AGING LIKE FINE WINE! Media icon Justus Tindyebwa turns 80
By Moses Agaba
Kabale: On Saturday, November 30th, 2024, Justus Tindyebwa, one of the media icons turned 80 years old.
Tindyebwa is one of the two surviving African – Ugandan pioneers of broadcast journalism—at Radio Uganda and Uganda Television –UTV.
Aging like fine wine, at 80, Tindyebwa’s voice is impeccable, authentic and sharp on the ear as he still reads English news at the Kabale based Voice of Kigezi FM every Saturday at 8pm with his opening line “You are listening to 89.5FM, Voice of Kigezi, and the news is read to you by Justus Tindyebwa and first, the main points!”
His remarkable broadcast journalism career spans now 57 years and counting.
He has as well taught a new crop of journalists as a professional in house ethics at Voice of Kigezi FM in Kabale.
A third born in a family of eight children, Tindyebwa was born on November 30th, 1944 to Yokana Tindyebwa Rwakitare and Joyce Kantamu Tindyebwa.
He began his formal education at Kizinga Primary school in 1952 that was built on the land donated by his father Yokana Tindyebwa to the native Anglican Church of Uganda.
He stayed at the school for five years till 1957. In 1959 he was transferred to Kantare Primary school in Rukiga county now Rukiga District where he completed primary six where he was staying with his father who was working at Kisizi mission Hospital as he would trek six kilometers to and from school for five days on bare foot.
After he was admitted at Kigezi High school for junior secondary education where he studied junior 1 and Junior 2.
At Kigezi, he served as a librarian and always excelled highly.
During his time, he was among the 20 top students in the country’s junior secondary school leaving examination and then joined Busoga College Mwiri on the National King George V Scholarship.
After finishing his ordinary level, he became a licensed teacher at Kebisoni Integrated Primary school in 1966 for two years.
Among his students was Rtd Major General Jim Muhwezi Katugugu the Minister of security and Rujumbura County MP whom he taught in Primary five.
Joining Radio Uganda
It was at Kebisoni that he took a consequential choice that would later define the rest of career—he answered an advertisement in the Uganda Argus that sought broadcasters and announcers in English at Radio Uganda.
On October 2nd, 1967 he was among the 10 applicants that were interviewed by Ben Kanyangyeyo, the head of programs and training who had worked at British Broadcasting Corporation African service.
After training for two months he was assigned a role of news reading in English on Radio Uganda and Uganda Television-the then only news network in the country.
He was also assigned as a continuity announcer of the next program to watch or listen.
He produced and aired the morning show popular weekday music program.
He was also a political commentator as he was behind the microphone in a series of political announcements by Dr Apollo Milton Obote in his “move to the left strategy “that dominated the political space in 1967 and 1970.
When Obote was shot at Lugogo Stadium on December 19th ,1969 he was on duty as a continuity announcer that night as the programs were abruptly interrupted as they didn’t know what had happened.
He quit the job in 1974 to study for a diploma in journalism but was persuaded to resume work after he was granted transfer to the safety of his home town in Kabale.
He returned to Kampala in 1978 to study journalism at the Institute of Public Administration.
He resumed on part time for the next crisis that culminated in the Uganda –Tanzania war that ended Idi Amin’s reign.
He was ordered to read Lt. Col Oyite Ojok declaration of the fall of Idi Amin government on April 11th, 1979. He stayed inside Radio Uganda building for two weeks sleeping on the floor and eating tinned meat supplied by the Tanzania People’s Defense Forces.
Arrest and detention
Tindyebwa would witness from the vantage of a journalist. He became a victim of multiple threats , encountered injustice including arrests on false charges as was the case in 1971 when he was framed for aggravated rape of staff at the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting by one Major Malera, commander Makindye barracks.
He was detained at Central Police Station-Kampala underground cell.
The Buganda Road Court Chief Magistrate Mbazira dismissed the case and was set free.
After his release, he asked Michael Emajong, the then Permanent Secretary Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, to transfer him from Kampala citing threats on his life.
He was then posted to Mbarara as the Regional Information officer for south western Uganda.
While in Mbarara, he was in March 1974 directed by the then Deputy District administrator Sam Kenyi to go and cover a function at Simba Barracks now Makenke as President Idi Amin was to preside over a function.
There was reportedly a sinister plan to frame him with alcohol but managed to get wind of it and managed to sneak out of the barracks undetected.
Days later he resigned and went to his home in Kizinga-Kabale.
After one month in the village he got a Uganda transport bus –UTC and went back to Kampala and was in turn transferred to Kabale as the district information officer, a position he held till 2000 when he retired.
Joining Voice of Kigezi
In 2000 when Voice of Kigezi FM, the first radio station in Kigezi was opening up, he was approached by the owners Eng Godfrey Mutabaazi and Eng Canon Ivan Mbabazi Batuma to help them in programming and as well training some staff.
He also worked as the chief news editor.
Since 2013 he has been working at Voice of Kigezi as media consultant trainer up to date.
In the same year-May 1st, 2013 during Labor Day celebrations in Tororo, he was awarded a gold medal in recognition for his outstanding contributions in journalism.
In the 57 years journalism career, Tindyebwa says that he has mentored many journalists including the likes of Dr Shaka Ssali formerly of Voice of America , Julius Mucunguzi the Head of Public Relations and Spokesperson of the Electoral Commission , Goodluck Musinguzi among others.
What they say about him …..
Julius Mucunguzi, Head of Public Relations & Spokesperson, Electoral Commission Uganda:
“As a young journalism student at Makerere University in 1997, I spent my holidays in Kabale, writing stories from the villages about ordinary people making extraordinary things, about the culture and tourism and food and politics. And because in those days, internet, data, wifi and data bundles were unknown, the only way to send a story to the DailyMonitor newsroom in Namuwongo was by fax. To the young people, a fax machine was like a photocopier, only that for it, it would be used to send printed copy from one end to another, wirelessly. Justus Tindyebwa made the fax machine in his District Information Office to me and many other journalists in Kabale available free of charge. By extending that act of generosity, he enabled our stories to get into print, contributing to our professional and career foundation. Tindyebwa was a common face on UTV, now called ubctvuganda from the 1970s and Radio Uganda to date.He told me that he has moderated and been an MC at events featuring all Presidents since Idi Amin, Binaisa, Lule, the Military Commission of Paulo Muwanga, Obote II, Lutwa and Kaguta Museveni. Even at his age, Tindyebwa’s voice is impeccable, authentic and sharp. His example inspired many to join journalism, including people like Dr Shaka Ssali. For this and many more accomplishments, we salute him and wish him many more great years ahead.”
Good Luck Musinguzi Katabarwa: “He introduced me into journalism in 1999 while still a student in Secondary school. Today I celebrate 25 years in journalism because of him.”
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