Another Acholi academician, Prof J .P Ocitti Is Dead

Acholi sub region is yet in grief again as it mourns the passing of academic icon and renowned educationist and author Prof Jakayo Peter Ocitti.

Prof Ocitti’s death comes less than two weeks after the death of another outstanding academician and educationalist from Acholi– Prof  Alexander Mwa Odonga

Prof J.P Ocitti, as he is widely known, breathed his last on Tuesday morning at Nakasero Hospital in Kampala after a long battle with Diabetes and Hypertension. He was 80-years.

Mr John Bosco Otema, a close relative to the deceased confirmed the sad news to Acholi Times in a telephone interview on Wednesday.

“Prof Ocitti was a loving man, principled and very intellectual. He dedicated his life to doing quality work which is at the moment being consumed by thousands of people around the world,” said Mr Otema. He Prof Ocitti is a true icon to the Acholi people who will be dearly missed,’’ said Otema.

Dr David Kitara Lagoro, an Associate professor at Gulu University Faculty of Medicine said Prof Ocitti was committed lecturer while he still worked at the  faculty of Education and Humanity Faculty at Gulu University.

“Prof Ocitti was a loving and committed person; he had very unique ways of dealing with his students and anyone else. I remember even when he retired from lecturing; he wanted to come back to Gulu University to teach for free,” Dr Kitara said.

Biography

Prof Ocitti was born in 1936 in Pajule Sub County in Pader District. He started work at Makerere University in 1960 where he was a lecturer in the faculty of Education and Humanity.

At Makerer, he rose through the tanks and became the Dean of Faculty of Education and
Humanity.

He briefly fled into exile to Zambia during the dictatorial regime of former President Iddi Amin from where he taught in the University of Lusaka.

He returned to Uganda in 1980 and resumed his profession at Makerere University
until 2005.

He was also one of the pioneer Lecturers of Gulu University when it opened its academic doors in 2002 where he lectured until 2013.

According to Mr John Bosco Otema, a close relative to the deceased, a  requiem mass will be held at St Francis Church in Makerere Kampala on Friday before the body is transported to Gulu.

Prof Ocitti will be buried at his ancestral village in Pajule Pader district on a yet to be announced date.

Prof Ocitti is a renowned academician, educationalist and an author with many books to his name. His famous books written in Luo are, Acam Toona, Lacan ma kwo pe
kinyero, Lacan makwo [every dog has his day].

His other works include

1-African indigenous education, as practiced by the Acholi of Uganda.
2- The urban geography of Gulu
3- An introduction to indigenous education in East Africa
4- An introduction to indigenous education in Sub-Saharan Africa: a
select annotated bibliography
5- School atlas for Uganda
6- Fieldwork in urban areas and Kitgum: an urban study