“He was the archbishop but had only two pairs of shoes – and not new ones; old and flat-heeled pairs. When others thought that he needed more and they donated to him shoes, he would give away those new ones and retain his old ones,” Ssekikubo said then.
He added: “He left no bank account to his name – we have checked – yet he had the means. He did not spend on his family. When government offered a Mitsubishi Sport car, he refused to sit in it. It is still there. He has been driving his old Land Cruiser of 2002. He was a simple but very proud man.”
Kalangala Woman MP Helen Nakimuli, also an Orthodox, was equally shocked that her leader owned only two pairs of shoes.
“Can we emulate this man? I have about 60 pairs of shoes. I am learning from him and by next month [October], I will have only 40 pairs. I want to learn from him slowly and process by process,” Nakimuli said, as MPs burst into fits of laughter.
We hope Nakimuli has started emptying her rack in memory of Lwanga. Like her, journalist Eddy Khan is still in disbelief that the man of God owned “just two pairs”.
“I was shocked…. Is it even true? Anyway, for the clergy, it’s rare that people will focus on their shoes. Those men of God are too principled and maybe, shoes wasn’t a big thing to him, unlike me. For someone of his caliber, it was surprising because even a school-going child in town here can’t have just two pairs,” Khan said.
He sarcastically added that Lwanga could have been lucky to be buried in one of his pairs but unfortunately with Khan, “my Muslim faith does not allow me to even go with socks”.
PASSION OF SHOES
Khan prides in owning a sizeable number of pairs. He also didn’t know where some pairs were kept – thanks to his wife who got us the actual number.
“When you called, my wife did the counting. I have 45 pairs and she has 25. I have a big problem that when I get new pairs, I forget the old ones. I put them [old] aside and only wear new ones. Later, I get back to the old ones,” Khan said.
In his grave, Lwanga must be completely flabbergasted that some people own so many pairs of shoes. In a recent interview with The Observer, Ssuuna Emmanuel aka Omulangira Ssuuna expressed his love for fashion and shoes.
“I love shoes so much; even if I find a pair I love at Shs 4m, I can’t fail to buy it. I might have more than 150 pairs of shoes and my dream is to have over 1,000 pairs. I always wear T-shirts, jeans, sweat pants…. But I never forget to make a statement with my shoes.”
Despite his immense love of shoes, Ssuuna said the Covid-19 disruption to the entertainment industry doesn’t favour him to spend more than Shs 500,000 on a pair of shoes.
You wonder whether musicians such as the curvaceous Desire Luzinda can ever give up on buying shoes. She once told The Observer that her shoe collection comprises more than 200 pairs. Her favourite pair then was a black Casadei from the UK at a whopping Shs 1.5m.
To some, this might sound outrageous, but it is normal to shoe lovers. Khan is not bothered with people’s passion for shoes as long as they can afford them. He challenges himself to own a pair that matches the day’s dress code.
“Every time I buy a new suit, I look forward to having its matching new shoe. It may sound weird but that is more reason why I have many shoes. A workmate once said I waste money, but that’s my passion,” he said.
His rack comprises sneakers that cost between Shs 250,000 to 300,000, boots and loafers at Shs 200,000 each, moccasins at Shs 80,000 to 150,000. He also buys used original Crocs that range between Shs 80,000 and Shs 100,000. A few years ago, Khan owned at least 20 pairs of All-Star sneakers alone, but gave away most of them – leaving him with only eight pairs now.
His most expensive pair is a suede boot bought in the UK in 2018 at £130 (about Shs 640,000).
“I saw that boot with an American black pastor. You don’t know the satisfaction that I got after getting it. I don’t intend to buy a similar one since I wear it once in a while at high-end events, the last being the swearing in of President Museveni at Kololo this year. It is still intact, though,” Khan said.
IS IT THE COST OR QUALITY?
In life, people crave for different things to satisfy their desires. Growing up, The Observer managing director, Pius Muteekani Katunzi, was told by his aunt to always ‘smell well and put on nice shoes’ because people easily get endeared to you that way. He has lived up to her expectations.
With about 35 pairs of only brand new shoes – last December he gave away 30 pairs to friends and charity – prices don’t matter when it comes to the right pair of shoes. His most expensive pair is a formal shoe from the US worth $350 [about Shs 1.2m] and the cheapest is a Converse at Shs 250,000.
