WHOSE STATUE IS THAT?
Nov 14, 2002
ADAM Mataasa's statue greets you as you enter one of the sparkling shopping malls in the heart of the city. The building is Mutaasa-Kafeero Plaza, just above the old taxi park.
The father figure, Adam Mutaasa, left behind a legacy of conviction
By Joshua Kato
ADAM Mataasa's statue greets you as you enter one of the sparkling shopping malls in the heart of the city. The building is Mutaasa-Kafeero Plaza, just above the old taxi park.
On the other side of the building is another statue, dressed in a kanzu, and wearing a turban on the head. These two statues have turned out to be one of Kampala's attractions.
The magnificent building is owned by Hajji Hassan Kafeero, also proprietor of Hotel Triangle, Jinja. The mall is named after the two men that grace its entrance. Mutaasa, his grandfather, is the man you meet as you enter the building through Luwum Street, while his father, Kafeero, is the man who welcomes you as you enter via Wilson Street.
The two statues have become a topic of controversy among Muslim clerics, led by Sheik Kyazze. Are they not signifiers of idol worship? What message do they send to believers? Kafeero disagrees: “Those two statues remind me of my grandfather Adam Mutaasa and my father Yusuf Kafeero. When I look at them, I remember my parents.â€
As it turns out, these historic monuments are a story of men remembered for their prowess as fighters for their land and teachers of faith.
The father figure, Adam Tamusange Kamya Mutaasa, left behind a legacy of conviction. He fought for Buganda as well as his Islamic faith. He was among the very first crusaders for Islam, known as abajungute who helped spread Islam in western Uganda. He loved his Nkima clan and was among the pioneer developers of Ankole Kingdom. He earned his name from the weapons he carried, known as ebitaasa, (they save) he became Mutaasa (the saviour)
Mutaasa was the fifth child of Matembe Kafeero Salongo of Bbira in Busiro. He was born in 1842. His mother, Nabbosa Nvandiirwa Nnamirembe, was daughter of Sserunkuma of Mawokota. Mutaasa lived to become one of those chiefs who were sent to Ankole by ruling officials in Buganda, especially Saulo Mayanja, the then county chief of Kabula, to start a system of governance similar to the one practised in Buganda. The system had a hierarchy, with the Katikkiro leading, Ssaza (county) chiefs, Gombolola (sub-county) chiefs and finally the miluka (parish) chiefs.
By the time Mutaasa left Buganda, he was in charge of Kabaka Kalema's bodyguards. He is said to have been a resilient fighter, a fearless warrior, who won territories in Bunyoro for Buganda. He left Buganda after the death of Kalema, at the peak of the religious wars.
“He went to Ankole on the request of the Omugabe through his prime minister, Mbaguta, to sensitise the Banyankole on issues concerning education, health and religion,†Hajji Hassan Kafeero, Mutaasa’s grandson said.
Baganda from different religious denominations were sent to Ankole to perform this duty. However, the majority of the pioneers were the heroic Muslims, because Sekabaka Kalema was a Muslim. They acquired the name for Islamic warriors — abajungute.
The Omugabe’s request for Baganda chiefs to visit his kingdom found many Muslim warriors in Kabula after the death of Kalema. “They had initially gone to Saulo Mayanja, chief of Kabula seeking help to cross to Ankole as refugees, but when the Omugabe made his invitation, they instead entered his kingdom as chiefs not refugees,†Hassan Kafeero says.
Mutaasa and his colleagues had fled Buganda several times at the peak of religious wars. However, the flight of 1893 was their last and they never returned.
“When they fled, they initially went to their hideouts at Kijungute in Bunyoro, but later went deeper to a place called Kyererwa,†Al-hajji Mustafa Wakaaba Kiggundu narrates.
Mutaasa later led his group through Bugangaizi, Buwekula, Kitosi, Kabigi, Kabukunge, Buddu-Masaka until they settled in Kabula. Such was his power that one of the villages he passed through was named Mukitaasa, a name it still holds up to today.
On arrival at Kabula, Mutaasa and his group temporarily set camp at Kalagala, while aiming at Ankole for asylum. However, this was not possible, since they had guns that had not been registered. Today, a mosque and an Islamic primary school stand at Kalagala in memory of the group. Of the 82 crusaders in Mutaasa’s group, the most notable ones included his brother-in-law, Mubi Azaalwa. Others included Kassim Bufa-Magoba, Badiru Ssenoga and Samuel Balironda.
“While still in transit to Ankole, Mutaasa had got wind of the fact that his great long time friend Ssaulo Mayanja, son of Gogwa-Mayanja had been designated as the new justice(Lumaama) of Kabula county,†Hajji Hassan Kafeero said. Initially, Mutaasa and company did not wish to identify themselves to Mayanja. However, as things stood, the situation was fragile and they would easily have been suspected to be Baganda destabilisers in Ankole.
