Gulu, master of the kingdom!
I saw some men dressed in ordinary shirts and trousers, and women in gomesis, blouses and skirts moving about –– not scary.
By Joshua Kato
I saw some men dressed in ordinary shirts and trousers, and women in gomesis, blouses and skirts moving about –– not scary.
Then I caught sight of others draped with barkcloth and cowrie shells. Some had long spears and knives. Now and then, they jumped to and fro in mock attacks against invisible targets, while muttering to themselves –– quite funny.
A small crowd gathered to watch the spectacle at Mityana Ssaza grounds. I joined them.
This was no ordinary show. It was a meeting of more than 200 traditional healers, as they would rather be referred to. They were from Mityana and Mubende.
The way in which many of them were dressed, turned the whole place into a witches meeting.
Some carried fly whisks in different colours. Now and then, they waved them about. One was a tail of a squirrel. Another looked like a tail of a horse!
A man and two women were smoking pipes (emmindi). Two of the pipes had three ‘heads’, while another had eight! No wonder, the smell of crude dry tobbaco waffled in the air. One of them repeatedly called the pipe Muwabutwa (Giver of poison).
Under a large tent, sat a man on a big chair, dressed in an ordinary shirt, complete with a tie.He looked calm. He was the only one in that state of mind. All the other men and women moved about nervously.
“I don’t know if I will pass the test,†said another man.
Ben Gulu was the man sitting in the big chair. He is the chief of traditional healers in Uganda.
He then wore his ceremonial garb. He kept adjusting it. He was like a god. One by one, his subjects moved forward to pay homage. It is like they were greeting a king of sorts.
“Osuze otya Ssebo, (Good morning sir)†greeted a woman in busuuti while on her knees. More and more people moved forward. The men bowed, and clasped their hands together to greet their leader.
These are the men and women who use spirits and cast spells to cure or foretell the future. But Gulu did not show any reverence for them.
“What’s your name?†Gulu asked a man who came to greet him. “You don’t have the powers to heal, leave,†he ordered.
The man looked around as though to make sure no one had heard what the chief had said and stealthily left the gathering.
It appears, many of the masqueraders quake when Gulu comes around.
“I just look at healers and know that they are real or not,†he boasts.
“I get my knowledge from my wealth of experience.â€
Then some body started drumming. Suddenly, many of them began dancing, as they sang traditional songs. Slowly by slowly, they increased momentum and danced harder.
“Lubaale abakuute, (They are possessed),†shouted one of them. Some rotated like the rotary wheel. Others shook like leaves under a storm!
Everybody was dancing. All the time, the chief witch was observing each of them calmly, like a school master watches his students during a physical education lesson. It is possible some of them were pretending.
At the end of the day, many of them were found “wanting†in their power to heal. Those who qualified were awarded certificates of approval. Many were expelled from the practice.
Three days later, Gulu held the same function at Makindye. Again, his subjects from around the area gathered to be screened. There was a masquerader in the group.
Suddenly, Gulu stood up and waved his stick. He looked like a leopard sniffing for its prey. In one swift move, he grabbed one of them by the collar. The unfortunate wizard was called Medi Kivumbi. “Why did you steal a bike from your patient?†Gulu asked, his face sweating. Kivumbi just looked on, frightened.
Kivumbi had lied to one of his patients that the bike UDC 599X had been attacked by demons. Kivumbi had taken the bike promising to rid it of the demons. Lawrence Ndaula, the patient, never saw the bike again, until Gulu appeared.
Gulu started traditional healing, as a child. This business ran through the family.
“I started the business in the 1970s,†he says. He has been working through the years as a traditional healer. “It is in my blood. I got the experience from my grandfather Mzee Gulu,†he says.
Every time a ghost or spirit terrorises people in an area, Gulu rushes to the scene to harmonise the situation. He has been invited to Masaka, Mubende and other areas, to exorcise spirits.
The latest of such incidents happened at Matugga in Wakiso district just a few weeks ago. “I was told that ejjini (a mermaid) had invaded the area. There were numerous sightings that could not be doubted,†he says.
“For example, a local barber claimed to have shaved the ejjini in his shop. As he shaved it, the hair kept growing longer and longer. Another man claimed that it tried to force him into sex, while a woman claimed that it tried to steal her baby from her. Every body was running helter skelter, afraid of the ejiini!
