The problem is that it is very difficult to meet Ms Kadaga, otherwise I really want to meet her in person because I have never,” she said in an earlier interview at the school in Mpumudde, a Jinja City suburb.
But on Wednesday, her prayers were answered when she, together with her mother Ms Faith Nakitende, and school Chaplain, Pastor Ambrose Timuweruka, met the former Speaker following a May 26 post on our social media platforms.
Later, Ms Kadaga would tweet: “Young Rebecca Kadaga of Jinja Progressive Secondary School, together with her mother and school pastor at the Ministry of East Africa Community Affairs headquarters.”
Pastor Timuweruka later told Mania Media that during their meeting, the former Speaker pledged to educate her teenage namesake until she completes her education, as long as she is still interested in pursuing her studies.
Earlier, the young Kadaga said she wanted to pursue Law like Ms Kadaga.
According to Pastor Timuweruka, setting up a meeting with Ms Kadaga was riddled with bureaucracy, but he was intent on making the meeting happen. “The girl was sent home for fees and I knew something had to be done,” he said.
The director of JIPRA, Hajji Swaibu Kitezala, said following the meeting between the two, he hopes the student will be given assistance because she is from a humble background and had been struggling with fees balances.
“It is good she has been able to meet her namesake; now the issue is that she should use that opportunity to further her education and go to greater heights. Never know she may become a Speaker or politician since her mother and herself are admirers of Ms Kadaga,” said Mr Kitezala.
This reporter has established that the student’s mother hails from Kigilu, Kaliro Road in Iganga District, and was a food vendor who used to travel on trucks.
However, about four years ago, she reportedly fell off a matooke truck and broke her rib; since then, she has neither been able to work nor fend for her family.
