BUKOMANSIMBI .
Former professional boxer and Commonwealth gold medallist Justin Juuko has promised to set up a vocational training institute to equip youths from poor families with hands-on skills.
The multimillion vocational institute will be constructed at home village Kitanda-Kagologolo in Bukomansimbi District . “I want that vocational institute to be my legacy. What matters most are the skills, those who will go through that institute should be able to do something using their hands,” he noted.He says together with his advisors, they took time to think about the project and it is through this initiative that he will give back to a community that nurtured him.“I want residents in my village to remember me by looking at the institute and its products .”Juuko saysTo raise over Shs 500 million required for the project, Juuko says he is set to auction all his prestigious championship belts and medals he won throughout his career.Among the belts include the World Boxing Championship,
Intercontinental Championship (North America), International Boxing Federation Championship, and the Commonwealth Gold medal won in 1990 among others. Edward Muwonge, the chairperson Kitanda-Kagologolo Village hailed Juuko for not forgetting his roots regardless of shining on the international scene.“ We are happy that he is stepping in to bridge a gap.
The vocational schools near us are in Masaka City which is too far, our prayer is that the institute should accommodate even day scholars,” he says .Commonly known as ‘Ugandan Destroyer’ Juuko,52 rose through the ranks to become one of Uganda’s best boxers of his generation. He won a light flyweight gold medal at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand before clinching the World Boxing Council (WBC) international super featherweight title.