Of late, a ghost has been reported near River Lubijji at Nansana. Guards at the Spencon store have been reportedly raped by a powerful, but very “beautiful woman†while women in the locality have been warned by the same to leave its men alone if they want peace.
You think it is terrifying? Not to Gulu. “It is very easy to handle such issues. I have been working with spirits for so many years. I understand their language very well. Communication is not a problem,†he says.
“For example, I was able to establish that the Matugga ghost was angry because people had invaded its hill,†he poses a little, as if in deep thought. “You see, ghosts don’t want to be disturbed.
They love to live their lives away from the common man. When they are disturbed, they cause problems,â€
Gulu says: “They listen to us patiently, because they know that we don’t understand their ways. They then ask for something to appease them.â€
“What did the Matugga ghost ask for? I inquire.
“It asked for a white bull, to be slaughtered on the hill,†he answers.
“Who is supposed to buy it? I ask again.
“I offered to buy it. Together with my other people, we shall sacrifice it there,†Gulu answers.
Gulu was elected Chairman of Uganda Nedagalalyayo Association, the umbrella body for traditional healers in the country.
Before his election, the practice was dogged by controversy.
Traditional healers were accused of sacrificing human beings, raping women and doing so many other things.
Human sacrifices were regular in Mukono, Masaka, Wakiso and Luwero districts. This had destroyed the traditional healing practice. Gulu says no traditional healer can sacrifice a human being or rape women. “Only impostors can do it,†he says, rather disgusted.
On important occasions, Gulu dresses up in his traditional regalia. It is a gown tailored out of barkcloth. It is also decorated with cowrie shells. Significantly, both the barkcloth and the cowrie shells are key ingredients in traditional healing.
On top of fighting to rid the practice of impostors, Gulu is also lobbying parliament to create a better law, defining the activities of traditional healers. The current law was passed in 1957. “That act is very unfair to the practice because it describes every traditional healer as a witch or wizard (omulogo). This is not the case,†he says.
He boasts that under his reign, traditional healers have gained more respect. “Many of us now use refined medicines to heal. We are connected to an entire laboratory at Wandegeya, where we take our medicines for refining,†he says. The Wandegeya laboratory is ran by Dr. Grace Nambatya, a professional medical doctor.
Gulu is all praises for state minister for health Mike Mukula.
“He is our patron, and has worked very hard to help us. I also thank the government for allowing us to practice traditional healing more openly,†he says.
I saw some men dressed in ordinary shirts and trousers, and women in gomesis, blouses and skirts moving about –– not scary.
Then I caught sight of others draped with barkcloth and cowrie shells. Some had long spears and knives. Now and then, they jumped to and fro in mock attacks against invisible targets, while muttering to themselves –– quite funny.
A small crowd gathered to watch the spectacle at Mityana Ssaza grounds. I joined them.
This was no ordinary show. It was a meeting of more than 200 traditional healers, as they would rather be referred to. They were from Mityana and Mubende.
The way in which many of them were dressed, turned the whole place into a witches meeting.
Some carried fly whisks in different colours. Now and then, they waved them about. One was a tail of a squirrel. Another looked like a tail of a horse!
A man and two women were smoking pipes (emmindi). Two of the pipes had three ‘heads’, while another had eight! No wonder, the smell of crude dry tobbaco waffled in the air. One of them repeatedly called the pipe Muwabutwa (Giver of poison).
Under a large tent, sat a man on a big chair, dressed in an ordinary shirt, complete with a tie.He looked calm. He was the only one in that state of mind. All the other men and women moved about nervously.
“I don’t know if I will pass the test,†said another man.
Ben Gulu was the man sitting in the big chair. He is the chief of traditional healers in Uganda.
He then wore his ceremonial garb. He kept adjusting it. He was like a god. One by one, his subjects moved forward to pay homage. It is like they were greeting a king of sorts.
“Osuze otya Ssebo, (Good morning sir)†greeted a woman in busuuti while on her knees. More and more people moved forward. The men bowed, and clasped their hands together to greet their leader.
These are the men and women who use spirits and cast spells to cure or foretell the future. But Gulu did not show any reverence for them.
“What’s your name?†Gulu asked a man who came to greet him. “You don’t have the powers to heal, leave,†he ordered.
The man looked around as though to make sure no one had heard what the chief had said and stealthily left the gathering.
It appears, many of the masqueraders quake when Gulu comes around.
“I just look at healers and know that they are real or not,†he boasts.
