By Maxy Magella Abenaitwe

Most Ugandan children have been told that holding on to sciences – that is, the traditional, formal curriculum – is the only key to success.  Little or no value is attached to talents outside that box or personal passions. Those who create their own chances and platforms to ensure talent growth beyond what is customary are few.

Emmanuel Otim, a Uganda Christian University (UCU) bachelor of arts in education graduate, is among those few. Since 2007, he has identified himself as a comedian – a career path sparked by his love for stage performance.

This, then, is how Otim (known as Ehmah Napoleone and preferring to be known as simply “Ehmah”) made it unfold. Having lived a childhood with various stage opportunities, he fit himself in the already-established university entertainment sessions. Under the brand name, The Filosofaz, he and a bunch of friends broke the mold of the University praise and worship system of entertainment and introduced comedy.

The comedy group grew so popular that students referred to the Saturday evening walks to watch Ehmah and his partner, Catro Johnson, as, “The great trek to Nkoyoyo hall.” The paved route from the Dining hall to Nkoyoyo hall became known informally as Prince Ehmah Road.

For someone who had grown up with no access to television and the Internet, his first comic sessions were presentations solely intended to cheer up students and satisfy his own creative talents.  Little did he know this would become a career that would pay his bills.

Several times, friends tapped him saying, “Man! You’re going to be big, you will be a millionaire.”  Their encouraging words started to sink in. He began to realize there could be something special about what he had been doing.

Ehmah still remembers Peace Lona, a girl he had met in his S5 class at Makerere high school in 2004. She told him about the successes of Kato Lubwama (comedian turned politician) and Philip Luswata (actor/director best known for “Queen of Katwe”). To further educate himself, Ehmah started attending comedy shows, including those of East African comedians like Philip Luswata and Ebonies.

“Going for these shows shaped my idea that I could actually earn from this,” he reckoned.

In 2009, DSTV held competitions called “Stand Up, Uganda.” He didn’t compete but found family in a union formed by the top 10 winners of the contest. A Ugandan named Omara, who took second place in the competition, called on Ehmah to assist in forming the Crackers’ show that later premiered on National Television (NTV) as Mic Check. Omara and Ehmah had met at UCU.

To Ehmah, his “fully rewarding” world of comedy is the job he “never sought.” It simply evolved.

As of September 2020, Ehmah’s highly ranked comic gigs have taken him to Zambia, Namibia, Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan as well as within his native Uganda.  In spite of curfew, economic and travel restrictions of the COVID-19 lockdown, Ehmah has maintained his relevance with some earnings through social media fan base management, replacing a desired stage performance schedule.

In August 2020, Ehmah Napoleone’s You Tube channel and social media platforms were trending with more than 2,000 views of “Afande Piano,” an imaginary police spokesperson of the Wakanda Republic. Afande Piano is an exaggerated sarcastic character who mimics the Ugandan police spokesperson who at many occasions has been cited defending police and government for their deeds. In addition to bringing smiles to people’s faces, Ehmah’s aim was to show the public how hard it is to be a spokesperson in a country with a political environment like that of Uganda.

While the Afande Piano character is partially political, Ehmah usually refrains from politics as well as tribal, vulgar and religious content that may negatively impact on society.

At that, for the sake of solidarity, advocacy for the rights of Comedians, growth of the comedian industry and as the spokesperson of The Uganda Comedian Association (TUCA), Ehmah has taken part in political performances with comedians like the Bizonto group that were once arrested over allegations of promoting sectarianism through their comic church-like hymns. For some performers, like Allan (alias Optional Allan) and Joshua Okello (alias Okello Okello), he has both learned and mentored.

Kibuka describes the five-year relationship as a kind, generous, helpful and friendly mentorship. He applauds Ehmah for paving for him the way from the ghetto setting to the urban stage.

“I will never forget the day he recommended me for my first Jazz comedy Uganda performance,” Kibuka recalls. “It was unbelievable, I mingled with big names in the Ugandan comedy industry. That day, I realized my potential.”

Okello, Ehmah’s other mentee credits him for being professional, principled, honest and flexible.

“Ehmah keeps time and will always show up if you have a booking, appointment or performance with him,” Okello said. “This is a rare trait among Ugandan entertainers.”

Okello recalls of a time he invited his mentor to perform on a show he had organized in Soroti. That day it rained, and the show flopped. As the dismayed organiser, worried about how to pay, Ehmah agreed to forego his payment.

Ehmah credits UCU for his humility as this was reinforced there for students and staff. He points his success to the 2006-2009 UCU community that embraced him and offered him his first platform as an amateur comedian.

“By the time I left UCU, I was already a brand,” he noted.

Ehmah is saddened by what he perceives as a decline in creative stage talent emphasis and opportunities at UCU. His cry is for the university to embrace drama and entertainment because it holds a great future in Uganda.

His passion for comedy has helped him overlook some challenges like the negative perception some people have towards entertainers. Most parents dislike comedians around their children because they think artists are not good role models.

“Sometimes it’s hard for people to accept you,” Ehmah said. “Africans have not yet embraced comedy as a profession.”

The writer of this article, Maxy Magella Abenaitwe, is a 2018 graduate of Uganda Christian University with a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication. Before her country’s lockdown, she was an intern for the UCU Standard newspaper.

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