Breaking Barriers: The First Engineering Student to Lead as Guild President.

Leadership often emerges from unexpected places and nothing was perhaps more alien to the leadership of the Guild than the then Faculty of Science and Technology; yet the election of the first engineering student marked a symbol of reshaping perceptions that we were more than just math.

In 2018, I was elected Guild President after a rigorous campaign which if you’d asked my close friends, was a journey I had began walking when I joined Engineering school in September of 2016. Lodging up in Nsibambi Hall, I would often intimate to Bless Ampurira how I would take control of the purple house at Guild square against all odds.

I clearly understood the uphill task to win the Guild elections largely because of the perception that came with Engineers so I decided to be a part of many student groups as early as 2017. I joined the Para-Counsellors classes in 2018 and the famous Honors College much earlier in 2017 from where I had been mentored by DVC David Mugawe.

Previous attempts by Engineering students had fallen through because they were largely perceived as merely “builders” frequently associated with problem-solving and therefore rarely seen at the forefront of student politics or governance. Yet, my milestone challenged that stereotype demonstrating that leadership that leadership is not confined to particular academic paths but instead rooted in vision, resilience and ability to connect with diverse groups of people.

Running against an opponent from the famous Law Faculty didn’t make it any easier so we set out to divide his house; an idea that proved to win us the election – hatched by my long-time friend Bayern Turinawe who was a law student himself! The hostile receptions we received from the Law classes would soon die down if they dared to listen to our message of providing results and we lived up to that promise throughout our time.

As a pioneer Guild president from Engineering discipline, I carried huge responsibility to pave way for others and as such our year and method of governance was closely watched since our successes or lack of could determine how future candidates would be perceived. Since then, more Engineering students have run for the same office with some registered successes.

Looking back now, that moment was not just about one individual but about expanding the definition of leadership. It was about embracing diversity in thought, experience and discipline but most importantly, it was about proving that leadership transcends boundaries, inspiring change and progress across the entire student body.

Bruce Amanya Mugisha

Guild President 2018/2019

PhD Candidate Makerere University