For Makerere, the fire should not mean from ashes to ashes

The last time I visited Makerere University to “engage with issues” was in 2012 to hear former South African president Thabo Mbeki field questions on the theme: “Africa and the World: Intervention and Reform.”
The venue was the conference hall of the Main Building.
In his Wednesday column for the Daily Monitor, my former boss at the same paper, Mr Charles Onyango-Obbo, wrote: “The conference hall of the Main Building was for the first 75 years of Makerere University the site of not just the biggest debates about the future of Uganda, but of Africa. 
Very many of Africa’s greats; from outside Uganda Ali Mazrui, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Julius Nyerere, and a cast of some of our best, Apolo Nsibambi, Mahmood Mamdani, Okello Oculi, name them, battled there in debate about African futures, and strode its aisle.
“Not only is the Main Building iconic, but it used to be hallowed.”
On that January evening in 2012, Makerere was attempting, as it has done fitfully over the last 30-plus years, to rekindle the intellectual fires of an earlier period.
Prof Mamdani chaired the session that packed the hall. And president Mbeki, intellectual as always, went to work. He responded to questions related to racism, gay rights, the place of the intelligentsia, and even presidential term limits. It was a lively evening.
The Main Building now stands gutted by a fire that broke out last weekend. It is as if Makerere’s heart and soul have finally died — gone up in flames. And this happens when the university is preparing to mark its centenary of existence.
There is just so much symbolism to play with here. But this should not be the time to be cynical, although the temptation is inviting. It is the time to hope for a better future for Makerere and possibly all of higher learning in Uganda.
Referencing the promise by the government to rebuild the Main Building, Mr Onyango-Obbo ended his column thus: “Yes, but better, maybe the fire should be a platform to reimagine the university itself.”
Indeed, it should be in that age-old spirit of rebuilding from the ashes. 
Makerere needs many more evenings like that Mbeki evening. 
Makerere needs to pump a lot more resources into its work of teaching and research. Actually, Makerere needs to decide whether to focus more on research and advanced level training and leave much of the undergraduate teaching to other universities. This issue is touched on every so often and nothing comes of it.
Of course, Makerere needs to maintain its infrastructure better — other universities spend quite a tidy sum yearly ensuring that their iconic buildings stay iconic even when being modernised because they are a key part of the heritage.
To deliver on a lot of this stuff requires transformative leadership. It is an irony that Makerere has for decades struggled to get top leadership that is competent, innovative, and forward-leaning.
As a result of uninspired leadership, the university seems more consumed with ill-tempered food fights than intellectual combat. The many whip-smart people spread across the university’s colleges and departments need to rise to the top. Better still, simply get leaders who are not immersed in the intemperate feuds of Makerere. This may mean, possibly should mean, stepping outside the gates of the university to find such leaders.
Things can change for the better. Here is to wish Makerere great tomorrows as it truly builds for the future of Uganda and the rest of humanity. The fire may just have cleansed the demons.

Mr Tabaire is a media trainer and commentator on public affairs based in Kampala. [email protected]
Twitter:@btabaire