MASAKA.
Masaka based renowned veteran Journalists John Jones Salongo Sserwanga has gone to be with the Lord .
He was aged 102.
John Jones as he was commonly known in Masaka was believed to be Uganda’s oldest journalist today .
According to Mr Matia Ssebuwuufu , a staff at the Masaka based Radio Buddu where the deceased was working as a presenter , John Jones died at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital on Saturday evening where he had been admitted two weeks ago following stomach complications
“The old man had lost appetite and he could not eat food for the past one –and- half months which could have caused him a problem.
The doctors could not diagnosis any illness ,but the fact is that he was not eating food yet they had to give him treatment, this could have affected his intestines and died like that ,” he said
For the last 15 years John Jones has been hosting a Saturday evening show Ebirwaawo byerabirwa on Radio Buddu.
Mr Farish Magembe, the President of Greater Masaka Journalists Association (GREMAJA) described John Jones a resourceful person and was an inspiration to many young journalists.
“Mzee John Jones has demonstrated that one can be a Journalist for life and he has been an inspiration to all of us .His passing is a big blow to our fraternity and we will dearly miss him ,” he said
In his previous interviews with Daily Monitor and other publications, John Jones said he began his career as a journalist for Uganda Yogera in the 1960s, the official newspaper of Kabaka Muteesa of Buganda.
The seeds of John Jones’s passion for journalism were sown during his encounters with Kabaka Muteesa II.
When he later learnt that the people who seemed to easily gain access to the king of Buganda were journalists, the rest—as they say—was history.
John Jones was bitten by the journalism bug. He began writing stories about Masaka for the Uganda Eyogera newspaper. The thrill of seeing his first article published further fuelled his ambition.
John Jones’s journalistic career progressed when he moved from Masaka to Kampala, working for various newspapers. These included Taifa Empya and the Buganda Kingdom’s Ssekanyolya. He earned the trust and respect of both the public and Kabaka Muteesa II himself.
During the turbulent times leading up to Buganda’s crisis in 1966, John Jones’s reporting played a role in exposing Obote’s hidden plan to abolish cultural institutions.
Witnessing the attack on Kabaka’s palace, he risked his life to ascertain whether the king had survived. He later played a telling role in helping Kabaka Muteesa II escape into exile.
The abolition of Ssekanyolya, however, left him jobless. Undeterred, he soon established his own publication—Agafa e Buddu—that suffered a stillbirth. Not long after, he found himself managing a bailiff company. It was not until 20011 that he returned to journalism, working at Radio Buddu.
Asked what his standout reportage of an event was, in a heartbeat he mentions the attack on the Lubiri in May 1966.
“Gunshots pierced the peaceful night, jolting me awake in Kabuusu area. It soon became clear that an attack was unfolding at Kabaka’s palace” he said
John Jones is adorned with numerous awards, medals, and certificates, but he believes true riches lie in the friendships he has forged and the fame he has gained over the years.
Notably, he received a victory medal in London after World War II. Recently, St Henry’s College Kitovu feted him for being the sole remaining living old student from the first three generations.
Before that, in April 2020, the Kabaka (king) of Buganda bestowed upon him the kingdom’s prestigious award, recognising his extraordinary service and dedication.
Born on June 24, 1923 to Yowanna Mukasa Yaakuze and Hellena Nakiwala of Kkingo Village, presently in Lwengo District, John Jones enjoyed a privileged childhood. This owed much to the fact that his father was a county chief for Mawokota(current Mpigi District ) .
John Jones’s father was the son of Allen Kinaniina, one of the officials who played a pivotal role in the signing of the 1900 Buganda Agreement.
He will be buried on Thursday at Kikungwe Village, Kimaanya-Kabonera Municipality in Masaka City.