Prime
Dr Aliker lights up own book launch
Partners. Left: Dr Aliker and his wife Camille at the launch of his autobiography at Kampala Serena Hotel on Wednesday. Photo by Alex Esagala
KAMPALA.
Big names, including ministers, businesspersons and other professionals in both government and private sector, queued up on Wednesday to buy a signed copy of the book, The Bell is Ringing.
The autobiography of Dr Martin Jerome Aliker, a dental expert, businessman and community leader, was launched at the Kampala Serena Hotel at an event sponsored by the Uganda Breweries Limited (UBL).
Born in Gulu on October 21, 1928, Dr Aliker, now 90, spent more than five years putting the tale of his life’s journey together and describes the challenges and successes that he has walked through to date.
With glasses of Blue Label, a premium blend of Johnnie Walker, one of his favourite drinks being served throughout the evening, the book launch was attended by Dr Aliker’s close associates on invitation.
And it was an event at which dignitaries from the political, civil, social and business ranks from near and far were treated to the author’s humourous talk.
Flanked by his wife Camille and son Phillip Bliss, Dr Aliker, who served as board chairman for UBL for 43 years, told his guests that the decision to write the book was to bring to life again a story touching his young and old times in order to inspire the young people into serving with humility.
Dr Aliker declined to give much hint of the life stories he has told in the autobiography but only tackled a few of the humorous tales in a book that immediately hit the market at Shs50,000 a copy.
1979 incident
The book was launched by Dr Allan Shonubi, the incumbent board chairman of UBL, who stood in for Dr Aliker’s old friend, Mr Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile, the Bank of Uganda governor.
Dr Aliker only treated his guests to a night incident in 1979 when as an adviser to then president Godfrey Binaisa, he lived in Nile Mansion Suites, Now Kampala Serena Hotel. That night, presidential assistants Ben Dramadri and Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile, had their rooms raided by a “sex worker” who wanted a man to serve for the night.
“What have I written in the book? You read it. But since we are here, let me tell this story. In 1979, I found myself being an adviser to president Godfrey Binaisa. He had two personal assistants: Ben Dramadri from Arua and Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile from Kabale. When they left State House Entebbe, I moved along with them to Nile Suites. Around that time, by 6pm, you wouldn’t walk on the streets of Kampala, so we kept in my room suite number 224 and we ate and drank, but because it was safe in such hotels, the door was always open. This particular night at 10pm, a lady in a see-through night gown walked in and said to us: ‘Aliker mumpe omusajja’ (literary meaning give me a man),” Dr Aliker said as the guests burst into laughter.
“Emmanuel (Mutebile) and I didn’t know what to do, but Ben (Dramadri) had a conscience of mind, he stood up and said: ‘madam, what about where you have been?’”. She replied: ‘aah aah oyo temukyali”, meaning that one cannot manage anymore. So Ben suggested that she should go and change and come and have a drink with us. But what I forgot to put in the book, she said: ‘ani akugambye njagala mwenge?’” rendered as who has told you I want alcohol?
“The rest of the book you will read,” Mr Aliker said.
Writing the book
Dr Aliker, who was the first chairman of Nation Media Group Uganda, also said his book talks of the humiliation he got as a young man when he went dancing at the Nile Club. A woman asked him to buy her a bottle of beer if they were to dance together.
“That time, a bottle of beer cost one shilling, that I didn’t have that night,” he said.
He commended his wife, Ms Camille Aliker, his son Phillip Bliss Aliker, and the entire family for standing with him during the time of writing the autobiography.
Launching the book, Dr Shonubi, described the author as one of the country’s “most celebrated individuals” whose story in the book inspires both the young and the old.
“The company (UBL) has benefited from the solid stewardship of Dr Martin and I only pray that I achieve what he did in 43 years, although now ours is based on term limits. And to confirm his great value, we are here at the launch of a book of one of the country’s celebrated individuals. So, get up and we launch this book whose font and writing style is easy to read and is even closer to home,” Dr Shonubi said.
During the process of putting the book together, Dr Aliker’s family hired two different writing experts from the United Kingdom. The first person was the late David Gibbs, who was unable to continue with the work in December 2015 after he was diagnosed with cancer. He succumbed to the disease in early 2016.
The family then hired Mr Hugh MaCmillan from the African Studies Centre, Oxford University, who finalised the arrangement of the work and also supervised the printing of the book.
“This is Martin’s story. All I did was to help him tell his story better. I just helped him to put his own words, language and experience together to look good and attractive to the reader,” Mr MaCmillan said.