“Finally, our grand-father and his group entered Ankole in 1899, when a young omugabe, Kahaya had just been installed,†Kafeero said.
During his stay in Ankole, Mutaasa served as the sub-county chief of Bwongyera and permanent acting county chief of Kassujju-Kajara.
“He served the premier of Ankole very well, that he even allowed him to appoint his relatives as chiefs,†Kafeero said. The relatives included Mubi-azaalwa, who served as Kajara county chisef, who was replaced by his brother Sserwanga Sedulaka Lubinga, in August 1924.
Mutaasa achieved a lot for Kajara and Ankole as a whole. “In those days, being a chief entailed being involved and responsible for all developmental related activities to transform the social and economic status,†Kafeero said.
He acted as a communal officer organising people to construct roads through out his area. He also worked as a judicial officer meting out magisterial duties and sensitised people about the value of digging pit-latrines. Above all, he mobilised them to undertake immunisation, and attend adult literacy lessons at county and sub-county levels.
As far as agriculture is concerned, Mutaasa introduced the mass cultivation of matooke in Ankole. The stems were fetched from Buganda and carried by caravans organised by Mutaasa. Today, Ankole is well known for matooke.
“Our grandfather also helped spread Islam to several areas of Ankole,†Kafeero said. At the place where he first settled in Nyamitanga, a mosque still stands today, next to a school. For his efforts, a memorial centre was erected at Kajara for him.
It goes without saying that Mutaasa was also responsible for the current presence of Ganda cultural practises in several parts of Ankole. Such areas include Itendero-Sheema, Nyamunuka-Kajara and many other places. Luganda is still spoken in these areas.
By the time he died in 1952 aged 110 years, he had left behind descendants in several parts of the country. “In every 100 people walking in Masaka, Jinja, Kampala and Mbarara town, there is one from the Mutaasa lineage,†Kafeero proudly says. He told his children to work hard and love everybody. This motivated Kafeero’s business acumen, he was later to become wealthy.
Among Mutaasa’s children was Yusuf Kafeero, father of Hajji Hassan Kafeero, owner of Mutaasa-Kafeero building. Kafeero, a cattle trader, was the second of five children born of Mutaasa and Lady Zainabu Nakayima.
“Because of the way he did his business, our father grew in fame,†Kafeero, Mutaasa’s grandson said. He passed away in 1971 aged 70 years. Like his father, Kafeero settled in Ankole, and he was buried there. Ends
By Joshua Kato
ADAM Mataasa's statue greets you as you enter one of the sparkling shopping malls in the heart of the city. The building is Mutaasa-Kafeero Plaza, just above the old taxi park.
On the other side of the building is another statue, dressed in a kanzu, and wearing a turban on the head. These two statues have turned out to be one of Kampala's attractions.
The magnificent building is owned by Hajji Hassan Kafeero, also proprietor of Hotel Triangle, Jinja. The mall is named after the two men that grace its entrance. Mutaasa, his grandfather, is the man you meet as you enter the building through Luwum Street, while his father, Kafeero, is the man who welcomes you as you enter via Wilson Street.
The two statues have become a topic of controversy among Muslim clerics, led by Sheik Kyazze. Are they not signifiers of idol worship? What message do they send to believers? Kafeero disagrees: “Those two statues remind me of my grandfather Adam Mutaasa and my father Yusuf Kafeero. When I look at them, I remember my parents.â€
As it turns out, these historic monuments are a story of men remembered for their prowess as fighters for their land and teachers of faith.
The father figure, Adam Tamusange Kamya Mutaasa, left behind a legacy of conviction. He fought for Buganda as well as his Islamic faith. He was among the very first crusaders for Islam, known as abajungute who helped spread Islam in western Uganda. He loved his Nkima clan and was among the pioneer developers of Ankole Kingdom. He earned his name from the weapons he carried, known as ebitaasa, (they save) he became Mutaasa (the saviour)
Mutaasa was the fifth child of Matembe Kafeero Salongo of Bbira in Busiro. He was born in 1842. His mother, Nabbosa Nvandiirwa Nnamirembe, was daughter of Sserunkuma of Mawokota. Mutaasa lived to become one of those chiefs who were sent to Ankole by ruling officials in Buganda, especially Saulo Mayanja, the then county chief of Kabula, to start a system of governance similar to the one practised in Buganda. The system had a hierarchy, with the Katikkiro leading, Ssaza (county) chiefs, Gombolola (sub-county) chiefs and finally the miluka (parish) chiefs.
By the time Mutaasa left Buganda, he was in charge of Kabaka Kalema's bodyguards. He is said to have been a resilient fighter, a fearless warrior, who won territories in Bunyoro for Buganda. He left Buganda after the death of Kalema, at the peak of the religious wars.
