Meet Kampala Parents’ Jessie Namutebi, the unrivalled parade commander

AHABU BWESIGYE

Every little child’s dream is to make it big in life.

Ask any kid what their ambition is and they will tell you they want to be a lawyer, doctor, engineer, teacher etc…

For Kampala Parents School’s Jessie Namutebi, she wants to be all that and more…she wants to take charge of her life like never before.

On Saturday, Namutebi aged 11 years old, commanded the school parade during Kampala Parents School sports day.

It was a colourful event but most importantly, it was the second time that Namutebi was taking charge of the school parade in as many years.

Like a trained army officer, she yelled instructions to her fellow pupils, motioning her hands constantly to communicate her orders.

Her leadership skills wowed many people including the hundreds of parents who graced the sports day at the school’s magnificent complex atop Naguru hill.

“Wow, she is confident. Where did she learn that?” asked one of the parents amazed by Namutebi’s parade commanding skills.

Namutebi says that she loves parade and her commanding is nice and feels like she is a future leader in armed forces.

“I like watching the army parade and its is from there that I learn some of the skills. I look carefully at the parade commander,” she said.

Namutebi commanded her first parade in 2016. Then, she was low on confidence trying to learn the ropes of the trade.

Two years later, she says she is has mastered the art of commanding parade and this is helping her to be confident in whatever she is doing.

“When I am commanding the parade, I feel I am in control. This has boosted my confidence in class,” Namutebi told NBS TV.

She says starting at an early age through being parade commander helps her to think of her future as a good command despite having other dreams.

As for the participants of the parade, they are all praise for Namutebi’s commanding skills.

“She is good and communicating to us what to do. When she raises her hands, we know what direction to take,” said Peter Ayeisgye, a classmate of Namutebi.

Namutebi’s dream one day is to join the armed forces and take charge of bigger parades witnessed during national occasions.