{UAH} WHAT HAPPENED TO SOROTI?

Moses Atocon Atyekwo

22 September at 09:51

32 years of steady decline!

Soroti town, I have very profound memories of this once panoramic town. To me I observed Soroti as a place where there was a chrystalization of many races, tribes , languages and cultures. It was a cosmopolitantly beautiful , tranquil , presentable and very lively place to live in. Soroti shaped my multi lingual persona. At school we spoke English, in the market places, workshops , recreation centers we spoke Kiswahili , at our respective homes we could oscillate between speaking our native tongues, Kiswahili, Teso English etc . It was a joyful experience.

You cannot discuss Soroti without touching on the diverse faces. The Somali community, the Indian community, the Arab community, the Sikhs, the European community, the Nubian community, Kenyans , Tanzanians mention them ,all peacefully coexisted in this melting pot called Soroti.

In was not unusual to have friends across all these communities ,some of the best friends I had belonged to the Somali community. Our family doctor was an Indian, we went to school which had headmasters and headmistress who were either European or Asian. Soroti then was hailed for being one of the town with the best educational standards in Uganda, Teso College, Soroti SS, Madera etc.

Commercially it was a booming town , it was the link to different civilizations, tribes , towns and countries. The town is surrounded by towns like Mbale ,Tororo , Lira and Moroto ,basically to travel to Kenya Soroti was in the proximity. The town was a huge hub for all the logistical business, trucks from Mombasa transporting goods to Juba ,Eastern Congo etc .I remember the cinema and theater we went to belonged to a Sikh, the shops especially for the luxurious goods belonged to Asians, Indigenously owned businesses traded in general supplies. The pride of the town were the sports clubs and recreation facilities, we had teams of mixed races proudly representing Soroti.

Anyway enough with the nostalgia, fast forward, Soroti what happened?

Today ,this once glittering and bustling strategically located town is full of derelict buildings and dilapidated neighborhoods. The picture in this post was sent to me by a friend when he visited the once iconic school called Pioneer primary school. The building in question is the current state of the teachers quarters in Pioneer. Now one wonders if a structure right in the center of town is in this sorry state, one could imagine how the other structures outside look like.

The once hygienic town is now synonymous with filth ,in recent years a team of reporters visited the hospital and were horrified by the state of the hospital surgery rooms. The operating theater had maggots crawling on the walks and floors.

Soroti what happened?

--
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com