Allegations that the Bamasaba people, once circumcised, do not accept counsel from anyone, including their king, due to their new status as circumcised men, are erroneous and misleading. These claims were captured by a Daily Monitor columnist in a recent publication. I am happy to note that this was merely an opinion of an individual writer and not the editorial position of the newspaper. Unless Dr. Khisa concluded his observations about the Bamasaba in a manner inconsistent with our cultural practices and thus failed to seek final instructions from elders before undergoing circumcision—some of which include respect for elders—his analysis may have missed key cultural nuances. He also overlooked the reasons behind the practice of circumcision among the Bamasaba peoples of Uganda and Kenya. I hope there are no uncircumcised Bamasaba hiding in the diaspora, as the memory of circumcising an MP at 80 years old is still fresh.
After casually reading through the article that appeared in the Daily Monitor titled “Having a King Among the Bamasaba is Abominable,” I initially suspected Prof. Wangusa as the author due to the flow of grammar, polysemy, and syntax. However, I quickly eliminated him from my list of suspects, having met him a few days prior while profiling the authors of the Inzuymasaba anthem, to which he played a leading role. Prof. Wangusa also prayed for the long life of the current Umukuka and all his ministers. Upon deeper investigation, the author of the controversial article was identified as coming from Bumulyanyuma village in Manafwa District. I laughed it off, knowing them to be bright people but full of arrogance, unwilling to bend even while greeting the president. To them, it is the president who should kneel to greet them; even women in this clan won’t kneel. A person from this clan would not cross the road to say hello to the president or a cabinet minister; it is expected that the minister or president will come to them and say hello. Dr. Khisa, in writing scornfully about our culture and cultural leader, seems to be approaching the issue from his own clan’s perspective rather than from a Bugisu angle.
Upon further reflection, I realized that this is the same Dr. Khisa who, for a long time, avoided identifying himself as a Bamasaba. I cannot decipher the reasons for his reluctance to acknowledge his identity as a Bamasaba.
Books and academic discourses can provide knowledge, but culture imparts lessons beyond what books can teach. Who would dare challenge a cultural leader on matters of culture and customs? Cultural leaders are indeed the custodians of their community’s practices. Recently, when Pope Francis addressed Americans on climate change issues, he was told unequivocally to focus on religion, where he holds significant authority, rather than on environmental issues, where he is not considered an expert. He swiftly heeded this advice.
The Bamasaba people of both Uganda and Kenya recently celebrated the first coronation anniversary of their king. To mark this event, substantial amounts of cash were collected for radio and television stations. When Dr. Khisa’s write-up appeared in the Daily Monitor during our celebrations, I naively mistook it for a congratulatory message to the Bamasaba people for successfully completing the first year with their king and the successful Imbalu launch, witnessed by millions of Ugandans, including over ten cultural leaders from outside and within Uganda.
The late General Eyadema, the Togolese military strongman, is reputed to have said, “Even if you don’t like the antelope, you must at least admire its speed.” I initially thought Dr. Khisa’s article admired our progress, but alas, this was not the case.
I presume Dr. Khisa has been away from the diaspora for an extended period and has been preoccupied with academic pursuits, possibly losing touch with the achievements and curriculum vitae of notable Bamasaba individuals. No well-meaning Bamasaba can overlook the impressive qualifications of the current Bamasaba cultural leader, His Highness Jude Mike Mudoma. His qualifications include a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in forestry from Makerere University and Achines University, both earned magna cum laude, in addition to numerous other academic accolades. His current qualifications surpass those of his predecessors and exceed the qualifications prescribed by Inzuymasaba policies for leadership of the Bukuka.
