By Frank Kamuntu
The Pan-African Pyramid (PAP) on Friday November 29, 2019 launched its annual ‘X-MAS with Refugees’ project, during which members collected items from Nakawa market to be donated to refugees in Uganda during the festive season.
This year round PAP will donate X-mas goodies to the refugees living in Nakivale Refugee settlement camps to enable them celebrate X-mas season with the rest of the world with a smile.
After securing a green light for the campaign through a letter from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), PAP members have since kicked off the exercise of collection of relief aide, where the team collect various relief items like clothes, beddings, shoes, scholastic materials, food etc from various traders who subscribe to Pan-Africanism, Patriotism and Nationalism values and spirit.
Not even the heavy downpour could scare the determined team that arrived at rhe market as early as 10am and started requesting traders to donate and by 4pm, they had collected sixteen sacks full of assorted relief items are now being at the PAP offices plot 41 along Gaddafi Road, adjacent to Law Development Centre.
By the time PAP members left the market, more traders were collecting and organizing more items although it was late and they promised to keep them till Monday when the team will go back for them.
Meanwhile, another team will be covering other markets including St. Balikudembe Market Owino, Kalerwe Market, Nakasero, etc. Another team will be moving to manufacturing companies to collect items like utensils, household materials, mattresses, Jerrycans, basins etc.
Patrick Kaizire, a Pan-Africanist and also a student at Makerere School of Commercial Studies and Media Training, said that; “I have been yearning for such an opportunity to serve humanity with special needs but could not find an Association that embraces that for me to join, I really feel good that finally I have where to belong. It’s life satisfying to share love with vulnerable people who live in harsh conditions like refugees”.
Frank Sendibota, a trader at Nakawa Market who offered a number of clothes and provided storage space for the collected items, appreciated the effort and cause of supporting refugees.
He asked government to facilitate PAP and other Nongovernmental Organisations (NGOs) that have the same ideas of saving African lives through providing for them basic needs, which he said is one of the ways to reshape and promote their traumatised lives.
On December 20, 2019 the PAP team will transport all the collected relief items to Nakivale Refugees camp, a settlement located in Isingiro District, Southwestern Uganda, covering an Area of 185 km² with a population of over 61,000.
The PAP will deliver the donations to refugees, but also spend some good time with them helping to fetch water, play games, offer words of wisdom and encouragement, plus socializing with their young ones as a way of reminding them that we are one as Africans, but only divided by conflict, plus artificial and geographical boundaries.
It should be remembered that the Pan-African Pyramid has conducted many visits to refugee camps including Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement in Hoima district, Bidi Bidi, in Yumbe District , northwestern Uganda and last year visited Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement camp in Kamwenge District, with a vision of articulating the concerted efforts geared towards promoting the true African Awakening among the BLACK people throughout Africa and in the Diaspora, and to galvanize inventions and innovations of the African people.
The PAP Team promised to maintain the spirit of Pan-Africanism and also keep serving their fellow Africans through their umbrella body the PAN-AFRICAN PYRAMID, which is an intellectual non-partisan discussion forum built on the pillars of PAN-AFRICANISM, PATRIOTISM and NATIONALISM.
The team will conduct more trips to various refugee settlements since their campaign is annual and call upon fellow Africans to engage in this cause, since any one can be a refugee tomorrow and would like to be catered for.
They urged all African leaders to end civil wars and other conflicts among African countries which can only be ended by unity and strengthing brotherhood among Africans.
