Two weeks ago, death snatched elder Canon Codvia Mabberi Wakiro, a gallant son of Bugisu. He was described as a moving dictionary, a library and a living encyclopedia. He was one of the brains behind the creation of Inzu Ya Masaaba, an outfit that initially housed what was thought to be a cultural institution for the Bagisu alias Bamasaaba.
The Rt. Rev. John Wilson Nandaah, the Bishop of Mbale Diocese was the chief celebrant at Canon Wakiso’s requiem mass held at St Andrew’s Cathedral, mbale.In his sermon, he heaped praises on the late but also questioned why Inzu Ya Masaaba was swapped with Umukuuka Wa Bugisu despite the achievements it had scored for its people.
He referred to the costly Lumasaaba Bible and the existing Lumasaaba education curriculum to buttress his point. To him,both the Lumasaaba bible and the curriculum where well crafted to serve the entire community and should be maintained. Well, his statements appear innocent but ill-intentioned and misleading simultaneously occurring.
Having trained originally as a teacher with a bias in divinity, I would have expected the bishop to carry out in-depth research before lashing out at Umukuuka Wa bugisu, for he had no hand in renaming the Inzu Ya Masaaba, a conveyor through wich he ascended to the throne. Instead,it is the government of Uganda that took that decision independently.
Mid last year, the Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Growth on its own motion initiated the name change Inzu Ya Masaaba alongside other existing cultural institutions through a corrigendum (correction) vide General Notice No.966 of 2025 published in the Uganda Gazette of April 8, 2025.
The updated gazette- a public document provided for the official titles of the cultural heads and their ethnic groups.The list included the Kabaka of Buganda,the Kyabazinga of Busoga,the Omukama of Toro,the Kamuswaga of Kooki,the Rwot of Acholi,the Emorimor of Teso and the Umukuuka Wa Bugisu among others.
It is indeed on record that Umukuuka Jude mike mudoma,was rightly gazetted as a cultural leader in August 2023 but erroneously under Inzu Ya masaaba through which he served without prior knowledge of the errors in its set up. The aforenamed corrigendum which also affected other cultural institutions changed the name from “Inzu Ya Masaba” to Umukuuka Wa Bugisu,a “corporation sole:” and that is what it is today.
With the corrigendum in place, did we expect the current Umukuuka to continue using the old name, the same anthem, same emblem, same aspirations, same bank accounts, same regalia, same management structure and above all, to maintain the rotational system under the constitution of the defunct Inzu Ya Masaaba? Certainly not. The name change was never intended to make Umukuuka Wa Bugisu an extension of the Inzu Ya Masaaba outfit.
The only constant is that Umukuuka Wa Bugisu maintained the old office and as the overseer of Mutoto cultural site which are within his mandate as a reigning Umukuuka. It is therefore not fair for a whole Bishop to launch such inciteful public attacks at his cultural leader without bothering to know his side of the story by way of meeting.
it is only through such an engagement that the bishop would get to hear from both parties before taking a side and poin
