RAKAI
A Senior Two student of Katerero Secondary School in Byakabanda, Kooki , Rakai district allegedly took his own life under unclear circumstances.
The deceased, identified as Kevin Ssemuddu, 16, was a son of Livingstone Ssemuddu and Margret Nanyonga, both residents of the same address. He was found hanging on a mango tree near their home on Monday morning while other family members had gone to the garden for cultivation.
According to reports, earlier that morning, Ssemuddu had complained of a severe headache when his mother called him to join the rest of the family in the garden. She reportedly gave him money to buy medicine. However, moments later, Nanyonga received distressing news that her son had committed suicide.
Before his death, the teenager left behind a suicide note detailing strange dreams and spiritual attacks that had been haunting him. In the note, he claimed that a “spirit” had appeared to him in a dream, ordering him to borrow Shs500,000 to construct a house.
“Something came to me in a dream and asked me to borrow money and give it to it to construct a house,” the note read in part.
Ssemuddu wrote that he had already borrowed Shs157,000 from friends and neighbors, including Robert (Shs50,000), Kamulegeya (Shs80,000), Trever (Shs5,000), and Kiweewa (Shs12,000), and had a remaining balance of Shs343,000 to raise.
He added that the “spirit” instructed him to visit his maternal aunt, Nalusibba, to ask for more money, but he failed to get it because he had been warned not to reveal the dream to anyone.
The note further indicated that on the day of his death, the same “attack” had told him to end his life before borrowing any more money. He also pleaded with his parents to repay the borrowed amounts and warned that another person not from their family but within the community would die soon after him.
“I have been a peaceful child, not misbehaving or abusive, but this is beyond me,” Ssemuddu reportedly wrote. “I conclude by telling you that I won’t rest in peace if those people aren’t paid their money.”
Police in Rakai have since commenced investigations into the incident.
