Death takes Butaleja’s light: in Dr Juliet Hirome Tembe

BY DAVID MAFABI
BUTALEJA

Hundreds of people wept as the casket for Dr Juliet Hirome Tembe was being lowered into the grave at Mugulu village in Busolwe sub-county in Butaleja district on Dec 19.

Many of these people had gathered to bid farewell to the departed Educationist, scholar and the first girl-child from Butaleja to get to University at the time it was rare for girls to go to school.

Dr Tembe’s [PHD in English language studies] candle burnt out on Dec 14 when she succumbed to cancer at Mbale regional hospital where she had been admitted for some time.

According to Dr Muhammad Mulongo, Bulambuli District Health Officer and a close associate, Dr Tembe has been fighting a soft tissue sarcoma in her upper left leg which turned out to be a high grade leiomyosarcoma that became very aggressive.

"She has been advocating for people living with HIV/AIDS in the country. We shall miss her especially in this fight of HIV because she has been instrumental," said Dr Mulongo.

Born in October 24, 1954, Dr Tembe a lecturer of Linguistics at Islamic University in Uganda was liked and loathed in the equal measure in Mbale and Butaleja. By the time of her death she was a country coordinator South African Institute for Distance Education [SAIDE].

Dr Tembe’s friends, based at the University of British Columbia, Canada, where she pursued her doctorate from describe her as a remarkable educator, a friend, an outstanding teacher, scholar, and community activist, who has promoted literacy in sub-Saharan Africa for the past four decades.  

“Dr Tembe was an intelligent, hardworking and a remarkable educator who fought HIV/AIDS through her work on the Board of TASO after completing her doctorate in Language and Literacy Education at the University of British Columbia, Canada and became the Ugandan in-country coordinator of the innovative African Storybook Project, which draws on technology to promote early literacy for African children,” reads a face book post on her page.

Mr Gersom Herome, the father of the deceased [Dr Tembe] said they took her to South Africa, India and to different hospitals in Uganda for cancer treatment but in vain.

“Dr Tembe was my daughter from birth to the age of twelve years and after the age of twelve years, she became my friend and we have been friends. She never did anything without consulting me, I am going to miss my daughter,” said Mr Hirome before shedding tears.

Mr Hirome adds that it is through Dr Tembe his first born in the family that most of his children have gone to school.

“The first question she would ask at family meetings was whether every one of her siblings was at school and tell me to ensure everyone was at school. My daughter loved schools and this encouraged everyone at home,” added Mr Hirome.

Reflecting on daughter’s reputation as the woman who took up every person’s problems as her own, Mr Hirome said Dr Tembe’s desire to help people in need with their issues was augmented by the fact that she was a good listener.

Rev Juliet Nambuba of St Andrews Cathedral in Mbale said in Dr Tembe, Mbale, Butaleja and the country at large has lost a leader who could relate with anybody and energize those who were disillusioned.

“She connected with every average person — the teens at every function in Church, she would be here even for youth over nights —she was passionate about helping people and they finally had someone to voice their opinion. You would never believe Dr Tembe was a PHD holder until some else told you because she was down on earth” said Rev Nambuba.

Her former student of English Ms Betty Sumba also spoke about Dr Tembe’s final days and how close friends and the family stayed positive until the end, despite signs that she was not going to be able to overcome her diagnosis of high grade leiomyosarcoma.

Ms Sumba, now a lecturer at Islamic University in Uganda, Mbale main campus said Dr Tembe was selfless, strict grammarian who encouraged all her students to pursue further studies and I am one such product.

“We’re going to remain appreciative for the outpouring of support and encouragement, I am so grateful to her and we are going to miss her as a mother, a friend and a teacher,” said Mr Sumba.

Working till the end
Her close attendants including the father Mr Hirome said whenever he go a bit well, she would get up and look for her computer and straight away start working.

“But after about fifteen minutes, she would abandon it when pain intensified, then convulse and get back to sleep shortly. But he kept close to her Bible and would occasionally ask to be prayed for,” said Mr Hirome.

A former student of Dr Tembe at Institute of Teacher Education, Kyambogo, Mr Samuel Mamiro, a neighbour said Dr Tembe never had a clan or tribe; he associated with every one and would occasionally refer to everyone as her brother and sister.

 “And for me today we are just here to mark the loss of a remarkable person, a remarkable scholar, an educationist and a health rights activist. Let us honour Dr Tembe’s memory by recommitting to the values he sought to defend: the equal worth and dignity of every human being, regardless of their place of birth and ethnic origin,” said Mr Mamiro.

Mr Fabian Wakooli, former Mbale District Education Officer, a close friend of the late and fellow lecturer at the Islamic University, said as a district they have lost a pillar, a great teacher and an inspirational person in Dr Tembe.

“He was a great woman by all definitions. Her role in inspiring many people to get back to school, in the fight against HIV/Aids and in uniting people, will not be forgotten even when there is a gap her death has created,” said Mr Wakooli.

Mr Yusuf Mutembuli, a lawyer, said: “She has left a big gap in Butaleja District. As Banyole, we cannot have anybody suitable to replace Dr Tembe because she was a woman of all trades and was honest, God loving and had parental love for every person without discrimination. But above all she served her community whole heartedly,”

Strict Grammarian teacher

“The most unforgettable thing about Dr Tembe is that she would never give you a mark in English for even failing to put a full stop and a comma in your work. She said English was for thinkers,” says Mr Dennis Magomu, a former student of Islamic University.

Mr Magomu, who is a teacher, now described Dr Tembe as a strict disciplinarian, an educationist, counsellor and a good mother.

About Dr Tembe’s background

Dr Tembe was born on October 24, 1954, at Bahungo clan, Mugulu village, in Busolwe in Butaleja district, then under Tororo District.

He completed his primary in 1968 at Kisoko girls primary school in Tororo before joining Nabisunsa girls for her O’level [1969 to 1972 and later joining Tororo girls School for A’level [1973 to 1974.

He joined Makerere University in 1975 to 1978 and pursued a Bachelors of Arts degree in English language studies and Literature with a concurrent diploma in Education.

Dr Tembe started teaching literature and English at Nabumali high school in in 1978 to 1985 before joining Makerere again for a masters’ degree in linguistics which she completed in 1987 and later enrolling for a diploma in teaching English speakers of other languages at regional language centre in Singapore.

She did a diploma in project planning and management in 1997 to 1998 before later enrolling at the University of British Colombia, Vancouver, Canada for her doctorate of Philosophy [PHD] in which she completed in 2009.

She has taught at Institute of teacher Education Kyambogo, Islamic University in Uganda and died while working as a country coordinator South African Institute for Distance Education [SAIDE]. Ends