The education fraternity in the Church of Uganda and the Ministry of Education has again lost one of its biggest icons, Godfrey Ssentongo Sempa. Ssentongo has died soon after retiring as the headteacher of Lubiri Senior Secondary School in Kampala.
Kyaggwe TV has learnt from one of the close family members that he has been battling cancer and for a number of times, he has been going to India for medication. It is alleged that he had just come back from India over two weeks back. He has been a resident of Seeta in Mukono Municipality.
The tentative burial program shows he will be buried in Bakijjulula in Luweero district on Wednesday. Outside his teaching profession, Ssentongo has been a farmer who had a lot of passion in poultry. He owns Lincon High School Kabembe in Kyampisi sub-county, Mukono district.
Ssentongo was transferred to Lubiri S.S after doing a tremendous job at Bishop Senior School in Mukono district where he transformed the then struggling institution into a first school, though he did that out of much resistance from the stakeholders including the teachers, parents and the political leaders, some of whom claiming to be its old students.
With that same zeal and persistence, Ssentongo also struggled to cause some impact at Lubiri Senior School, creating hatred with some of his staff, old students and some local leaders. But he always fulfilled what he thought was right without minding of what others perceived.
Bishop Senior Schools rewarded Ssentongo in 2019
Bishop Senior Secondary School in Mukono Municipality rewarded Ssentongo with sh30m as a token of appreciation for the good services he rendered to the school during his term of office.
He broke down into tears of joy as he received the dummy cheque from the chairperson board of directors then, Bishop James William Ssebaggala. Ssentongo said for over 31 years he had been in service; he had never been appreciated for his work by his former schools.
He said this was a very big surprise in the whole of his teaching profession and that Bishop Senior had written history in his career.
“I started working in Ngogwe Baskerville Senior Secondary School in Buikwe district where my teaching ability surprised everyone to the extent that I was made a deputy headteacher only after three months in service, but when I was leaving, I received nothing as a token of appreciation,” he recalled.
From Ngogwe, Ssentongo went to Ndeeba Senior Secondary School in Kayunga district where he first served as acting deputy headteacher until when he was elevated to full headship between 1988-1998. He was transferred to Kanjuki Senior Secondary School also in Kayunga as the headteacher from 1998-2007. From there; he went to Bishop Senior in Mukono.
Ssentongo said that from all those schools, he had done his best as a youthful headteacher to the extent that he presented candidates who scored 25 points by then and later twenty points.
“I took students to public universities on government sponsorship and many are happy doctors, engineers, lawyers, among other good professions, but still after writing all that history which had never been there before, not in any of those schools I was called and given even a mere shirt or a trouser in appreciation of my good work,” he said.
He added that he had given up on expectations of being appreciated taking it that may be that was his nature not to be rewarded for his good work though he outstandingly performed passed everyone’s expectations. No wonder, even the appreciation from Bishop Senior also came in after four years of his transfer to Lubiri Senior School.
Ssentongo also recalled that in Kayunga, he knew all his students by name and their parents because he used a bicycle to visit the students’ homes in the evening, a tactic which also worked so much for him and fetched so many students in his school. At this function, Ssentongo was in company of his wife, Edith Ssentongo.
Bishop Ssebaggala said Ssentongo went to Bishop Senior in 1997 at a time when the school was in mid of very many challenges including indiscipline amongst the students, poor performance, among others. He said the school had no fence by then, an opportunity which gave students chance to get out at each and every time they wanted.
“They were ever loitering in Mukono town during class time doing things which would embarrass a Church’s institution named after the bishop,” he said. Ssebaggala confessed that at a time, he thought of changing its name but he thanked God that when Ssentongo came in, he changed its image amidst a lot of resistance even from some parents and local politicians.
He said that Ssentongo always moved an extra mile to the extent that on a daily basis he reported at school at 5:00am and leave at almost midnight.
“His way of doing things also forced the teachers who were ever absent and only doing their private businesses to change for the better. He mentored many who even became deputy and headteachers,” he said.
Robert Kyakulaga, the current Bishop Senior headteacher also personally rewarded his predecessor with 100 bags of cement saying he mentored him so well during the time he was working with him as his headteacher at the same school.
Ssentongo said his rewards are not only going to benefit only him or his family alone but he is going to make things which will employ many other Ugandans for the coming many years.
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