Tycoon's son "envious" of Ssuubi, threatens to throw his metallic suitcase out of room

Everyone, it appears, wants a piece of Henry Ssuubi, that Makerere fresher who was photographed with a metallic suitcase and a Kiveera as he made his way into his hall of residence.

The photo led to sustained media coverage while some people poured out their sympathises and started a fundraising spree on twitter.

Others have opined that it is the social media kajanja surrounding Ssuubi's predicament is symptomatic of the current state of our society where people are quick to embrace a cause simply because a prominent person has endorsed it.

It is true that while Ssuubi is poor, he is not the poorest fresher or university student.

Yet until these students are discovered by the social media, it is Ssuubi's time to shine.

His new found status has however not settled well with one of his roommates, a son of a tycoon.

Sources at University Hall, where Ssuubi resides told The Rogue that the tycoon's son is envious about the media publicity and coverage that the poor student has attracted.

The son, in a conversation with his friends, said people like Ssuubi do not deserve all the attention because they do not contribute much to the national economy.

"My father has built many buildings, employs so many people, pays all these taxes but I have never seen the media seeking him out for an interview," he told a friend.

The tycoon's son, who owns five leather suitcases, said the country and more especially the media needs to be grateful to people like his father

He said "glorifying the poor" is not good because they are a strain on public and private resources as Ssuubi's case has indicated.

"See, people have already sent him this and that. People are now struggling to contribute to his upkeep. They have bought him a smart phone yet he even does not know what WhatsApp or twitter is. He is going to look at it in the same way a dog looks at money," he said.

One of the friends of the tycoon's son told The Rogue that he has even stopped greeting Ssuubi.

The tycoon's son said if TVs continue to feature Ssuubi in their news items, he will have no option but to ask the warden to transfer him from the shared room.

He has also threatened to throw Ssuubi's metallic case out of the room because he says it is a "health hazard" to him.

However one of Ssuubi's new found friends said he will fight with the tycoon's son if he tries to throw out the suitcase.

On his part, Ssuubi has decided to keep quiet and ignore the tycoon's son, who spends at least Shs 100,000 per day.

The Rogue is a satirical column that runs once a week on the Nile Post.

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ekiggundu@nilepost.co.ug