President Museveni has condemned Buganda clan chiefs who independently travelled to Namibia to meet Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, accusing them of bringing shame to the country.
On 1 July, the visiting delegation, led by Kyadondo Kasirye Mbugiramula (Navuma), arrived in Windhoek for a 5-day visit during which they met the King, who is reported to be recovering.
However, Namibian security officials stopped them and demanded they show authorization to approach the king.
“These dramas are happening outside our jurisdiction. Otherwise, we would have taken action,” Museveni said of the five clan leaders who were arrested and questioned by Namibian police on Tuesday as a precautionary measure for attempting to breach the king’s medical confidentiality.
“I urge all Ugandans to stop embarrassing Uganda by opportunistically trying to show how supportive they are of the Kabaka,” the Ugandan leader said in a July 11 letter to Foreign Minister JJ Odongo.
Some of the clan leaders who visited include Mvesano Des Kyeyune (Ngali), Sheba Kakande (Ngeye), Elias Lwasi Buzabo (Ndiga), Godfrey Natigo (Lugawe Premier) and Walusimbi Mborozankya (Ngeye).
On July 2, clan chief Augustine Kizito Mutumba said monitor The said visit, which has become a divisive issue in Buganda, was agreed upon by his committee on May 30, 2024.
But Museveni says: “Apart from the Kabaka himself, the next level of authorisation to meet him (the king) could be his family or someone else authorised by him.”
Earlier this week, Buganda’s Prime Minister (Katikkiro) Peter Mayiga strongly criticised those he described as “selfish people politicising the king’s illness”.
“I have been speaking to the Kabaka, and his health is improving. Beware of people who pretend to love the king more than anyone else, as if they love him more than even his immediate family,” he told Buganda’s leaders in Kampala.
Ugandan officials say that Mengo, through Mayiga, informed them of the king’s presence in Namibia on 30 May.
The Ugandan High Commission in Pretoria says Kabaka Mutebi is receiving medical treatment at a facility in Okungurri in Kunene province, about 700 km from Windhoek.
According to Uganda’s High Commissioner in Pretoria, Paul Amoru, Namibia last month expressed its displeasure at attacks on its missions abroad and harassment of its diplomatic agents by some Ugandan citizens due to the Kabaka’s stay in the southern African country.
“These individuals alleged that their king had been abducted and exiled to Namibia, although the Namibian government only learned of the Kabaka’s presence through the media and our diplomatic note on May 31,” the diplomat told the Foreign Ministry.
In a pre-recorded video released by Buganda on July 1, the king said he was hoping to return home soon.
Disclaimer : The content in this article is for educational and informational purposes only.
