Bishop John Baptist Kaggwa
8th April 2012
Bishop John Baptist Kaggwa of Masaka Catholic diocese used his Easter sermon to send a bold message to President Museveni: drop the guns, the teargas and seriously consider dialogue with your opponents.
In a no-holds-barred Easter homily at Kitovu cathedral that lasted about 45 minutes, Bishop Kaggwa warned that Uganda may be plunged into chaos if leaders at various levels do not stop acting with...
out reason. He said recent events in the country are a testimony that some leaders have “empty heads”, a development the bishop described as Uganda’s biggest challenge.
“The actions we see today are because some of our leaders are not learned. This part (pointing at his forehead) is empty,” Bishop Kaggwa said.
He cited last month’s clashes in Kampala between the Police and opposition politicians, one of which left a police officer, John Michael Ariong, dead and several people battered and rounded up by the police.
“The violence that led to the police officer’s death and the manner in which the Police handled the situation all point to the fact that some of our heads are empty,” Bishop Kaggwa added.
“We saw the Police rounding up people indiscriminately. Some were severely tortured and had to be flown out of the country for specialised treatment. Others had flimsy charges preferred against them. Doesn’t this show that some of us act without reason?”
The prelate then turned his guns on junior officers of the security agencies, whom he castigated for obeying all orders without question or reason.
“Even if it’s an order [from your superior], before you obey, you should ask yourself whether it is reasonable to open fire or tear gas at a crowd,” the bishop said.
“Even if it’s an order [from your superior], before you obey, you should ask yourself whether it is reasonable to open fire or tear gas at a crowd,” the bishop said.
Using a Luganda adage and in reference to the recent banning of the Activists for Change (A4C) pressure group, the bishop said the use of force to stifle divergent political views would only compound the problem. “Instead of making statements banning certain political groups, the government should find means of holding talks with the opposition. The correct line for this country is dialogue, not any other means,” he said.
He added that the ban on A4C and the now common Police violence against journalists were in violation of the constitution. “We’ve seen journalists being attacked and beaten by security personnel, and their gadgets confiscated and at times destroyed. Sometimes, it’s the media houses that are attacked. This is a direct abuse of the provisions in our constitution on freedom of speech and access to information,” he said.
Bishop Kaggwa urged leaders to begin thinking about ways of putting Uganda back on track as the country approaches her 50th independence anniversary. “Looking at what is happening in our country, I feel it is better for us to roll it back to the pre-independence times, because that’s when we had leaders that cared for the general welfare of the population,” he said.
Turning to corruption, Kaggwa lamented that the national treasury has been depleted by a few well-connected individuals who have strangely been forgiven by the President. “This has only encouraged others to also grab whatever they can from the treasury — and they will also be forgiven, without having to return anything to the treasury,” he said.
The judicial system, the bishop said, has been abused, with many innocent Ugandans languishing in prisons across the country without trial. “For some people, it takes just a few months for their cases to be disposed of, but if the issue for which you were jailed relates to the Kabaka, it has to take three years for formal charges to be brought up against you,” Bishop Kaggwa said. This was in reference to the youth who have been remanded at Luzira prison since the September 2009 ‘Buganda riot’ sparked off by the government’s refusal to let Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II visit his subjects in Kayunga district. As the bishop rapped the government, A4C national coordinator and Masaka municipality MP Matthias Mpuuga seemed to enjoy every bit of the sermon. And when he was asked to speak, the outspoken legislator started where the bishop had stopped.
He advised the President not to tempt Ugandans into drafting prayers for his miserable demise, as was the case with Malawi’s Bingu wa Mutharika who died suddenly last week. Turning to the Bible, a charged Mpuuga cited chapter 4 in the book of Daniel, which narrates how God humbled King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, forcing him to live in the wild like an animal for seven years. Although he welcomed the bishop’s plea for dialogue between the government and opposition, Mpuuga said religious leaders must first prevail over President Museveni to stop using force against those opposed to him
