By Asenath Were
Being determined and ambitious is society’s expectation of everyone, but prevailing in all your ambitions and coming to the other end of the tunnel successful is personal caliber, patience, and hard work.
Elsie Tukahirwa Kokunda, a 21-year-old pursuing Bachelors of Mass Communication in year 2 (BAMC2) and an MP in Mass Communication, is one of the few whose determination has seen them through to the level they are at.
With just a small amount of UGX400000, Tukahirwa was able to pay for a short course in makeup where she was awarded a certificate and is now a certified makeup artist.
She used to incur a lot of expenses on just make-up, which motivated her to go learn how to do it herself, but after learning and seeing that she could actually work on others, she decided to give it a try.
“I was spending a lot on it because I had a lot of shoots, so I decided to go and learn it. So after learning, I realized that I could also work on people and I love it,” Said Tukahirwa.
Tukahirwa, is also the Member of Parliament for mass communication in the 24th guild government in Uganda Christian University and a class representative for the BAMC2 class from 2021 to present.
Tukahirwa said that leadership is not a bed of roses all the time, but she sometimes experiences bad energy from her peers, but she handles it by prayer and staying quiet, taking council from Proverbs 15:1. ” A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”
Being that she is a socialite, she loves creating content and sharing it with her audience on her YouTube channel and other media platforms. To Kokunda, everything around her is content to choose from. She never finds any hardship in looking for what to post.
“To me, everything and everywhere has content. It just comes naturally to me and is one of the reasons I chose journalism. There was no other course that could suit my character and passion. If you love what you do, the course unit will not even be hard for you. ” Tukahirwa said.
On top of everything, Tukahirwa is also a canteen manager at RUBAGA YOUTH DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (RYDA), musician, and fashion star. According to her, she is an active person and is a go-getter, so whatever she sets her heart to, she will pray about it and work towards achieving it.
One of the things that has enabled her to handle all the responsibilities at hand is her confidence in herself. “I thank God I am confident and no one can break it. If I feel that what I am doing is right, then who are you to tell me otherwise?”
Tukahirwa plans to immediately proceed with her master’s degree after her bachelor’s degree, and her role model in this is her mother, Nabirye Suzan Liz, who has already attained her degree, masters, and is now on her second masters.
Like her mother, Tukahirwa also wants to be self-employed, thus working hard to grow the number of followers on her YouTube channel and working hard to own a personal make-up studio, as well as aspiring to one day have bridal wear for hire.
Apart from her mom, she also looks at Faridah Nakazibwe, a Ugandan journalist and head of news at NTV, as her role model because she loves the fact that she is humble, decent in her dressing and knows how to handle social media bullying.
Tukahirwa, was born to Tabura Andrew and Nabirye Suzan. Liz, the first born of five, attended her primary at Buloba Church of Uganda, her O’Level at Buloba High School, and her A’Level at Seroma Christian High School, and is currently at Uganda Christian University.
