- Wilson Asiimwe first sent an emisary to watch Scovia Kamugisha the day she was at a salon. Later, he proposed marriage but Scovia was not pursuaded until they met the bishop, writes Alex Ashaba.
Wilson Asiimwe and Scovia Kamugisha tied the knot on December 11, 2021 at Burungu Church of Uganda in Kabarole District.
Their love started in 2011 when Wilson, a journalist, saw Scovia passing by his office in Rubirizi District. She was heading to the salon.
“In my life I had always wanted to marry a light-skinned woman and Scovia fitted the ideal profile. I immediately moved after her and sat next to the salon where she was until she came out. I wanted to have a closer look at her but I did not say anything to her,” Wilson recalls.
He alerted one of his friends who was a boda boda rider to tactfully follow her and know where she lived.
“The boda boda rider followed her up to her home. It was about seven kilometres and when he came back, he told me and I planned to visit her.
Scovia says when she came out of the salon, she met a boda boda rider standing outside waiting to transport her home but rejected not knowing it was Wilson who had sent him to discover where she came from.
“I did not know that some people were following me up to my home, a few days later I saw him coming home but I did not give him attention,” she says.
Scovia knew him as a journalist and she feared thinking he would want to take her recordings for news. She always hid from him whenever he tried to talk to her.
“It took me more than one month to convince her that I had no ill intentions but was asking for her hand in marriage because I was ready for marriage,” he says.
It also took her, long to realise that Wilson was serious, saying at first she declined his proposal thinking he was telling her lies.
“When she accepted to talk to me, I convinced her to tell her parents that I want to marry because I never wanted to
take long in courtship, I wanted to have an introduction party immediately,” Wilson says.
He says her parents also took about two months to ascertain that he was serious about marriage but later accepted him.
Wilson says his father-in-law never demanded much money for the introduction party which was conducted the same year.
Planning for wedding
After spending almost 10 years in marriage, Wilson proposed to his wife a plan for the wedding but Scovia thought he was joking.
He says after they had finished constructing their residential house in Kyaduru Village, Mugusu Sub-county Kabarole District, he chose to take a step ahead. Even then, Wilson had always yearned for a Father’s Union shirt which, in the Anglican Church is strictly for wedded couples.
“When I started, working in Kasese District, I joined the choir of St Paul Cathedral, South Rwenzori and I admired wedded couples clad in their Mothers’ and Fathers’ Union outfits and I promised myself to wed soon so that I own one,” he says.
Scovia says her husband’s proposal for a wedding to her came by surprise saying she thought he was lying to her.
“His proposal to me was real surprise, because I had never heard him talking about it. I told him to stop fooling me and I did not tell anyone until we went together to meet Bishop (Reuben Kisembo) of Ruwenzori Diocese,” she says.
She says after meeting Bishop Kisembo she realised he was serious and she informed her parents.
Wilson says after telling his fiancée, he went ahead to choose a wedding date without informing any religious leader only that together with his wife and a friend they met the Bishop to confirm the date.
“When I told the Bishop about our plan for the wedding and set the date he was surprised. We requested him to wed us in our village church and he accepted. But, he was booked by another couple on that day only that he adjusted the time and accepted,” he recalls.
Scovia says nothing was changed according to their plan, only that they had revised down the budget to Shs5m but later their friends advised them to increase the budget and invite more people.
By the time he started planning for the wedding, he had saved Shs10m.
“When I discussed my wedding plan with my friends, they advised me to make a bigger budget of more than Shs30m and people supported me,” he says.
They held several meetings in Fort Portal City and other meetings in the village .
They say majority of Wilson’s friends contributed more than Shs20m to the budget.
Counselling
Before tying the knot, they were taken through marriage counselling at Karambu Church of Uganda and Wilson says
it is when he discovered what Scovia loved about him.
“During the counselling we were advised to love each other, respect and since that time whenever I am home I give more time to my family than any other activities,” he says.
Scovia says they had another opportunity to meet the Bishop for counselling sessions who encouraged them to love one another and live a prayerful life.
Wilson says the wedding became his turning point to become closer to God saying that he has never missed Sunday service and also the bishop became his close friend and mentor.
“Most of the time Bishop Kisembo calls me, texts me the Word of God, he told me not forget to pray to before I go to bed. Now in our family we are prayerful, I was elected to lead Christians in my village church,” he says.
The good
Wilson says his best moment was when he was seated in church and saw his wife walking down the aisle and the time when she was making wedding vows.
“Our wedding was colourful but the most important part was the church service when we were making vows, it was a dream come true when I saw her putting a ring in my finger I was happier,” Wilson says.
Equally, Scovia says tying the knot in church was the best moment and our guests honoured their invitation.
Wilson says after the wedding in church, Bishop honoured their invitation and came to the reception which was a surprise to many people in the village. This is because many Christians had never seen the bishop before coming to their village.
In Brief
Date: December 11, 2021
Church: Burungu CoU
Reception: Kyaduru Village
Budget: Shs35m
Celebrant: Bishop Reuben Kisembo
