A humbling tale of Okello the blood donor

Last week I met a man; fit as a fiddle, walking up Nakasero Hill in Kampala’s sweltering heat. It was a brisk sweaty lonely walk.
I felt pity on him and asked if he could take a ride with me. To my surprise, he reluctantly accepted. He spoke English with a Luo accent so I will call him Okello.
We chatted and I came to know that Okello’s mission was to voluntarily donate blood at the Nakasero Blood Bank like he had done for the last 18 years -as a regular donor. Regular donors give 0.45 litres of blood four times a year, if they are men and three times for women, as long as they are healthy.

Okello’s tale is very humbling and instructive. Moving towards his mid 40s, Okello is not formally employed. He does whatever job comes his way and offers him some pay at the end of the day to care for his rent in the Muzigo (two roomed house) he occupies in the slums of Kawempe. This one he shares with his wife, two children and little girl left behind by his sister.
He will wash clothes, push cars, carry luggage, off load trucks clean your car or house, anything. He does not engage in crime or gambling (so he says.)

He was dressed so simply, a thread-bare red shirt mismatched with an a shy grey trouser which was once black but whose colour had run due to over use. Then his shapeless trainers were past their throw away date. There were stitches upon stitches sitting precariously on his feet and under his soles.
His facial expression lit up when he spoke of his role as a blood donor as he brandished a number of donor cards with entries upon entries recording his activity as a donor. He was proud that his blood saves lives of people in need. He felt very important that many people are alive because of him.
He exercises by walking all his journeys because he cannot afford to pay taxi or boda boda fares. He eats a lot of green vegetables because they are cheap but also vital for the formation of blood. He avoids being stressed and is positive about his life and future because he believes ‘God has a good plan for him.’

Unlike the likes of Okello, many of us remember blood donation when it comes about as an obligation to fulfil our about corporate social responsibility. Many times in front of cameras and the media, which gives us bragging rights as ‘people who care for others.’
Because the whole set up of blood donation and transfusion depends on voluntary donors, it is difficult not to admire and respect the Okellos of this world. However wealthy one may be, they cannot buy blood across the counter. Blood has to come out of a human being and if these human beings are not donating you will die with your sacks of money.
What is even more intriguing about the Okellos, is their conviction, patriotic sense of duty, nobility of their charity and selflessness plus the fact that they are not looking for any reward, let alone publicity.

One thing about the way we in the media have structured the Ugandan story, leaves many of these heroes out because we think that the real motivating stories are the ones about the celebrities and the ‘big’ people. The people with a name that is recognisable and easy to sell. Okello’s story reminds you of the health worker in the rural health centre who helps deliver children with the help of the torch on a phone.
It is the story of the teacher whose desire to improve the lives of children is motivated to walk up and down a hill to teach children in the mountainous regions for Rwenzori even when the meagre salary delays by months. It is the policeman who will protect citizens as they sleep in the dead of the night without top up on his small salary.

It is the priest who goes out and prays for the sick, and strengthens them without asking them to pay for their healing. Many Ugandans write off this country citing selfish leaders, the corrupt and the daily grind that gives us stories that break the heart. So we whine and throw our hands in the air dismissing this great country as a lost cause. That is till you meet the Okellos. It the ‘invisible’ Okellos with almost nothing to their name, who effectively keep this country going with their small deeds.

I believe it is these people who will eventually change it. These are the people who take their responsibility as citizens very seriously. They don’t need to be reminded of their obligations. They empathise and care for others, are proud of their contribution, irrespective of the circumstances in which they find themselves. Above all, they live with the hope that one day, this great country will be a better place. They don’t sit and wait for that day. They, in their small ways work towards that goal with optimism as their main motivator.
Nicholas Sengoba is a commentator on political and social issues. [email protected] Twitter: @nsengoba