Leadership Magazine – Ogon advocates for human rights through cartoons

Ogon advocates for human rights through cartoons

Apr 07, 2021 Leader Leading Personalities 0

He communicates with a pencil, a piece of paper and sometimes with a pen. He will tell a story in a cartoon, which will leave your ribs cracking with laughter. He is Chrisogon Atukwasize, the cartoonist at The Daily monitor. Chrisogon Atukwasize’s cartoons can be interpreted as satirical, hilarious, educative, informative and entertaining by different readers of the paper. But, to him, it’s a way of communicating to his readers and the world.

He said he is a communicator, because art is another form of communication. His love for fine art goes way back to a tender age. Chris fell in love with fine art and never lost track of it. Although, like any other child, he had dreams of becoming a lawyer or politician one day, his love for art was clear. His father being a teacher did not allow his talent to go to waste, he helped him nurture it. Luckily, staying at the teachers’ quarter within the school compound played a big role in nurturing his talent as he had access to the arts studio.

His love for arts did not stop, he pursued it. He said when he used to go for night preps in secondary school, he would use the time to perfect his drawings after reading for only one hour. So, he did not have to wonder what he was going to do at the University. He already had a hint.
Ogon as he is commonly known, was born in the district of Kabaale in 1990, and he is the second born of seven children and the only brother to six sisters. When he was old enough to begin school, he went to a primary school in Kabaale after which he joined St Maria Goretti Rushoroza secondary school where he studied his O-level from 2002 to 2005. In 2006, he joined St Mary’s college Rushoroza for A-level from 2006-2008.

Late in 2008, he joined Makerere University Margaret Trowell School of Industrial Fine Art to study a bachelor’s in Industrial and fine art. In 2011, Ogon graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial and fine art. His career kicked off immediately after university. Ogon got a job with MK publishers as an illustrator. While with MK, he was looking around for a greener pasture and to also advance his career.

He would draw cartoons and post them online and on social media pages, but as the saying goes, when you are destined for heights, only the sky can be the limit, Joseph Mayanja a.k.a Chameleon saw the cartoons, which got him so impressed.
Chris said Chameleon tried to establish contact with him, as soon as he got his contact. Chameleon then asked him to get in touch with him. He said Chameleon told him that he could use his talent to achieve his goal and promised to help him find a placement in the established media houses.

He added that Chameleon tried to get him a job at the Kampala Sun but was not successful. He tried the Daily Monitor but they also had a cartoonist at that time. Chris notes that Chameleon advised him not to give up and encouraged him to push on until he achieved his goal.
Chris says words of courage and wisdom from Chameleon and his parents kept him pushing on at the most difficult time of his career. “Chameleon pushed me and encouraged me not to give up. The words of courage and wisdom chameleon and my parents gave me were the most valuable to me and I didn’t mind what other people said about me,” said Chrisogon.
By Irene Lamunu