As NBS Television celebrates 18 years of broadcasting, former NBS Amasengejje anchor Daniel Katabira returned to the desk that made him a household name among Luganda-speaking audiences.
Katabira, who left the station eight years ago to pursue business, was among several former presenters invited back during the week-long anniversary celebrations to reconnect with viewers and reflect on NBS's journey.
For him, the return felt less like a visit and more like coming home.
"NBS will always be home," Katabira said. "Sometimes you come back, and the memories just start talking to you."
Stepping back into the studio brought back vivid memories from his years on air, including the determination it took to make every bulletin on time.
He recalled rushing to work aboard boda bodas while dressed in a full suit, determined not to miss the evening broadcast.
"A student once looked at me and said, 'Is this really you on a boda boda?'" he said with a laugh. "That memory still makes me smile."
Katabira also reflected on a lesson he has never forgotten from his broadcasting career.
During one live bulletin, he accidentally mentioned the name of a rival media house instead of NBS, a slip he says reinforced the importance of concentration while presenting live television.
"The moment it left my mouth, I knew there was no taking it back," he said. "It taught me to stay focused. Once you say something on live TV, it's said."
Returning to the Amasengejje desk, Katabira quickly settled into the familiar rhythm that endeared him to viewers during his years at the station.
Looking around the newsroom, however, he said what impressed him most was not the studio itself but the transformation of NBS over nearly two decades.
"Eighteen years is a long journey. There's been so much progress. It makes me happy to see the young people who have joined and carried this forward. NBS makes me proud," he said.
Katabira's return formed part of NBS Television's 18th anniversary celebrations, which have brought back former presenters and journalists to the programmes they once hosted, celebrating the people and stories that have shaped the station since its launch.
For viewers, his homecoming served as a reminder that while faces may leave the screen, the bond between NBS and those who helped build it endures.
