God will never condemn me for marrying many wives—Rukutana

Mwesigwa Rukutana, 65, served the sitting government in various capacities, including minister of state for finance and Deputy Attorney General. He was also the Rushenyi County MP in Ntungamo district for 30 years. He sat down with New Vision for an interview on a wide range of issues.

How has life treated you outside Parliament?

Life is very interesting; Parliament, Cabinet and all that. These are assignments that one has to do. But if you are like me who has never been a career politician, you go there and do your best.

However, at the back of your mind you know that you have to leave at one time or another. Actually, a point comes when you wish you should leave. So, you are asking about the transition? For me, it was easy because from the day I joined the Government, I knew that the very door I passed through one day would be the door I would eventually exit.

It was always at the back of my mind and so I did not get any shocks or surprises. It was something I was prepared for and even yearned for. So here I am and as I have mentioned, I am not a career politician; I am a lawyer by profession and I truly enjoy my work. I joined politics not on my own accord, but because the people of Rushenyi asked me during the process of promulgating the Constitution.

While I was still practicing law, they wanted to have one of their own help in the constitution-making process. I was reluctant but the force was so big. So, I left the practice and joined politics in the Constituent Assembly (CA) and went through overwhelmingly, though I had a formidable force against me. My intention was to promulgate the Constitution and go back to my practice. But as fate would have it, people said, “We have a new Constitution and its implementation would be challenging.

We request that you go there (in CA) again and implement the Constitution.” I reluctantly went back because I did not have my heart in it. This time, the late John Kazoora trounced me; of course, I never believed I was trounced.

Unfortunately, as fate would have it, Kazoora died and the people of Rushenyi came to me and said, now you can go back. I did not expect to take a long time in politics, but I took over 35 years.

You said you were yearning to quit elective politics, why?

You know my background is a background of humility, but importantly emphasising personal hard work. I am what I am because of dedication to work and fulfilling whatever I put my hands on. You can work for the Government, but if you are a person who wants to work for yourself, there are so many things you cannot do on your own.

Having worked for over 30 years for the Government, I really wished I could retire and rejoin my profession and do other things I love to do at a personal level for the public and my family.

That is why I feel so free and happy to be back where I can exercise my free will, where I can work independently and if I am to earn money, I earn it independently and if I am to carry out an investment, I do it independently and have leisure time for myself and my big family.

Is there anything you miss in Parliament?

Unfortunately, no. There are things that happen in Parliament today, and I say if I were there, I would have done them better, but I don’t think I miss anything. Nothing.

What are those things you think you would have done better if you were still in Parliament?

I look at the procedures, the decision making, the behaviour, the decorum in Parliament, some of the things, my feeling is that I could have done them better, but it is okay. Every group has its own way of doing things.

How would you describe the current crop of MPs?

They are honourable elected Members of Parliament doing their best. The methods and means of doing things could differ from what we used to do, but that is okay because with time everything changes and each section of society or grouping has its own way of doing things. This is a new Parliament, the leadership is new, the membership is more than 75% new, and so, they came up with their way of doing their own things. I don’t have a problem with them, though of course, as I said, some of the things you think you could have done better, but that is it. That is their style.

So, you totally quit elective politics?

Yes, I quit and I won’t go back because I believe when you lead, you do your best because you can never satisfy everybody and you can never do everything. Some people will be happy and others will be disappointed.

Given that scenario, leaders must lead and give way for others. That is why I am telling you without fear of contradiction that my political life has ended. I am now in my profession. The good thing is that in this profession I can practice it until I go to the grave.

You are saying you cannot go back to face the voters; is it because you lost the election?

I wish you knew how many people, even those who opposed me, have come to me and said, “We are sorry. We want you back [to Parliament]. Do you know what I tell them, gentlemen and ladies, my tenure for politics expired. Even if they declared that there are no elections in Rushenyi and they appointed me as a Member of Parliament, I would turn down the appointment. That chapter to me is closed. Nobody voted me as a member of the Cabinet; it was always at the whims and wishes of the President. If he said I want to appoint you to the Cabinet, for example, I would say, Your Excellency, thank you so much; I am no longer interested.

What did you achieve personally in the over 30 years you were in Government?

I never stopped working. By the time I joined the Government, I was a lawyer but also, I had some businesses and my firm was doing legal work. So, I continued with personal development and started real estate.

So, you planned very well for your retirement?

Well, I don’t know whether I planned very well, but it is the natural thing to do.

I prayed to God for a big family and I have it, but I knew it does not stop at that. You have to prepare for the family. So, I always prepare on how to improve my economic situation to cater for the family and give people employment. I employ so many people in my establishments.

What advice would you give to politicians, especially those in Parliament, about retirement because there are those who leave and find life outside Parliament hard?

I have heard that and I have seen some, but it is simple common sense. Whatever public job you get, always keep it at the back of your mind that you have to put in place mechanisms to maintain you at a level you are comfortable with when you are in politics.

