Rev Nkesiga goes to meet the Lord
The late Rev Dr Solomon Nkesiga. Photo by MICHAEL KAKUMIRIZI
What you need to know:
The deputy Vice Chancellor of Bishop Stuart University succumbs to cancer of the liver at Kololo Hospital
Kampala.
“God knows what he is doing.” These were the last words the Rev Dr Solomon Nkesiga said to his best friend Bishop Edward Muhima on Sunday as the latter served him a cup of porridge.
The Rev Nkesiga passed on yesterday morning at Kololo Hospital, where he had been battling cancer of the liver. He was diagnosed with the disease in February 2014.
Members and friends of the Anglican Church in Uganda, especially of All Saints Cathedral, Kampala, where the deceased’s wife, the Rev Diana Nkesiga is the vicar, commiserated with the family, sending condolences on social media.
Mourners also flocked the residence of the deceased in Budo. “What words can I use to describe Solomon. He was an innovative man who turned his land into a retreat for Christians, even building a chapel,” Mr Edward Muwanga, the deceased’s brother-in-law said, referring to the Nkesigas residence in Budo.
The assistant bishop of Kampala Diocese, Hannington Mutebi, remembers Nkesiga as a very down-to-earth person who made time for everyone. Several mourners said Dr Nkesiga comforted them, telling them to remain calm when they visited him at the hospital.
“He grew up without a father and therefore made up for it by being good to us. He always held discussions instead of imposing things on us,” Ignatius Nkesiga, the deceased’s eldest son said, echoing how several mourners described their daddy as a loving father and husband.
The Nkesigas celebrated their Silver Jubilee last November.
He is survived by his wife, Diana and four children.
Nkesiga brief biography
He was born in Kihihi, Kanungu District, in 1960, the ninth in a family of 11 children. He attended Kihihi Primary School, Kigezi High School, Makobore High School, and Kabale Teachers Training College, where he attained a Diploma in Education.
He later went to Bishop Tucker Theological College in 1985. He was ordained into priesthood in 1988 at Namirembe Cathedral and appointed the Deacon of North Kigezi in 1989.
In 1990, he got married to the Rev Diana Nkesiga and moved to South Africa, where he lived for 14 years and attained a doctorate at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. At the time of his death, he was the Vice Chancellor of Bishop Stuart University in Mbarara.
