East African Gazette
Kasese.
The attack on her hometown in Bwera, located a few kilometers away from the DR Congo border, is an event that Lucy Mbambu Kapuru will never be able to erase from her memory.
DR Congo remains a sanctuary for Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels which has been terrorizing Uganda for years.
Upon the rebels commencing their assault, which tragically led to the loss of innocent students’ lives and the abduction of other members of the community, numerous school going children developed a deep-seated fear of returning to school.
Simultaneously, certain families made the decision to relocate, seeking a safer environment.
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“Overwhelmed by trauma and distress, some of us lived in constant fear, believing that we could be the next victims of the rebels. Our fear of the ADF prevented us from focusing on our studies, as our eyes were constantly glued to the windows, anxiously peering outside,” she narrates.
Mbambu explained that she relied on the knowledge she gained from class during the day, as she found it daunting and unsettling to wake up and study at night.
She always had a feeling that the rebels were present within the school.
“It was hard to wake up and revise at night like we used to do before the attack because we were told the rebels were in our communities and the school,” she says.
In spite of the numerous challenges and distressing experiences, the 13-year-old student from Ndongo Baptist Nursery & Primary School in Bwera, Kasese area, achieved an impressive aggregate score of 12, merging as one of the top-performing pupils in the 2023 PLE examinations at their school.
The school is located a few kilometers away from the border with DR Congo.
She aspires to be a lawyer and contribute to constitutional governance in his country.
“As much as I expected at least a single digit aggregate but I am happy that I have passed and my next step is to work harder in secondary so as to get better grades,” she adds.
She scored aggregate 3 in English, 4 in Mathematics, 2 in Social Studies and 3 in Science.
Mbambu wanted to join Maryhill high School in Mbarara to pursue her dream.
On the night of Friday 16th June 2023, Lhubiriha Secondary School, in Southwestern border town of Mpondwe, Kasese district was attacked by assailants that Ugandan security forces have linked to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan rebel group operating from Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.