Even when you are in big offices, be humble because these offices are not yours.

Remember that one time, the time you unfortunately don’t know, you will get out and when you get out, you will be an ordinary person.

Don’t you miss lead cars?

I used lead cars when there was insecurity. I remember we passed it in Cabinet that some of us who are in sensitive positions should be given lead cars with sirens.

I had it, but to me it did not make any sense. I have never thought that anybody would be interested in killing me, but since it was the order of the day, I had it, but I don’t miss it at all. Fortunately, I can afford a driver and a decent car or decent cars.

What about when you get caught in a traffic jam?

I have to abide by the law; who am I? I can’t jump. Even at that time I used to caution my drivers not to drive on the pavement because I don’t like that. I was born in a humble background. I was raised through humility, through friendship, through being down to earth and I lived exactly that life, even when people thought I was big.

How humble was your family?

To tell the truth, my family was less than humble. We talk about peasant farmers, I think my family was less than peasant farmers because we just scratched the earth to earn a living. School fees was a problem for me and my father used to work in other people’s gardens to get it. I grew up in a grass-thatched house, which we improved to banana thatched.

I think my father constructed an iron sheet house when he got saved (born-again) and that time, I was in Senior One, I think in 1974, and life was a struggle. There is no single work I have not done with my hands. Sometimes I tell people and they don’t agree, thinking I am exaggerating.

At Makerere University, I was fending for myself. I was looking after myself, my mother and the 13 siblings. To sustain myself and my family, I had to do all sorts of businesses.

Tell us about your parents…

My father was Eliab Rukutana. He died in 1980 and his death was a painful experience. He was so proud of me because I was on the path to becoming a lawyer.

However, my mother is still alive at 89 years old. She has a double love for me, but I remember having a quarrel with her when she insisted that after Senior Four, I should stop studying and look for work so that my siblings could also get educated. However, my father disagreed and said, “No, let him continue his studies. If he ever succeeds, he will uplift his siblings. He is intelligent.”

What was your life-changing moment?

My life-changing moment was the day I was deployed at the Law Development Centre (LDC) in Kampala and given a big house to live in. Admittedly, I would never have thought to be a lecturer at LDC, but because I had nowhere to stay and I had no money to rent, the only opportunity could be lecturing at LDC, where they had houses. So, they prepared the house for me and gave me a huge lorry to transfer my things.

The driver of the lorry said let us go and we went to where I was staying. When we reached there, he said, “Sir, you are alone. Can I hire some boys to carry the things for you?” I said don’t worry because I only had a two-inch mattress, a jerrycan, a basin and a stove plus a small bag, which I put in the lorry and sat in. Then the driver said, “Sir, get all the things at once because I am not coming back.” But I said let us go.

He said who will bring them.

I said don’t worry about the things. But the truth is I had nothing else. The house was big and at the end, I portioned it and rented out the rooms to earn money. I even bought a car.

You said you have a big family, how big is it?

It is big and let us stop at that. The only thing I have to tell you is that it is big and I love it. Actually, I aspired for it. 

Esther Nyakato serving her hubby Rukutana cake after introducing him to her family.

You married once again in July 2024, but people thought you had put the brakes on marrying women…

How do you put the brakes on life? For me, that is my life. I am not shy about it; I don’t hide it. I am happy with it and I know my God is happy with it. I know I am very religious, but when I am praying to God and asking for forgiveness, one of the things I know He will never condemn me for is marrying many wives. What sin is it? I married them and I look after them, they produce children and I look after the children. What sin have I committed?

You said it is not a sin, but Christianity emphasises one wife

Christianity depends on the Bible. The Bible is the grand norm, it is the constitution of Christianity. Quote me any one verse which says thou shall not marry wives.

How do you ensure all your wives are happy?

For me, I am supposed to do what I am supposed to do. Happiness depends on the individual. Once I do what I am supposed to do and fulfil my obligation as a husband, I leave it to them. As I know, I don’t think anybody is unhappy and as to the extent of their happiness, I leave it to them.

Any regrets in life?

The regret in life is I never had time to make my father proud. I had so many things I would do but now, it is dawning on me at 65 that I can no longer achieve some of my aspirations. I have come to appreciate that I am being ungrateful to God. God has given me more than I have ever prayed for. God has blessed me with legacy and children. They should build on what I have not achieved.

How would you like to be remembered?

As somebody in this world who lived life the way he is supposed to live it, enjoyed it and eventually left.

What do you attribute your success to?

It is being myself and genuine. My father said if you ever meet a person, make them friends and they will assist you. I have lived to that. That must be coupled with honesty. You must be truthful and be a person who seeks support from others, and besides, you must work hard because there is no alternative or option. I have 16 lawyers and I always arrive at work before all of them.

I am always in the office by 6:45am. You cannot use traffic jam and rain as an excuse, that is why I buy cars for my lawyers, but also, I have allowed them to come in at 8:00am.

The full interview will air on the New Vision TV YouTube channel