KAMPALA – Presidential hopeful Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine has finally set the “record straight” regarding his academics and age.
According to Kyagulanyi who has been in the spotlight for some time over the issue, he was born on February 12, 1982 and not 1980 in Nkozi.
“My brother Julius Walakila, who I follow- same father, same mother, was born on October 23, 1979 according to all his official records. There is no way I would be born on February 12, 1980, only four months after the birth of my elder brother,” he said.
Regarding his education, Bobi Wine said he started school in 1986 at St. Mary Gorreti Nursery School in Kamwokya.
For his primary one, Bobi Wine said he went to City Primary School (now Arya Primary School) in Kamwokya in 1987.
“For my P.2. I went to Kanoni UMEA (Uganda Muslim Education Association) in 1988. That is where I learnt reciting Islamic prayers that have stayed with me to-date,” he told the media.
Bobi Wine attended his primary three at Kasaka Primary School in 1989 still in Gomba. “For my P.4. and P.5. I went to Kanoni Catholic School from 1990 up to 1991.”
The legislator who seemed to change a school every year went to St. Aloysius Bukalagi Primary School in 1992 for his primary six.
Kyagulanyi revealed that while he was at Bukalagi in P.6, his father went and requested the headmaster of his former school, Kanoni Catholic School to allow him register and sit P.7. exams there.
“I therefore spent my third term of P6 in P.7. I registered there and sat for PLE in 1992.
My father was advised that in order for my age to match with that of other candidates who included my elder brother Julius Walakila who was sitting PLE at Bukalagi the same year, he needed to increase my age by two years. That is when my year of birth was altered from 1982 to 1980. Despite sitting PLE without studying P.7, I passed my exams well,” said Bobi Wine.
He said he would continue with this anomaly in age throughout his education both at S.4, S.6 and university education.
He further said nine years ago, in 2011, his late father, J.W. Ssentamu talked about this story and the video recording is available.
“Similarly, 14years ago, in 2007, my elder brother Eddy Yawe was interviewed by the New Vision – an extract of which is available. He also spoke of how I skipped P.7 and sat PLE. The same fact is spoken of in previous different interviews by my elder brother Chairman Nyanzi. From as far back as 2008, I have done several interviews in which I spoke of this story.”
According to Bobi Wine, it was at the point of getting his first Passport in March 2000 that he decided to correct this anomaly in his date of birth to reflect the real which is February 12, 1982.
“I remember swearing an affidavit to reflect this change, which is what was required at the passport office at the time,” he narrated.
He further rubbished allegations that he changed his age at the time he was joining Parliament in 2017.
Bobi Wine said, ‘No. All my records outside the academic documents since 2000 bear my true year of birth.”
Regarding the arrangement and spelling error in his names, Bobi Wine noted that he swore a Statutory Declaration in 2017 as required by law, and filed it accordingly.
“It was the basis of my nomination as Kyadondo East Member of Parliament. At that time, I also applied for verification of my UNEB results and they were verified,” he added.
He noted that he hopes the clarification brings comfort to all those well intentioned supporters and comrades who might have been worried about these schemes.
“I have been a law abiding citizen who values and treasures integrity, my shortcomings here and there notwithstanding. If my legal team deems it fit to undertake any other steps to clarify these issues in light of the most recent jurisprudence, they will do so, and I will inform you friends accordingly. For now, we stand confidently right before the law and any other moral code! The detractors as we say, will die in their own movie!”
Bobi Wine went to St. Maria Goreti Katende in 1993 for his S.1. first term, joined Brain-trust Academy for his s1 second term to senior three from 1993 to 1995.
“For my S.4. I went to Kitante Hill School and that is where I dat for my UCE in 1996. For my S.5. first term, I went to Alliance Advanced Secondary School in Kamwokya in 1997.For my S.5. second term, I went to Lubiri Secondary School in 1997. That was the time I lost my mother. For my S.5. third term, I went to Kololo Senior Secondary School, still in 1997 and stayed there until I completed Senior Six (S.6) in November/ December 1998,” he revealed.
Bobi Wine said he was admitted to Makerere University for a Bachelors Degree of Social Sciences in 1999.
“I studied for the whole year (majoring in anthropology, political science and economics), but later dropped out of the course on account of lack of tuition. I applied for a Diploma in Music Dance and Drama (MDD), Makerere University because I was aiming at getting a government scholarship and also because I had started picking a lot of interest in music and drama. In the year 2000, I was admitted on a government scholarship to study Music, Dance and Drama and I graduated in 2003.”
Bobi Wine said the reason he moved from one school to another is because his life was a real hustle.
“My father had more than 30 biological children and other dependants and this put a lot of pressure on his finances. Actually, a part from the fact that my father considered me very brilliant, one of the reasons why he was desperate to see me skip classes was to avoid the cost of school fees for the time skipped!” he said.
“My mother too, in my formative years was not doing so well and yet she had ten biological children and other dependants to look after all by herself. So I found that I had to move from school to school because of school fees problems. Some well to do Ugandans may not understand this, but I am sure the poor people- the ghetto people understand this kind of life. I am a real product of ghetto life, and I am proud of this history because that is my greatest motivation to want to change the lives of our people because I understand their hustle so well,” he added.
Bobi Wine further put the Electoral Commission, UNEB and other state institutions to release President Musevenis academic documents.
“I am aware that several lawyers and private individuals have written asking for information regarding the academic papers of President Museveni, his wife and several other NRM ministers. You have already taken a much longer time to respond to their request than the time you took to release my academic papers,”
He added: “I am challenging you to release them with the same urgency since you claim to be acting within the law and independently.”
