49 years after Luwum’s death, Museveni revisits Amin’s legacy

________________

Forty-nine years after Archbishop Janani Luwum was killed under Idi Amin’s regime, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni led national commemorations at Wii-Gweng, Kitgum District, where the archbishop and his wife, Mama Mary Lawil Luwum, are buried.

Accompanied by the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Maama Janet Kataaha Museveni, the President laid a wreath at the gravesite following a church service held under the theme: “Anchored in Christ for Stability, Peace and Unity” (Ephesians 2:14–17).

St Janani Luwum Day, observed every February 16, honours the Anglican leader who was arrested and later killed in 1977 after openly condemning human rights abuses, arbitrary arrests, and killings during Amin’s rule. Nearly five decades later, his name remains synonymous with moral courage.

In his address, President Museveni urged leaders to persuade rather than intimidate. He described Amin’s first mistake as seizing power through the 1971 military coup.

Recalling that he was then a research assistant in the President’s Office, Museveni said he learned of the coup on January 25, 1971, while preparing to leave his home in Kireka for work.

After confirming the news, he contacted student leaders and resolved not to accept the new regime. Within two days, he withdrew money from the bank and left for Tanzania with four others to organise resistance.

“Amin ruled me only for a few hours,” he said, according to a statement from the presidential press unit.

Leaders, he added, must win support through service, not fear. Citing biblical teaching, he said they should let their good deeds shine before others. Any leader who relies on intimidation, he warned, repeats Amin’s error.

He described Amin’s second major mistake as using killings to silence opponents. Although Uganda’s history includes armed struggle, Museveni said he has consistently rejected assassinations outside the battlefield.

He recalled dismissing a proposal to assassinate then–army commander Oyite Ojok at his home, saying such an act would have been cowardly. Even in conflict, he said, both the cause and the methods must be just.

Turning to development, the President thanked Northern Uganda for its electoral support, linking it to government investments in electricity, roads, schools, health centres and clean water systems.

He cited progress in eliminating diseases such as guinea worm and efforts to reduce poverty through programmes like the Parish Development Model. He also pledged to address cattle rustling in East Acholi and fulfilled a Shs60 million pledge to the priests of Kitgum Diocese.

Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, the Most Rev. Dr Stephen Samuel Kaziimba Mugalu, welcomed pilgrims from across the country.

“As the Church of Uganda, we continue to celebrate the life and martyrdom of Archbishop Janani Luwum,” he said. The commemoration, he added, “is not just about an individual; it is about faith, justice, and the values he preached.”

The Bishop of Lango Diocese, Rt Rev Dr Alfred Olwa, said as the church approaches the golden jubilee of Luwum’s martyrdom, the anniversary should “renew us in courage, unity, and service.”

Plans are also underway to develop the site into an international pilgrimage centre.