“I get my knowledge from my wealth of experience.â€
Then some body started drumming. Suddenly, many of them began dancing, as they sang traditional songs. Slowly by slowly, they increased momentum and danced harder.
“Lubaale abakuute, (They are possessed),†shouted one of them. Some rotated like the rotary wheel. Others shook like leaves under a storm!
Everybody was dancing. All the time, the chief witch was observing each of them calmly, like a school master watches his students during a physical education lesson. It is possible some of them were pretending.
At the end of the day, many of them were found “wanting†in their power to heal. Those who qualified were awarded certificates of approval. Many were expelled from the practice.
Three days later, Gulu held the same function at Makindye. Again, his subjects from around the area gathered to be screened. There was a masquerader in the group.
Suddenly, Gulu stood up and waved his stick. He looked like a leopard sniffing for its prey. In one swift move, he grabbed one of them by the collar. The unfortunate wizard was called Medi Kivumbi. “Why did you steal a bike from your patient?†Gulu asked, his face sweating. Kivumbi just looked on, frightened.
Kivumbi had lied to one of his patients that the bike UDC 599X had been attacked by demons. Kivumbi had taken the bike promising to rid it of the demons. Lawrence Ndaula, the patient, never saw the bike again, until Gulu appeared.
Gulu started traditional healing, as a child. This business ran through the family.
“I started the business in the 1970s,†he says. He has been working through the years as a traditional healer. “It is in my blood. I got the experience from my grandfather Mzee Gulu,†he says.
Every time a ghost or spirit terrorises people in an area, Gulu rushes to the scene to harmonise the situation. He has been invited to Masaka, Mubende and other areas, to exorcise spirits.
The latest of such incidents happened at Matugga in Wakiso district just a few weeks ago. “I was told that ejjini (a mermaid) had invaded the area. There were numerous sightings that could not be doubted,†he says.
“For example, a local barber claimed to have shaved the ejjini in his shop. As he shaved it, the hair kept growing longer and longer. Another man claimed that it tried to force him into sex, while a woman claimed that it tried to steal her baby from her. Every body was running helter skelter, afraid of the ejiini!
Of late, a ghost has been reported near River Lubijji at Nansana. Guards at the Spencon store have been reportedly raped by a powerful, but very “beautiful woman†while women in the locality have been warned by the same to leave its men alone if they want peace.
You think it is terrifying? Not to Gulu. “It is very easy to handle such issues. I have been working with spirits for so many years. I understand their language very well. Communication is not a problem,†he says.
“For example, I was able to establish that the Matugga ghost was angry because people had invaded its hill,†he poses a little, as if in deep thought. “You see, ghosts don’t want to be disturbed.
They love to live their lives away from the common man. When they are disturbed, they cause problems,â€
Gulu says: “They listen to us patiently, because they know that we don’t understand their ways. They then ask for something to appease them.â€
“What did the Matugga ghost ask for? I inquire.
“It asked for a white bull, to be slaughtered on the hill,†he answers.
“Who is supposed to buy it? I ask again.
“I offered to buy it. Together with my other people, we shall sacrifice it there,†Gulu answers.
Gulu was elected Chairman of Uganda Nedagalalyayo Association, the umbrella body for traditional healers in the country.
Before his election, the practice was dogged by controversy.
Traditional healers were accused of sacrificing human beings, raping women and doing so many other things.
Human sacrifices were regular in Mukono, Masaka, Wakiso and Luwero districts. This had destroyed the traditional healing practice. Gulu says no traditional healer can sacrifice a human being or rape women. “Only impostors can do it,†he says, rather disgusted.
On important occasions, Gulu dresses up in his traditional regalia. It is a gown tailored out of barkcloth. It is also decorated with cowrie shells. Significantly, both the barkcloth and the cowrie shells are key ingredients in traditional healing.
On top of fighting to rid the practice of impostors, Gulu is also lobbying parliament to create a better law, defining the activities of traditional healers. The current law was passed in 1957. “That act is very unfair to the practice because it describes every traditional healer as a witch or wizard (omulogo). This is not the case,†he says.
He boasts that under his reign, traditional healers have gained more respect. “Many of us now use refined medicines to heal. We are connected to an entire laboratory at Wandegeya, where we take our medicines for refining,†he says. The Wandegeya laboratory is ran by Dr. Grace Nambatya, a professional medical doctor.
Gulu is all praises for state minister for health Mike Mukula.
“He is our patron, and has worked very hard to help us. I also thank the government for allowing us to practice traditional healing more openly,†he says.