Kawempe North MP Muhammad Ssegirinya dies at 37

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 DEATH 

Ugandan legislator Muhammad Ssegirinya of Kawempe North has died at the age of 37, Parliament and Rubaga Hospital announced Thursday afternoon.

He breathed his last at 12:10pm.

The announcement came after the dying lawmaker had been reported to be "brain dead" with "all his organs shut down" earlier in the morning by the Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Joel Ssenyonyi.

"Speaker @AnitahAmong announces the death of Hon Muhammad Ssegirinya. Innalillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un," posted Parliament on social media a few minutes before 1pm local time.

In a statement posted on social media platform X, Rubaga Hospital announced the death of Ssegirinya.

"Hon. Ssegirinya has been under the dedicated care of our medical team at Lubaga Hospital. Despite all efforts to ensure his recovery, he passed away today, Thursday, 9th January 2025, at 12:10pm.

"On behalf of the hospital, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the Parliament of Uganda, the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Members of Parliament, his family, and the people of Kawempe North, whom he represented with passion and commitment.

"We join the nation in mourning a dedicated servant of the people. May his soul rest in eternal peace."

Ssegirinya, popularly known as "Mr Update" for his vibrant presence on especially social media, has died before the end his largely troubled and distracted first term in Parliament, which he joined in 2021.

Earlier on Thursday, as he barely hung on to life inside Rubaga Hospital's intensive care unit (ICU), in another room filled with eager reporters, LOP Ssenyonyi cited doctors at the Kampala-based health facility as providing no promises as to whether he would pull through.

With the situation grim, Ssenyonyi rallied Ugandans to "keep praying for Ssegirinya".

Much earlier in the day, news had spread fast that Ssegirinya had passed away.

Even his closest political associates, including his party leader, Robert Kyagulanyi of the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), as well as his lawyer and Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago, had reported his demise.

They had relied on news from Ssegirinya's mother herself that her son had died.

Later, Ssenyonyi, speaking in the presence of Rubaga Hospital acting executive director Sr. Dr. Grace Nannyondo, offered clarification.

Ssenyonyi, who represents Nakawa West in Parliament, said the 36-year-old MP had been brought to the facility "a couple of days ago" and had been in the intensive care unit (ICU), his situation having got "dire".

"His situation has been deteriorating. Doctors told his mum that he had become brain dead and that all his organs had shut down.

"The mother got in touch with us and said her son was dead."

'Sad situation'

When Ssenyonyi and co arrived at the hospital upon receiving the news, the doctors clarified that because "there still a small pass aided with a vent", it would be "unethical" and "unprofessional" for them to declare Ssegirinya dead.

The doctors reportedly made it clear that they "don't want to give you hope", as they "are not God" and therefore "they can't peform a miracle".

"Our call to Ugandans, especially the people of Kawempe North, is 'Let's keep praying for him'," urged Sseyonyi. "Even though medically they are saying hope is a grim picture, but there is a God in Heaven."

Then emerged the tragic news that many had feared would eventually come.

"It's a very sad situation indeed, especially because earlier in the morning we had been given a little bit of hope, and we hoped a miracle could happen," Ssenyonyi later said on social media alongside a picture of Ssegirinya posing with a clenched fist.

In an earlier post update on X referencing the hospital's confirmation, NUP president Kyagulanyi said "burial arrangements will be announced in due course".

Later in the evening, Kyagulanyi shared on the same platform a tentative programme for the send-off of Ssegirinya, "in accordance with the wishes of his family".

Here it is below:
(Credit: X/@HEBObiwine)

Ssegirinya struggled with health problems and was hospitalized both in Uganda and abroad, specifically at Aga Khan Hospital in neighbouring Kenya.

Born a Catholic on January 17, 1987 in Masaka district before later converting to Islam, Ssegirinya entered Parliament in 2021 on the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP) ticket. His was an election victory that would face a court challenge by one of his contenders, Sulaiman Kidandala.

The case was eventually dismissed and court declared Ssegirinya winner, enriching his political CV in the process, having previously represented Kawempe North as councillor at City Hall.

However, he spent a substantial amount of his term behind bars — alongside fellow MP Allan Ssewanyana of Makindye West — over allegations related to the infamous machete killings in Masaka.

The two MPs were released from prison in early 2023 and returned to Parliament in early April that year, but Ssegirinya has since been struggling with health difficulties.

 AT THE SCENE: 

📸  Mourning at Rubaga Hospital

New Vision's Moses Nsubuga was at Rubaga Hospital on Thursday, where politicians and other members of the public flocked to the facility upon learning of the developments surrounding MP Ssegirinya.

Below is the mood he captured earlier in the day and later in the afternoon after the confirmation of the legislator's death: