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His Majesty Omusinga Charles Wesley Mumbere Irema-Ngoma, Nyabaghole Agnes Asimawe Ithungu and Prince Charles arrived safely in New Delhi India, where they will be for some weeks on private tour. On their arrival at Indra Gandhi International Airport His Majesty Omusinga Mumbere, Nyabaghole Agnes and their Entourage were warmly recieved by Hon. Dora Kutesa - Diplomatic Minister Counsellor at Uganda High Commission in New Delhi, India. Before the Royal family arrived in India, they made a stop-over in Addis-Ababa Ethiopia and Dubai United Arab Emirates. The Royal family is doing well in India.
His Majesty Irema-Ngoma Charles Wesley Mumbere received back Mr. Petero Mupalya to Rwenzururu Kingdom at Buhikira Royal Palace in Kasese town on Wednesday 16th June, 2010. The King appreciated a decision taken by Mr. Mupalya of coming back and join the Kingdom, which, he and his father founded in order to free the Bakonzo and Bamba who were denied their right of existence as Bakonzo and Bamba in the Toro Kingdom. Toro Kingdom enslaved the Bakonzo and Bamba under the colonial rule from 1890 to 1962 and by the Uganda independent government up to October 19, 2009, when the Presidentof Uganda, H.E. Gen. Yoweri Museveni officially announced the government’s decision to recognise the monarchy. Both the colonial rule and independent Uganda governements marginalized, oppressed and suppressed the Bakonzo and Bamba and sometimes used them to antagonize each other. King Charles requested Mupalya to stay on board as they work together in the development of the region. Omusinga Charles told Mupalya that all the tribes of Rwenzori such as Bakonzo, Bamba, Batooro, Basongora, Batwa, Banyabindi, etc belong to the Kingdom and should feel free. No one should marginalise them, they should all work for the prosperity of the Kingdom and the government of Uganda. The time of slavery has gone and forever gone. The Rwenzururu people are all free to elect the people they want to parliament, send their children to school, occupy offices they qualify for in government at all levels, own business and property, speak their language, and do any other thing which does not violet the law of the land or antagonize with the rights of their neighbours. We are all citizens of this Rwenzururu Kingdom and also citizen of Uganda as our mother land.
Mr. Petero Mupalya was one of the top three official founders of Rwenzururu Movement of Bakonzo and Bamba ethnic groups of Toro Kingdom in the 1950s and 60s. The other two were Isaya Mukirania and Yeremiya Kawamara. The movement was composed of Bakonzo and Bamba ethnic groups. Isaya Mukirania who was the president of the group was a Mukonzo while Mupalya and Kawamara were from the Bamba community. There were other 18 member founders of the movement that included Samwiri Mutooro, Blasio Maate, Obadiah Munakenya, George Balyananzighu, Mpilika, etc.By 1961 the movement came to be known as Rwenzururu Bakonzo-Bamba. Their motto was: Thuli baghuma (We are one). The aim of the movement was to have the Bakonzo and Bamba be recognized by constitution as members of Toro Kingdom at equal footings. They also wanted their languages to be spoken in the kingdom without any hindrance, to be involved in the Kingdom and district administration, to have access to hospital, roads, clinics, get represented in the legislative council etc, which were all denied by the Toro Kingdom. They then sought for a Separate Rwenzururu District that would include the traditional counties of Bwamba, Burahya, Bunyangabu and Busongara which were pre-dominantly occupied by the Bakonzo and Bamba. This was also denied by the government of Uganda. Instead the Bakonzo and Bamba were condemning of insulting the Kingdom of Toro and the King. They were mercilessly massacred. Isaya Mukirania then decided to launch a military struggle against Toro and Uganda government to free his people. A struggle started on 15th August 1962 to 15th August, 1982. After that Omusinga Mumbere changed the style from physical fighting to negotiations and developing human resource, which began on 15th August, 1982 and ended on 19th October, 2009.
When Isaya Mukirania and the other 18 members of the group declared Rwenzururu a Kingdom separate from Toro on 30th June 1962, the Bamba leaders, namely Petero Mupalya and Yeremiya Kawamara, opposed the idea. Mr. Kawamara passed away, Mr. Mupalya kept on opposing the Rwenzururu monarch and its monarchy until 16th June, 2010 when Mupalya came to the Palace and reported back with a promise to rely behind the Rwenzururu Kingdom under the leadership of King Charles Wesley Mumbere who succeeded his father, King Isaya Mukirania Kibanzanga on 19th October, 1966.
Despite opposing the Kingdom, Mr. Mupalya attended the ceremony when Omusinga Charles decided to work with the government of Uganda in restoring his monarch using peaceful means on 15th August, 1982. Mupalya expressed himself as one of the founders of the Movement but not the monarchy. At any point in history when some anti-monarchy showed off their dissatisfaction to the establishment of the Rwenzururu government, Mupalya came on the fore-front as a leader. Sometimes Mr. Mupalya regressed back and paid allegiance to Toro Kingdom administration. But his Bamba tribes men did not want to regress back since they had already acquired a district status which had nothing to do with Toro Kingdom and had no problem with their Bakonzo neighbours.
Mr. Petero Mupalya, came to the palace with his wife, a daughter and two sons. He was accompanied by Hon. Yeremiya Mutoro, a Rwenzururu State Minister for minerals discoveries and development, and Hon. Robert Elphaz Baguma, a Rwenzururu State Minister for Disaster Preparedness who hails from the Bamba community.
