When doctors told his family that he could die at any moment, Emma Matsiko was still a young boy with little understanding of the life-and-death battle unfolding inside his body. Years of illness had left him weak and emaciated, his skin and eyes had turned yellow, and medical specialists had delivered a devastating verdict, his liver was failing and only a transplant could save him. For many around him, it was only a matter of time before he succumbed to the disease.
Twenty years ago, doctors gave Emma Matsiko little hope of survival.Speaking in an emotional interview with Eagle Online, Matsiko recounted the painful journey that stretched from hospital wards in western Uganda to a life-saving liver transplant in India.
Today, however, Matsiko’s story is one of survival against overwhelming odds. The man who was once sent home to await death is now a husband, father, entrepreneur and gospel singer whose music is built around the testimony of a life he believes was restored by God.
“It was on August 17, 2006, when I was declared to be at risk of dying at any time because of liver cirrhosis. But this sickness had started much earlier when I was still a child. My mother would spend months with me in hospital because I was always sick, but nobody seemed to know exactly what was wrong,” Matsiko said.
According to Matsiko, the disease silently progressed throughout his childhood. While in Primary Four, his health deteriorated significantly, prompting his parents to seek medical attention from a local clinician known as Dr Nalongo. Because his eyes and skin had become yellow, the condition was initially mistaken for yellow fever and he was treated with quinine injections and tablets. However, despite months of treatment, his health continued to worsen.
The family later sought help at Busingye Clinic in Ibanda near Kagongo Hospital, where scans finally revealed that the problem lay in his liver. Further referrals followed, first to Mayanja Memorial Hospital under Dr Mugerwa and later to Kampala for specialised treatment. It was there that doctors delivered the crushing news that his liver had been severely damaged and that the only realistic chance of survival was a liver transplant abroad.
“The doctors told us the liver problem was beyond their control. They advised my father that if I was to survive, I needed a transplant either in India or the United Kingdom,” Matsiko recalled.
For his father, the late John Kagonyera, the diagnosis marked the beginning of a desperate struggle to save his son. Kagonyera, who passed away in December 2024 and was buried in Mubende District, spent virtually everything he had searching for a cure. The family moved from one hospital to another and tried countless remedies, including herbal treatments, nutritional supplements and alternative medicines that promised hope but ultimately failed to stop the disease.
As the years passed, Matsiko’s condition became even more complicated. Doctors discovered that his pancreas had also been affected, making it difficult for his body to digest food properly. He was eventually restricted to a diet consisting largely of pawpaw and watermelon, a routine he maintained for nearly nine years as he battled to stay alive.
“I spent almost nine years eating mainly pawpaw and watermelon because my body could not digest many other foods. The medicine would sometimes give temporary relief, but the sickness would always come back,” he said.
In 2010, doctors advised the family to begin preparations for a liver transplant. The procedure would require approximately Shs 150 million, an amount far beyond the family’s means. By that time, Kagonyera had already spent millions of shillings on treatment, while monthly medication costs alone consumed nearly Shs3 million.
The financial burden eventually became unbearable. The family’s savings were exhausted and the options were running out. Yet in the middle of the crisis, Matsiko discovered that the gift he had nurtured in church music could become the instrument that would help save his life.
A choir leader and songwriter from an early age, Matsiko began writing songs while undergoing treatment. In 2009, he composed a campaign song for former Kashari County MP John Nasasira, a project that earned him Shs3 million. The breakthrough inspired him to write another political song titled “Mzee Pakalast” meant for President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni ahead of the 2011 elections.
The song opened unexpected doors. Through various connections within the NRM structures, Matsiko met influential leaders, including then NRM Secretary General Amama Mbabazi. Those relationships helped him access recording opportunities and support for his growing music career, eventually allowing him to record his first gospel album.
“I was helped to record six gospel songs, and that became my first album. From there, God started opening doors,” he said.
His music ministry steadily gained attention. Invitations to perform at churches, weddings and public events followed, while concerts organised in Kampala attracted significant support from well-wishers who had heard about his struggle. One concert in Katanga raised about Shs9 million, while subsequent concerts in Kamwokya and other venues generated additional funds that brought him closer to the amount needed for the transplant.
“I thank everybody who contributed money and prayers. Without the support of people, I would never have managed to raise what was needed,” Matsiko said.
Eventually, the funds were secured and Matsiko travelled to India for the life-saving surgery. The transplant was successful, but his return home marked the beginning of another difficult chapter. The family was weighed down by loans acquired during the treatment process, including debts from Kazo Microfinance and PRISM Microfinance, while Matsiko himself remained weak and dependent on medication.
Throughout that difficult period, one person remained firmly by his side, his wife, Emily Matsiko. At a time when many people believed he would not survive, she refused to lose hope.
Matsiko says she endured discouragement from relatives, friends and even some people who questioned whether the transplant would succeed, yet she continued praying and caring for him every day.
“I thank God for my wife because He used her in every situation. She prayed, she cried before God and she stood firm when many people thought I was going to die,” Matsiko said.
For nearly a year after the transplant, Matsiko survived mainly on fluids before gradually progressing to porridge and eventually solid food. Emily cared for him through every stage of recovery, helping him regain strength despite the emotional and financial challenges that surrounded the family.
The couple also faced another painful prediction. Some people insisted that Matsiko would never be able to have children because of his condition. Yet today, the couple are parents to two children, Ainembabazi Shalom and El Shaddai, a reality Matsiko describes as another miracle.
“They said I would die without leaving a family behind, but God proved them wrong. Today I have a wife, children and a future,” he said.
Now in much better health, Matsiko continues to take medication and occasionally experiences complications, but he is able to work, travel and minister. Together with Emily, he remains actively involved in church ministry through music, praise and worship, ushering and evangelism.
His songs, many of which tell the story of his recovery, have inspired listeners facing sickness and hardship. For Matsiko, every performance is an opportunity to share the testimony of a life that doctors once believed could not be saved.
“I was dead, but Jesus raised me up. One doctor even told my father to stop investing money in my education because I was going to die. But God had another plan,” he said.
Today, the family also operates Bamatsiko Media, a company that provides photography, videography, cultural performances and event management services. Emily runs decoration and cake-making services, while Matsiko leads a cultural troupe that performs at weddings, introductions and other social functions.
Emma Matsiko has over thirty gospel songs and all accessed on youtube account in the name of Emma Matsiko.
Despite rebuilding his life, Matsiko has never forgotten the suffering he endured or the generosity of strangers who helped him survive. It is that memory that now fuels his desire to support others facing serious medical challenges.
“I know what it means to need help and not know where it will come from. Whenever I hear of someone struggling to raise money for treatment, I feel their pain because I have been there,” he said.
For a man who spent years surviving on fruit, battling a failing liver and living under the shadow of death, every day now feels like a gift. And through his music, ministry, and family, Emma Matsiko continues to tell a story that many regard as nothing short of a miracle.
