Gulu Market and the symbolism of glamour

GULU MARKET

The Oxford dictionary defines the noun “glamour” as an attractive or exciting quality that makes a person or a thing seems appealing. The magnanimity of Gulu Market when contrasted with any forms of tangible development in Northern Uganda for the last 30 years makes it glamorous. A new physical attraction supplanted amidst a destitute population in Gulu and Lira serves a great symbolic purpose of a renewal.

Gulu Municipality, like most towns in Northern Uganda has the allure of a shanty settlement. The times under which these places endured civil unrest deprived the generation of witnessing real development but decay. For them now, any development that sprouts in Gulu is a reward from the kind hands of the President. As such, people started seeing new public facilities like Bank of Uganda, Gulu Local Council Offices, the Judiciary Offices, and partly Gulu University emerge as a post conflict reward from President Museveni.

I have a fond memory of the old Gulu market. Back in the days, it served the people well. I recall vividly the buzz of life at the market during hot sunny days. As a pupil of Holy Rosary, we would sneak out during lunch breaks to buy some bananas (Menvu) and boiled corn (maize). At times, we would navigate the packed traffic at the market to run down by the valley to buy sugarcanes.

Gulu market had specific gender significance because it defined expectations by gender. In most families, when men or women left their homesteads, their return would exemplify whether they passed via Gulu market or not. Wives would divorce their husbands who went on a journey to Gulu town but did not return with dried or salted fish, salt, or cooking oil. Gulu market was more important to the daily endevour of the people than just the glamour.

Those were the good old days before the NRA came to town, and before the NRA Kadogos (child soldiers) started arresting, harassing, and murdering people on suspicion of having served in UNLA that they derogated as Obote’s Army. The advent of the NRA in Gulu changed the image of the marketplace. It became a different place altogether. By the end of 1986, it was a place of fear where one would bear witness to firing squad or broad day light arrest of suspected “Anyanyas”.

Subsequently, Gulu market and Pece Stadium (Bar-Pece) became the dual symbol of decay for this town and its society.

Acholi youths were known for sportsmanship and artistry. The boys played soccer and the girls, netball. They took Pece Stadium very seriously as a place where great talent converged – a symbol of talent. Playing at the stadium was a prestige and something every young man longed to experience.

In fact, the fascination of playing at Pece Stadium inspired exceptional artistry in the young Acholi people when it came to music dance and drama. Literally, every school child played an instrument, mastered Acholi songs, and executed quite a number of rich Acholi dance genres with precision of a pro. Every school vied for a spot to perform at Pece Stadium. Pece was the gateway to national Stardom that probably culminated with a performance at National Theatre or Nakivubo in Kampala.

In the same breadth, shopping at Gulu market was the delight of every young Acholi woman, wife, mother, and grandmother. It was the economic hub of the region.  

Gulu Market and Pece Stadium were dream theatres.

Then the war took away the youths – the very foliage of that society. Then both Pece stadium and Gulu Market embarked on rapid decay. This followed an intensely sustained propaganda that Acholi people are a violent backward chauvinists. The image of the Acholi was tainted as that of violent killers, heartless chauvinists, and so forth. It took many people by surprise and such reprisals helped largely to mobilize sentiments against the Acholi haters.

And, here we are, celebrating the renewal of Gulu market, a symbol of glamour which may have come without the old forms of life that pre-occupied it. Definitely, Gulu market without Pece Stadium is like a glamorous smiling woman with a very ill partner.

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