Hundreds Mourn Former Archbishop Yona Okoth

By John Eremu HUNDREDS of mourners yesterday thronged Namirembe Cathedral to pay their last respects to former Church of Uganda Archbishop Dr. Yona Okoth. Several speakers, including Prime Minister Prof. Apolo Nsibambi, praised the prelate as a hardworking person and a defender of human rights who united the Church and courageously fought dictatorship. “He rose from a lay leader, the lowest rank in the Church of Uganda to that of Archbishop. This achievement shows that he was hardworking,” said Nsibambi who represented President Yoweri Museveni. Okoth, 74, died of pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lung) at Mulago Hospital on Thursday, seven months after his wife, Jessica, passed away. He will be buried tomorrow at his ancestral home at Maundo in Tororo. Okoth’s daughter, Alice, asked for prayers from the fully-packed church, saying it was a trying moment for the family as they had just lost their mother. “We were blessed. He was not just a father, but a friend. His contagious smile touched a lot of people,” Alice said. Nsibambi announced a government contribution of sh1m towards funeral expenses and commended Okoth for improving the relationship between the Church and the State. He said the relationship was frozen when Idi Amin murdered Archbishop Janan Luwum in 1977. He said the Church should complement the State in promoting good governance, but know the boundary of its roles. He also said the Church should have its own resources to be free from the State. He said the Movement government will continue guaranteeing freedom of worship. Okoth succeeded the Rev. Sylivanus Wani as Archbishop in 1984 and retired in 1994. He was Bishop of Bukedi Diocese in 1972 before going into exile in 1977. Ends