“It is not showing off …. My obsession with shoes and gadgets is unrivalled. For as long as something satisfies that moment’s urge, I go for it, no matter the cost. I love good things, anyway,” Katunzi, also a lawyer, said. He commended lawyers David Mpanga and Fred Muwema for their dapperness.
Katunzi added: “People reading this may think I am snobbish when I give actual prices but that doesn’t mean that I don’t have other responsibilities. With good things, I know their worth and will go after them.”
Whereas he does not follow particular brands, he mainly wears brand new formal shoes, suedes, and loafers made from countries such as Italy, Portugal, Britain and the UK.
Out of his collection, he is more attached to a pair of cowboy boots, having lost a relationship in 2003 because of his love for shoes. Whenever he feels playful, he rocks the boots with tight jeans. He also has about 60 pairs of jeans, all bought brand-new.
“We had set out with my girlfriend to buy cowboy boots at River Island in the UK. Later, I received a call that required me to divert the money to other equally important things. She got angry and started shouting at me, wondering why I had changed my mind. The boots were worth 120 pounds. Three days later, I went back and bought the same boots, but the relationship was gone,” he recalled.
Almost 18 years later, he has vowed not to give away those cowboy boots. Maybe, if his 17-month-old son takes them over in future.
According to Katunzi, there are perfect brands that people can afford but the negative mindset of ‘ekikadde kikola nga ekipya’ (the old one is as good as new) is still a challenge. Indeed, cheap things come at a cost. He recalled a friend who once bought a glossy belt from a hawker at Shs 5000.
“On that very day, my friend went to the washrooms thrice and the belt was already in tatters,” Katunzi said, bursting into laughter while showing me his brown belt worth Shs 150,000 but still intact.
In Uganda, he said, a few shops offer genuine new products yet others have exorbitant prices. If he does not buy shoes while on trips abroad, he only walks into Uganda House and Grand Imperial buildings where some shops stock genuine products.
Another shoe fanatic, Murriel Atai Aloka, who majorly does shopping at Bata and Woolworths, agreed that the Ugandan market is flooded with poor quality products. Most of her shoes are purchased based on occasions and outfits.
“I have about 45 pairs, but I heavily rely on friends who import quality shoes. I have an exceptional foot size for a lady and it’s rare that I will find a shoe that fits me. So, my options are limited to which stores I can get the right shoe size in,” Atai said.
For Khan, he sends money to relatives abroad who often buy shoes on his behalf. He argued that a moderate pair of shoes in Uganda costs Shs 350,000 yet the same amount can get one a classier pair abroad.
MAINTAINANCE
Being a shoe addict may be fun, but maintaining them is another issue. Khan keeps most of his shoes in wardrobes, but moccasins and suedes are hard to maintain.
“When you take long without wearing some shoes, even with better storage, you find them with mold. I don’t use cobblers on my suedes because they use petrol that fades them so fast. A suede cleaner that I last bought in 2019 at Shs 100,000 saves the day,” Khan said.
Katunzi cares for his shoes.
“I have a feeling that if I ever take my shoes to a cobbler, they can never feel the same. Instead of repairs, I would rather give them away to people who are willing to repair them at their cost. If the glue loosened and it’s gaping, I would take it for repair but still give it away,” he said.
The dusty streets and pavements in town are another burden for one to maintain a good pair of shoes in Uganda.
“You can’t even find the right shoe polish. One time, I was in Rwanda and walked without polishing my shoes in 2018 because the pavements are always clean,” he added.
Meanwhile, every time he goes to Serena and Sheraton hotels, he takes advantage of shoe shining machines that are normally free of charge in the lobby.
‘SHOES, NOT MY THING’
Like the late Lwanga, there could be people with his mentality of not living large. A working gentleman in his 60s who preferred anonymity for fear of being ‘judged’ believes having too many pairs is not worth it. He has only three pairs of black lace-up formal shoes.
“That’s what I can afford,” he said. “I don’t have the money to spend on more pairs because I am not an extravagant person… I believe those who have more pairs are either extravagant or have the money to spend on themselves.”
Initially, he had only two pairs and the third one was gifted to him by his son.
“In my life, I have had only two pairs of shoes. When my son took me to fit in a shoe and paid Shs 160,000, I was shocked but he seemed unbothered. The most expensive shoe I can buy cannot go beyond Shs 50,000,” he said.
At home, he wears bathroom slippers, and closed shoes if he needed anything at the local shops. Surprisingly, he owns more than 20 shirts and T-shirts and about 12 trousers. In the end, fashion remains a personal choice.
nangonzi@observer.ug