BACKGROUND

"I got Moses from Kampala streets as a street kid who was brought to Kampala by his aunt who had brought him to serve as a houseboy [male maid] though as time went on, they where evicted from the residence probably for failure to clear an outstanding rent bill. As a sign of frustration the aunt took him to the taxi park with disguise that she had forgotten something back at home that she had to get back to pick it up as he waited for her at the park, but he had to sit in one position for almost a day. In vain he waited till he felt too hungry to stay in one position. He started wondering on the streets feeding from garbage and also the water trenches were his refuge for some time. Had to wrap himself in a polythene bag as his bed sheet and blanket as well.

"Eventually I met him as he was being dragged and beaten by a hungry mob [September 13th 2007] being accused of snatching a lady’s handbag. I happened to plead on his behalf and I was forced to pay 20,000 shillings for the contents in the lost handbag that they had to release him. Then I also had to pay 5,000 shillings to the police officer that had also been invited to intervene in the matter [imagine an 8 year old child being required by a police officer to sort out his case with a lady estimated to be in her mid thirties on top of an hungry mob of about 60 people]. This has always been the case in our country of continued corruption that at times you have to pay for services that you are supposed to receive free like those of protection from police.

"I took Moses aside and in between tears told me that life on the streets was more difficult than sitting on a burning stove [if I’m to use the exact words he told me]. That is how he narrated to me that within the street kids there is a hierarchy of mature command based on one’s age and the time spent on the streets. For one had to have spent more years on the streets to become an untouchable, and these could always harass the young ones or new entrants to search for them what to eat, beg from passers by for them and in case chance arises to steal for them from careless passer’s by. That was what really happened that day that he was forcefully sent by one of them to go out and snatch that bag that day from the lady and eventually the same boy took the bag from him.

"This story like many others I have always had from several other kids I get from the streets and they do narrate their own account where some have even been exposed to harmful drugs like cocaine, marijuana, cannabis, sniffing gasoline as well as jet fuel. They give an account of their colleagues who died from such practice and some had permanent brain damage.

"I took him on, but first I had to take him to see a doctor to get treatment for his injuries sustained through the beatings inflicted on him during the scuffle. Unfortunately as the doctor examined him, he discovered that he was HIV positive. I do believe Moses got the virus from his parents for as I asked him about other members of his family apart from his aunt, he had never seen any of his parents. The only thing he was told was that his parents had both passed on shortly after his birth.

"This finding on Moses awakened my need to determine each child’s health status following a recommendation from the doctor, which I did and found out that four more children where also carriers of the virus. So the doctor recommended taking them to Mulago for treatment. I have always taken them there every once in a month. Though, owing to the fact that the drugs are freely given by government, one has to stand in line to acquire the necessary monthly treatment. For these drugs are distributed once in a month, so people from different parts of the country have to all parade for this HIV treatment as so do I with my five kids.

"However, on September 4th 2008, Moses’ body swell from toe to head that I had to rush him to hospital. only the doctor to diagnose him finding one of his kidneys damaged and the other one is on the verge of being infested to. He sighted that the cause could have been a result of one of the Anti retrovirus drug used. Moses received some medication that eventually his skin tried to get back to its normal. As I write this, his condition isn't certain because he didn’t receive all his fully deserved medication due to failure to raise the amount request for by the medical doctors who worked on him."

-Timothy