Under the fading light of a Friday evening, as crickets chirped in Kayabwe, a quiet fear crept into the home of legendary footballer Obadiah Ssemakula, famously known as “Musanvu we Ggwanga.” Once celebrated for weaving through defenders with the precision of a seamstress on the pitch, the former Coffee SC and KCC FC star has now vanished into thin air, leaving his family grasping at straws. The man who once captivated the nation with his pace and skill is now at the center of a heartbreaking mystery.
Ssemakula’s wife and daughter revealed their growing anxiety as they last saw him on Friday, suspecting his mental health may have played a part in his sudden disappearance. A history of mental illness had shadowed him before, but after treatment, he appeared to be in the clear—until now. His wife’s voice cracks as she pleads for any information, painting the picture of a family grappling with the weight of the unknown. “He had normalized, but this feels like we’re back to square one,” she said, her words heavy with despair.
Hope flickered briefly on Saturday when NTV’s seasoned sports journalist Lumansi David reported seeing Ssemakula in Nsanji, en route to Masaka. Lumansi, who had stopped to exchange football memories with the former winger, remarked on his calm demeanor. “He was taking the Masaka direction, and he seemed very normal,” Lumansi noted. But like a shadow at sunset, Ssemakula disappeared from sight, leaving behind only questions.
For a man whose life was once an open book of victories and cheers, his disappearance feels like a dark chapter that no one expected. As his family, friends, and the wider football fraternity unite in search, the plea echoes across Uganda: if anyone has seen the man who once carried the dreams of a nation on his feet, let them come forward. Ssemakula’s legacy may have been on the field, but now it is his safety that the nation prays for, with bated breath.
Photo: Fufa Media
