Mother faints after emotional testimony in Ggaba daycare murder trial

By Skika Reporter

A sombre mood engulfed the High Court in Ggaba on Monday as a grieving mother broke down while recounting the final moments of her toddler son, who was killed in the April 2 daycare attack. Moments after stepping down from the witness stand, she fainted, prompting a brief halt in proceedings.

Stella Apollot, 36, a vegetable vendor at Ggaba landing site, gave a heart-wrenching account of how she unknowingly bid farewell to her two-and-a-half-year-old son, Gideon Eteku, on the morning he was killed.

“I woke up that very morning, prepared him and brought him to the daycare,” she testified in Luganda, her voice shaking with emotion.

Led in evidence by Chief State Attorney Jonathan Muwaganya, Apollot struggled to maintain composure as she narrated the events that unfolded later that day.

“At around 11am, a friend asked me whether I had taken my child to school. I said yes. She told me to hurry there because there was an assailant who had entered the school and killed some children,” she said.

Overcome with panic, Apollot said she could barely move.

“I lost the energy and failed to walk. I jumped on a boda boda,” she told court.

On arrival, she found a chaotic scene at the daycare, with crowds gathered at the gate. Pushing through, she rushed to her son’s classroom, desperately calling his name.

“I started calling him but there was no response. I was told some children had been taken to hospital,” she said.

Her testimony grew more emotional as she described the moment she reached the medical facility.

“I entered the room and found when they had covered the children. I asked the doctor whether my child was alive… I was told to calm down. When I insisted, that is when I was told they were all dead,” she said.

Apollot briefly saw her son’s body.

“He had been stabbed and had a lot of blood,” she said, drawing murmurs from those in court.

She added that the bodies were later transferred to Mulago Hospital, but she was too devastated to immediately follow.

“We later picked his body, took him home and looked for transport to Pallisa for burial,” she said. “We buried him on a Saturday.”

When asked whether she knew the attacker, Apollot said she did not at the time.

“I just saw him in photos, but I have now seen him here,” she said, pointing towards the dock.

During cross-examination, the defence expressed condolences before questioning her about security at the daycare. Apollot said that although there were personnel at the gate, checks were largely handled by teachers and were not strictly security-focused.

Shortly after she was excused from the witness stand, Apollot collapsed in court. Red Cross responders rushed to her aid and carried her out as proceedings were temporarily suspended.

The testimony came as the trial of Christopher Okello Onyum, the prime suspect in the killing of four toddlers at Ggaba Early Childhood Development Centre, opened in Kampala.

The case has drawn widespread public attention, with families seeking justice for the victims of one of the most shocking attacks on young children in recent memory.