Best photo by journalist wins award
Friday November 02 2018
Makerere University guild president Papa Were (with tie) and his colleague are arrested by police officers at Makerere University during students protests against scrapping of meals in halls of residence, suspension of evening classes and hikes in tuition fees on April 16, 2018. PHOTO | ALEX ESAGALA | NMG
Alex Esagala from the Daily Monitor newspaper, won the grand prize at the 2018 Uganda Press Photo Award (UPPA) for his image titled Makerere Student Protests.
Esagala’s winning photo shows police officers arresting Makerere University guild president Papa Were and a colleague during student protests on April 16.
The students were protesting changes to university services, including the scrapping of meals in halls of residence, the suspension of evening classes and hikes in tuition fees.
Esagala prize included a professional camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark III, which came with an EF 24-105mm lens.
Accepting the award at The Square in Kampala on October 18, Esagala, said: “On that day it was not easy taking this photograph. There was a lot of tear gas and people were running. The police continue to violate the rights of peaceful protestors. I call upon the police to stop this. Why do you arrest someone who is not armed?”
The Environment award went to a photo titled Unofficial Garbage Collector, by Badru Katumba.
Katumba’s photo is of a marabou stork standing atop a heap of refuse at the Kiteezi Landfill and waste disposal site in Kampala. Due to the abundance of uncollected food waste, marabou storks are found all over Kampala.
Moses Lemisa won the Urban category for his picture titled Risky, which shows children using a makeshift bridge to cross a filthy water drainage channel in Kikoni, Makerere III, in Kampala.
Many neighbourhoods in the city are constructed informally, and open drainage is widely used to manage waste as well as water flowing during the rainy season.
The Sport award was won by Richard Sanya for The Fall.
Sanya’s image captured Silva Chelang'at of Uganda landing in a water hazard at the National Athletics Women’s 3,000 metre steeplechase trials held at the Mandela National Stadium, Namboole in Kampala on February 24.
Athletes were training ahead of the XXI Commonwealth games which were held in the Gold Coast, Australia.
The People award went to Timothy Latim for his photo titled The Guide, which captured Christine, a tour guide on duty in Mgahinga Gorilla national park in south western Uganda.
Kenyan photographer Brian Otieno won the inaugural East African Photography Award for his photo series titled Kibera: Stories From Within.
Otieno received a Canon EOS 80D with an EF 18-135mm lens, and has been invited to participate in the professionals’ week in Kampala.
Jibril Kwizera won the Young Photographer Award. He received a Canon EOS 1300D with an EF 18-55mm lens, and will participate in a seven-month mentorship programme and exhibit his works during the UPPA 2019.
The annual Winner’s Exhibition is showing at The Square in Kampala until November 18.