Iguru has changed the history of monarchies
THE Omukama of Bunyoro-Kitara Agutamba Solomon Gafabusa Iguru 1 dissolved the Rukurato, his kingdom’s parliament recently.
Adyeri Kyomuhendo
THE Omukama of Bunyoro-Kitara Agutamba Solomon Gafabusa Iguru 1 dissolved the Rukurato, his kingdom’s parliament recently. After that he directed the Rukurato members to seek a fresh mandate from their constituents in elections yet to be announced.
This is unprecedented in the history of monarchies in Uganda. Iguru also expressed his desire to have a Rukurato that is representative of all ethnicities in the kingdom.
The brutal aggression visited on Bunyoro-Kitara by the British abolished the monarchical absolutism of the Omukama and in 1896 Bunyoro was absorbed into the British protectorate. The republic of Uganda is an aggregate of several sub-national tribal communities all under one democratically elected president.
Tribal loyalties therefore continue to hamper nation-building efforts because tribes were once the dominant political structure.
By law it is not permissible in Uganda for tribes to act through formal political parties like any other interest group. They could, however, simply act out their tribal bias through the machinery of the political system but that too is frowned upon. In all truth, the Rukurato is, for the most part, symbolic.
Other than a limited representation of the wishes and aspirations of the people of Bunyoro, it neither generates nor sanctions a political executive and no governing hierarchy emerges from it. it is not the official link between the Government and Bunyoro. Major political forces like war, the development of a national economy and the demand for social services have weakened political regionalism and localism and instead made Uganda the nation state, the primary focus of people’s loyalties. The attachments that people had to sub-national political or cultural communities were loosened when they had to depend on the national power for their security, provision of goods and services, among others. This meant that monarchies though in existence, were becoming ever more irrelevant and their future was bleak.
That said, the Rukurato provides part of the leadership of the tribe and its members are the guardians of the tribal culture, customs and traditions.
It would be hard for a non-munyoro to fit into such a set-up as it stands today and, yet it is increasingly vital to have an all-inclusive Rukurato. This matter not being susceptible to a quick fix could probably be solved by the creation of a regional government through either a regional tier or a federal state in which the Rukurato plays a central role as the regional parliament.
Such a government with a redefined, expanded and cosmopolitan Rukurato representing all and sundry would do a service to the kingdom by rescuing it from obscurity by making it both more visible in, and relevant to the day-to-day lives of all the people in the territory. This wouls ensure its survival.
To safeguard the institution of the Omukama from blame for social injustices and other such manifestations of political mismanagement, it should be divorced from partisan politics and the Omukama allowed to enjoy his status as the symbol of the regional government and of the unity of the people.
Crucially, the willingness of the Omukama to work with an elected parliament is an example worth emulating. In similar vein, his actions should bode well with those who believe in democracy as essential for freedom, development and prosperity.
The writer is a Ugandan
living in Brussels, Belgium
THE Omukama of Bunyoro-Kitara Agutamba Solomon Gafabusa Iguru 1 dissolved the Rukurato, his kingdom’s parliament recently. After that he directed the Rukurato members to seek a fresh mandate from their constituents in elections yet to be announced.
This is unprecedented in the history of monarchies in Uganda. Iguru also expressed his desire to have a Rukurato that is representative of all ethnicities in the kingdom.
The brutal aggression visited on Bunyoro-Kitara by the British abolished the monarchical absolutism of the Omukama and in 1896 Bunyoro was absorbed into the British protectorate. The republic of Uganda is an aggregate of several sub-national tribal communities all under one democratically elected president.
Tribal loyalties therefore continue to hamper nation-building efforts because tribes were once the dominant political structure.
By law it is not permissible in Uganda for tribes to act through formal political parties like any other interest group. They could, however, simply act out their tribal bias through the machinery of the political system but that too is frowned upon. In all truth, the Rukurato is, for the most part, symbolic.
Other than a limited representation of the wishes and aspirations of the people of Bunyoro, it neither generates nor sanctions a political executive and no governing hierarchy emerges from it. it is not the official link between the Government and Bunyoro. Major political forces like war, the development of a national economy and the demand for social services have weakened political regionalism and localism and instead made Uganda the nation state, the primary focus of people’s loyalties. The attachments that people had to sub-national political or cultural communities were loosened when they had to depend on the national power for their security, provision of goods and services, among others. This meant that monarchies though in existence, were becoming ever more irrelevant and their future was bleak.
That said, the Rukurato provides part of the leadership of the tribe and its members are the guardians of the tribal culture, customs and traditions.
It would be hard for a non-munyoro to fit into such a set-up as it stands today and, yet it is increasingly vital to have an all-inclusive Rukurato. This matter not being susceptible to a quick fix could probably be solved by the creation of a regional government through either a regional tier or a federal state in which the Rukurato plays a central role as the regional parliament.
Such a government with a redefined, expanded and cosmopolitan Rukurato representing all and sundry would do a service to the kingdom by rescuing it from obscurity by making it both more visible in, and relevant to the day-to-day lives of all the people in the territory. This wouls ensure its survival.
To safeguard the institution of the Omukama from blame for social injustices and other such manifestations of political mismanagement, it should be divorced from partisan politics and the Omukama allowed to enjoy his status as the symbol of the regional government and of the unity of the people.
Crucially, the willingness of the Omukama to work with an elected parliament is an example worth emulating. In similar vein, his actions should bode well with those who believe in democracy as essential for freedom, development and prosperity.
The writer is a Ugandan
living in Brussels, Belgium