“He went to Ankole on the request of the Omugabe through his prime minister, Mbaguta, to sensitise the Banyankole on issues concerning education, health and religion,†Hajji Hassan Kafeero, Mutaasa’s grandson said.
Baganda from different religious denominations were sent to Ankole to perform this duty. However, the majority of the pioneers were the heroic Muslims, because Sekabaka Kalema was a Muslim. They acquired the name for Islamic warriors — abajungute.
The Omugabe’s request for Baganda chiefs to visit his kingdom found many Muslim warriors in Kabula after the death of Kalema. “They had initially gone to Saulo Mayanja, chief of Kabula seeking help to cross to Ankole as refugees, but when the Omugabe made his invitation, they instead entered his kingdom as chiefs not refugees,†Hassan Kafeero says.
Mutaasa and his colleagues had fled Buganda several times at the peak of religious wars. However, the flight of 1893 was their last and they never returned.
“When they fled, they initially went to their hideouts at Kijungute in Bunyoro, but later went deeper to a place called Kyererwa,†Al-hajji Mustafa Wakaaba Kiggundu narrates.
Mutaasa later led his group through Bugangaizi, Buwekula, Kitosi, Kabigi, Kabukunge, Buddu-Masaka until they settled in Kabula. Such was his power that one of the villages he passed through was named Mukitaasa, a name it still holds up to today.
On arrival at Kabula, Mutaasa and his group temporarily set camp at Kalagala, while aiming at Ankole for asylum. However, this was not possible, since they had guns that had not been registered. Today, a mosque and an Islamic primary school stand at Kalagala in memory of the group. Of the 82 crusaders in Mutaasa’s group, the most notable ones included his brother-in-law, Mubi Azaalwa. Others included Kassim Bufa-Magoba, Badiru Ssenoga and Samuel Balironda.
“While still in transit to Ankole, Mutaasa had got wind of the fact that his great long time friend Ssaulo Mayanja, son of Gogwa-Mayanja had been designated as the new justice(Lumaama) of Kabula county,†Hajji Hassan Kafeero said. Initially, Mutaasa and company did not wish to identify themselves to Mayanja. However, as things stood, the situation was fragile and they would easily have been suspected to be Baganda destabilisers in Ankole.
“Finally, our grand-father and his group entered Ankole in 1899, when a young omugabe, Kahaya had just been installed,†Kafeero said.
During his stay in Ankole, Mutaasa served as the sub-county chief of Bwongyera and permanent acting county chief of Kassujju-Kajara.
“He served the premier of Ankole very well, that he even allowed him to appoint his relatives as chiefs,†Kafeero said. The relatives included Mubi-azaalwa, who served as Kajara county chisef, who was replaced by his brother Sserwanga Sedulaka Lubinga, in August 1924.
Mutaasa achieved a lot for Kajara and Ankole as a whole. “In those days, being a chief entailed being involved and responsible for all developmental related activities to transform the social and economic status,†Kafeero said.
He acted as a communal officer organising people to construct roads through out his area. He also worked as a judicial officer meting out magisterial duties and sensitised people about the value of digging pit-latrines. Above all, he mobilised them to undertake immunisation, and attend adult literacy lessons at county and sub-county levels.
As far as agriculture is concerned, Mutaasa introduced the mass cultivation of matooke in Ankole. The stems were fetched from Buganda and carried by caravans organised by Mutaasa. Today, Ankole is well known for matooke.
“Our grandfather also helped spread Islam to several areas of Ankole,†Kafeero said. At the place where he first settled in Nyamitanga, a mosque still stands today, next to a school. For his efforts, a memorial centre was erected at Kajara for him.
It goes without saying that Mutaasa was also responsible for the current presence of Ganda cultural practises in several parts of Ankole. Such areas include Itendero-Sheema, Nyamunuka-Kajara and many other places. Luganda is still spoken in these areas.
By the time he died in 1952 aged 110 years, he had left behind descendants in several parts of the country. “In every 100 people walking in Masaka, Jinja, Kampala and Mbarara town, there is one from the Mutaasa lineage,†Kafeero proudly says. He told his children to work hard and love everybody. This motivated Kafeero’s business acumen, he was later to become wealthy.
Among Mutaasa’s children was Yusuf Kafeero, father of Hajji Hassan Kafeero, owner of Mutaasa-Kafeero building. Kafeero, a cattle trader, was the second of five children born of Mutaasa and Lady Zainabu Nakayima.
“Because of the way he did his business, our father grew in fame,†Kafeero, Mutaasa’s grandson said. He passed away in 1971 aged 70 years. Like his father, Kafeero settled in Ankole, and he was buried there. Ends