Mr. Mupalya was welcome in the Palace by the Rwenzururu Prime-Minister, the Rt. Hon. Constantine Bwambale who also introduced him to the King. The prime-Minister was accompanied by Hon. David Nguru, Minister of Lands and Survey, Hon. Yehosafati Kule, State Minister for Chieftains, Hon. Ernest Baluku, State Minister for External relations in Charge of Kyatenga, Honorable Atanasi Masereka, State Minister for Security, and Hon. Yoweri Nziabake who represented the Rwenzururu Veteran Association.
Persistent outbreaks of cholera in Kasese District have been blamed on poor hand-washing practices and bad eating habits. This was noted at a one-day advocacy meeting for district councillors on water and sanitation held in Kasese Catholic Social Hall on 01 October 2009. Full Story
The last case of cholera was reported on 30 April 2003, by the Ugandan Ministry of Public Health had reported a total of 277 cases with 35 deaths in March and April 2003 in Bundibugyo district, with most cases located along the Semliki and Lamia rivers. Vibrio cholerae O1 El Tor Ogawa had been confirmed by the Ugandan Public Health Laboratory.
The Ministry of Health at the time sent several missions to this area and is taking many measures to control the outbreak, including: improving the coordination and response at district level; carrying out health education campaigns; mobilizing the community about appropriate sanitation practices; training health workers in case management and use of oral rehydration salts as well as in surveillance and data management; and developing active case finding with community leaders.Since then there have been isollated cases with the threats all coming from the neighbouring countries
Before the introduction of the UPE programme in 1997, the pupil enrolment in Kasese was 66,250 in Government Grant Aided schools. As at the end of 2008, the enrolment in Government grant aided Primary schools was 154,497 reflecting 133 % growth of the previous year. In 1997, the number of government grant aided primary schools was 173. As of end of 2008, they are now 258 government grant aided primary schools. (Non government Primary schools are 144)
Since the quota system started, every year, eleven students from Kasese District are admitted in Ugandan public Universities with a total of 35 benefactors of this todate. In addition, other tertiary institutions such as Bugema University and Makerere University Centre for Continuing Education have established study centres in the District.
There are a total of 34 secondary schools benefiting from Universal Secondary Education (USE) in the District; of these 18 are government grant aided and 16 are Private/Community owned. As at the beginning of 2009, in the total enrollment benefiting from USE was 14,824.
The challenge faced by education in the region is still high with many dropping out of school regardless of the Universal Primary and Secondary education Programs. There is a need to improve on the infustructure and quality of schools in the region. One of the problems faced by the people is the high prohibitive cost of education which as a result has led those who can afford quality education to seek for it in other regions with the majority going off to study in Central Uganda if they can afford it.
President Museveni has donated three new Mitsubishi Pajero cars, one each to the Kyabazinga of Busoga, the Iremangoma of Rwenzururu and the new Bishop of Soroti Diocese, the Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Obbo. The vehicles were handed over at the weekend at State House, Entebbe to the representatives of the respective recipients.
The President also donated an animal feed mill and mixer to Kahunge Women Development Initiative from Nakasongola District and a maize huller, mill and animal feed mixers to Tukolere Wamu Group from Kiboga District. The agro-processing machinery donations were made in fulfillment of the government’s Prosperity-for-All programme that aims at eradicating household poverty and ensuring food security through modern agriculture. President Museveni was also last week in Amolatar promoting the programme
The government has secured a loan to develop selected roads in Western Uganda. This comes after the African Development Fund (ADF), approved a loan of $ 125.6m (Shs250b) to finance the Road Sector Support Project 3 (RSSP3). The main objective of the project is to improve road access in the rural areas of Western Uganda covering Kiruhura, Ibanda and Kamwenge districts. The project will assist in poverty reduction. The main components of the project include civil works for upgrading to a bitumen standard, the 143-km stretch of Nyakahita-Ibanda-Kamwenge Road with 6.0 m carriageway and 1.5 m shoulders on either side.
There will also be an installation of a weigh-bridge at an appropriate location to control vehicle over-load.
Other components of the project consist of an HIV/AIDS mitigation programme, an Environment and Social Management Plan (ESMP), a Resettlement Action Plan, road safety, project audit, Feasibility and detailed design studies for Kayunga–Galiraya (83km) and Hoima-Butiaba-Wanseko (111 km) roads.
Estimated to be fully implemented over a five year period, the project will improve transport services with reductions in transport costs, travel times and improved road safety. It will directly enhance the livelihood of an estimated 800,000 people within the project area, where majority of the people are involved in agricultural activities, animal husbandry and trading. The total project cost is estimated at US$ 173.1 million(Ush 346 Billion), of which the proposed ADF loan will cover as much as 92.3% of the foreign exchange cost in addition to 5.1% of local costs while the Government of Uganda will finance US$ 47.4 million (Ush 94billion), representing 27.4 % of the total costs, mainly in local currency (94.9%) with 7.7% in foreign costs.
The Bank Group’s strategy for Uganda draws on the Uganda Joint Assistance Strategy (UJAS), supported by Development Partners, for the period 2005 to 2009. Its objective is to articulate a harmonized response to the country’s Poverty Eradication and Action Plan (PEAP) and other development goals. More specifically, the Bank Group’s support is mainly around two pillars of the PEAP, namely, enhancing production, competitiveness and incomes, and human development.
The ADF’s intervention in the road project is consistent with the Bank Group’s strategic vision for Uganda for the period 2008-2010 which emphasizes human development, pro-poor development investments in an environmentally and socially accepted manner and overall poverty reduction.
Other projects include the RSSP1 2,105 km rehabilitation in 12 districts of South Western Uganda., The design of Fort Portal - Bundibugyo - Lamia road upgrading of 103KM.
Source: Africa Development Bank Group September 28, 2009
Fusce sollicitudin nisl a lectus. Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Full Story
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