The story of Alex the Private Detective &
Another few days in Jinja before I head home
I am spending the last few days back with Alex and his girl friend Hannah living in relative luxury in Jinja, the tourist capital of Uganda. I needed to do some shopping for crafts to raise money for my work in Uganda and was very pleased to meet Ezra the son of Esther who makes a lot of the bags, aprons, purses, soft toys and other items I bring home. He is gorgeous. I never get tire of cuddles with babies in Uganda even though sometimes I have found myself rather wet afterwards!! I bought some beautiful necklaces off Madam Susan too. She works in a local orphanage but makes the jewellery in her spare time to supplement her salary.
I am happy to spend more time with the ‘terrible’ 2’s, Johnny and Gracie who Hannah is fostering. There is never a dull moment!
It’s good to see a bit more of Alex too because when I was here at the beginning of my stay he was rather pre-occupied playing the private detective! No kidding! One night just before I came out to Uganda Hannah’s car was stripped of everything worth stealing, along with a very nice pair of boots she had left outside her front door. Also several items were missing from Alex’s home including my internet dongle, phone and my walking sandals that have a sentimental attachment as they were the ones I used when I first came to Africa, the time I climbed Kilimanjaro! They were expensive back in 2001 so will be even more expensive to replace! They also still had plenty of life left in them which is very annoying as I hate wasting money too!
Alex and Hannah had reported the thefts to the police but unless you have proof, or money, they are not interested. So Alex took the challenge on himself to find those responsible! He had his suspicions but never discussed them with us. He kept disappearing for hours on end, sometimes during the night. I had been disappointed when I first arrived as he usually buys me a Nile Beer and we sit and catch up with all our news. This year he literally dropped me and my luggage off and went out. I asked Hannah where he had gone and she just shrugged her shoulders. A couple of nights later he not only went out but stayed out until 3 in the morning! The next morning both Hannah and I were a bit harsh with him and his reply was that we must be patient and that he would tell us everything soon! Neither of us could imagine what he was talking about!
A particular young man had been helping the couple and regularly came to both Hannah’s and Alex’s place, often staying over at the latter. He was unemployed but seemed to have the money for new clothes and the best phone. Alex eventually told us that he had been following this person around, day and night, and gathering evidence which he was presenting to the police that morning and would we, Hannah and I, try to keep the suspect with us! I’m now glad that Alex had not told us earlier as keeping up conversation with this young man and ‘acting cool’ wasn’t easy! Fortunately is wasn’t too long before Alex returned with two men who greeted Hannah and I with a ‘Good morning’ and a hand shake then went over to the suspect greeted him too but added ‘You’re under arrest’ and hand cuffed him. They were plain clothed policemen! This young man and his brothers had been stealing from various venues and people, but our own detective Alex, solved the mystery for everyone! Needless to say Hannah and I felt rather guilty about moaning at him. We’ll never get our belongings back but hopefully this young man and his brothers might learn a valuable lesson! They were released on bail but have to find the money to cover all that has been stolen otherwise they will go to jail for a long time. So their families must be desperately searching for the money needed now!
During this time with Hannah and Alex we went to visit Alex’s brother Paul who is studying for his A levels and another brother Bosco who is studying to be a nurse. There is more details in a previous blog ‘An introduction to my Ugandan family’. I also had a few hours relaxing at the Nile Resort with my family. Its on the edge of the Nile and has a gorgeous swimming pool. Bosco and Mike were able to join us which was great, a treat they cannot afford themselves. Two and a half year old twins Johnny and Gracie loved it but we had to keep a real eye on them as they move so fast! I got some great photos of them though, especially when Johnny pinched my goggles!
Its always great to relax before the long journey home, and to make the most of the hot sunny weather too!
See you soon! Please warm up the weather for me!
Gerry's Uganda Projects 