Forty-five years ago, Archbishop Janani Jakaliya Luwum
was brutally murdered, for his firm stand against the evil
crimes of the Idi Amin regime on the people of Uganda. This
gruesome murder, which occurred on the 16th of February,
1977, coincided with the 100th Anniversary of the arrival of
the first Anglican Missionaries in Uganda under the
auspices of the Church Missionary Society (CMS). The first
Anglican Missionaries reached the southern end of Lake
Victoria in 1877. Therefore, Archbishop Janani Luwum was
murdered during the preparations for the centennial
celebrations of the Church of Uganda, which were slated for
30th June, 1977. He was supposed to be the main celebrant
at this important occasion. The arrest, torture and murder
of the Archbishop were not only criminal, but also grave
sacrilegious acts.
There is a command in the Book of Psalms, Chapter 105,
Verse 15. The Lord says:
“Do not touch My anointed ones; do My prophets no
harm.” (New King James Version)
Religious leaders carry the anointment of the Almighty God
to shepherd and guide the people in spiritual matters.3
Therefore, when you harm an anointed person, you are
directly obstructing the progress of God’s work and bringing
a terrible curse upon yourself. Idi Amin brought a curse
upon himself by murdering Archbishop Janani Luwum.
Government gazetted 16th February as a public holiday, to
commemorate Archbishop Janani Luwum’s legacy and
martyrdom. The day is also an opportunity to reflect on the
valor and courage displayed by Ugandans in the fight
against bad leadership and dictatorship. We honour the
memory of the dead and celebrate them for their sacrifice
and contribution to Uganda’s liberation from the shackles of
oppression. For instance, two Cabinet Ministers, Charles
Oboth-Ofumbi and Erinayo Oryema, were murdered
alongside the Archbishop by Idi Amin’s soldiers.
The Chief Justice of Uganda, Benedicto Kiwanuka, suffered
the same fate earlier, in 1972. He was abducted by Amin’s
state operatives from the High Court premises and later
murdered. Many Academicians, Religious leaders,
Politicians, Business people, Foreigners etc. were either
arrested or murdered. Some were forced to flee the country.
The situation was even worse for the defenseless peasants
who were murdered in hundreds and thousands. It is this
abysmal state of affairs which forced some of the patriotic4
fighters to mobilize mainly the peasants from the
countryside to defend themselves and defeat dictatorship.
I have explained, elsewhere, the genesis of the Idi Amin
phenomenon of bankrupt leadership, which bedeviled not
only Uganda, but also other parts of Africa. It has its roots
in the distorted structure of political power, which we
unfortunately inherited from the colonial government. It was
characterised by a dualism, whereby you would have
Europeans on top and African auxiliaries below them. In
administration, for instance, there would be a British
administrative officer with an African clerk below him. In the
army, there would be a British Officer with a Ugandan
sergeant, Amin type, below him. In the 1960s, when Uganda
was about to become independent, the Uganda army did not
have a single Second Lieutenant, the lowest commissioned
officer. All the officers of the King’s African Rifles were
British. By 1960, Idi Amin was one of the three most senior
army officers in the Uganda army; yet, Idi Amin had spent
only two years in school. When we gained independence,
these auxiliaries became the principals. The African
sergeants, who were semi-literate, became field marshals
overnight: Idi Amin, Mobutu, Bokassa, etc. They overthrew
the political leadership soon after independence and took5
over the whole society. They did not know how to go about
managing a country because they had little education. With
such crop of leaders, it was obvious that the country would
drift into a state of anarchy and instability.
This is why I and other freedom fighters resisted the Idi Amin
regime immediately it captured power. We knew he was a
disaster to Uganda’s long-term development agenda and
stability.
It is sad that Archbishop Janani Luwum and many others
became victims of a broken and bankrupt state. The
Archbishop displayed great courage in the face of danger. He
had the option of running into exile, but he chose to stay
with his flock and endure humiliation and intimidation from
Amin. He refused to abandon the people for the sake of his
own safety. In the end, he may have paid a great personal
sacrifice with his life, but his death strengthened the
people’s resolve and determination to get rid of the Amin
regime. There was no more doubt in anyone’s mind, in
Uganda and outside, that Amin was a liability to the
Country. Even those who had supported him in the
beginning, for instance, the British, were alarmed that he
could go that far to murder an Archbishop over differences
in opinion. It is not surprising that two years after the6
murder of the Archbishop, Idi Amin was finally ousted from
power.
Therefore, as you reflect on our tragic past, you should also
thank the Almighty God for enabling us to correct the
mistakes which stalled Uganda’s progress. Some Countries
have failed to emerge from the mistakes of bad leadership.
They got severely torn apart and have remained in an
ungovernable condition as a result of the bad decisions of
their leaders. There are many examples that one can quote.
However, in the case of Uganda, we were able to rescue the
Country from total collapse and redirect it on the path of
stability and prosperity.
The fruits of liberation are now ripe in every sector of our
society. Uganda enjoys unprecedented peace and stability.
There are some few evil doers, like the ADF, who are puzzled
by this great achievement. Their attempts to distract us from
the work of building Uganda into a modern middle income
Country have been decisively defeated.
The UPDF is determined to uproot any disruptive and
negative forces inside or outside Uganda. Uganda’s rapid
march towards the goal of socio-economic transformation
cannot be stopped by anyone.7
Finally, I wish to thank you all for remembering the life and
martyrdom of Archbishop Janani Luwum. I urge you to
guard the values and principles for which he laid down his
life.
May the Soul of Archbishop Janani Luwum Continue to Rest
in Eternal Peace.
I thank you all.
- Friday, May 3, 2024
News Flash