Consider his formative political journey as LCI Chairman of Buyobo Subcounty in the early 1990s, District Councilor in Mbale, government consultant under UNFA, and service on various boards under the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, among other responsibilities. To suggest that Dr. Khisa’s submission on Bukuka was juvenile is an understatement. The statement that His Highness Jude Mike Mudoma had no name to look up to was particularly disheartening for the Bamasaba people, who were celebrating their first coronation anniversary. As a cultural institution, we will request Dr. Khisa to apologize for this unsupported claim, though, as a typical Umulyanyuma, he may not readily offer an apology. We will use other means to obtain an apology, but such a statement is crude and should not be associated with an academician of any stature. If it had come from a typical villager from my village in Bukalasi Bududa, I would have dismissed it and moved on. The current Umukuka’s working and academic qualifications are more impressive than those of figures like King Shaka of the Zulu or Mwanga of Buganda.
The Umukuka is a highly educated man, but I prefer not to descend to such a low level of debate. It is Dr. Khisa who is trying to drag us into this level. As a cultural institution, I have more important things to communicate about what we are doing for the Bamasaba people. Unfortunately, I have seen some professors teaching doctoral students despite holding only master’s degrees, such as the late Prof. Senteza Kajubi, who authored the famous Government White Paper, and Professors Tarsis Kabwejere and Prof. Kamuntu. Can Dr. Khisa match their influence and respect? Master’s degrees were once considered qualifications before doctorates became preferred, but they remain essential academic requirements. Academicians often have conflicts with one another, and I hope Dr. Khisa is not writing from this perspective.
In his infamous article, Dr. Khisa claimed that anyone calling the Inzuymasaba cultural leader a king is not in their right senses and that it is abominable. He himself paid little attention to the law that creates cultural institutions in Uganda. It is a well-established position among cultural compatriots that cultural leaders in Uganda, whether in Teso, Tororo, Bugwere, Acholi, or elsewhere, are products of various Ugandan statutory provisions, customs, and cultures. The law that legitimizes cultural institutions in Uganda discourages any cultural leader from compelling citizens to pay allegiance. I hope Dr. Khisa finds solace in this constitutional provision.
Once the constitutional and statutory provisions are properly analyzed, they will shed considerable legal light on how cultural leaders emerge in communities. Article 246 and the Cultural Leaders Act 2011, when read together, provide guidance on resolving disputes over cultural leadership. If a community wants a cultural leader, local governments must endorse this claim. If there is contestation, the formula proposed by Parliament in Article 246(1) and fully captured in Section 16(1)(2) of the Cultural Leaders Act involves mediation by elders to determine which claimant was properly identified by the community.
The Bamasaba faced a similar impasse around 2020 when there were two claimants to the throne: the current Umukuka, Jude Mike Mudoma, and another elder. The Minister of Gender, Hon. Betty Amongin, invoked legal provisions to resolve this conflict. The late Umukuka Emeritus Wilson Wamimbi, who had retired from the cultural institution, was requested to mediate in mid-2023. Despite various efforts, including religious interventions, the impasse persisted.
Umukuka Wamimbi convened all 26 clan chairmen at the Mbale District headquarters. After about ten hours of detailed discussions and mediation, approximately 70% of those present ratified that the current Umukuka, Jude Mike Mudoma, was the legitimate leader based on various criteria. This was communicated to the Ministry of Gender, leading to official gazetting. Both competitors came from different political persuasions.
Dr. Khisa may have lost touch with these realities and statutory directives due to his prolonged stay abroad. He should understand that any scholarly position must align with enacted laws and cultural practices. It would be disrespectful to label him as a “kaukumi” (non-conformist) in the diaspora, as is commonly referred to here. However, as an academician, he has followers who may blindly accept his submissions. They need an accurate picture from the cultural institution, which is why we are addressing this issue. Dr. Khisa, by virtue of his age, should be aware of the cultural way of raising any issues that require clarification.
As a cultural institution, we exist to guide and counsel our people whenever they veer off the cultural path. While Dr. Khisa’s life and studies abroad may have distanced him from our cultural norms, we will continue to counsel our people. The cultural leadership is populated with many erudite individuals who will write in response.
The Ugandan constitution clearly outlines how citizens in a cultural enclave should relate to their cultural institutions and leaders. It warns against forcing citizens to pay allegiance. The support and loyalty to the cultural institution and leaders should not be secured through coercion. We voluntarily support our king.
The current cultural institutions and local governments are not designed to divide our
