BUSHENYI – The ArchBishop of Mbarara Archdiocese, Paul Kamuza Bakyenga has decried the increasing cases of mysterious disappearance of Ugandans in the country which he says has created social unrest among the local citizens.
Archbishop Bakyenga who was the main celebrant on Sunday, August 18, during the silver jubilee celebrations of St. Mary’s vocational school Kyamuhunga, said the outside world praise the country of its hospitality but the continued disappearance of Ugandans still pauses a threat to the lives of it’s citizens.
“These days’ honourable ministers you are here, people from outside Uganda praise us. They say Uganda we are hospitable but there are certain things which are happening which are frightening us. People are disappearing and when they discover them, some with missing body parts’’ Archbishop Bakyenga said.
His Grace Bakyenga said what worries most is when police sets out to investigate most of those cases of disappearance and murders but their reports have neither been published nor reported anywhere as they never tell the public about their findings.
“Then those who still have their parts set up commissions of inquiry but those commissions, those inquiries never have a conclusion the results are never published you cannot find them on the internet or in the library and it continues like that. First it is the children, then it is the students then it is a young working population and then you say should we believe in research? Is that the way research should end?’’ the Archbishop asked rhetorically.
Archbishop Bakyenga said the country’s good image of hospitality abroad is not being portrayed locally.
‘’We are having a lot of conferences in Uganda, we have built very good hotels; Serena, Sheraton Imperial , Grand imperial , royal imperial and All the others people come wear their neck ties they are in air conditioned conference halls, pictures are taken, news items are published and memoranda are signed then after the meetings some of those people we sign memoranda with they say now the formal meetings are finished let me go now and pick a taxi from the public in the transport area and I want to go to where Ugandans do their simply shopping buy some fruits and maybe some Chapati and so on and if they go there the pickpockets steal their wallets’’ Archbishop Bakyenga said
“When they are going back they just go to Entebbe catch their plane luckily if they have not lost their tickets, you will never see the memorandum ever since the light of the day. They sign into a good room with a beautiful pen probably you exchanged pens but they have seen that the reality is there where the real people seem to live and those real people have not been influenced and penetrated by the beautiful atmosphere of the good hotel,’’ the Archbishop asserted.
He said Ugandans are now prisoners in their own country.
“Now more and more of our so-called cities are becoming prisons for those who have got some wealth to protect and for us others we shall keep sleeping in houses without windows and the rest but the church we have not yet given up.’’
The archbishop added, ‘”the challenge we have is to let your light shine, let the flavour of your salt be reflected in the society. I remember once sharing with a certain minister who was working in the ministry of education incidentally minister Ssempijja we expected some people from the ministry of education and they had more less assured us that they will be here.It is a pity we have missed them we wanted to show them the light of Kyamuhunga but when you go back please tell them’’
Buhweju MP Francis Mwijukye said the archbishop is telling the world that Uganda has a government which is not responsible to the well being of its citizens the reason why he is worried about the state of the affairs of Ugandans.
‘’What the archbishop is talking about is simply that we have a leadership that is not responsive to its citizens that once there is a problem the public must not be kept in the dark. The leadership must tell citizens why people are disappearing and the results of investigations must be put to the public’’ Mwijukye said
Mwijukye said political leadership in the country is not being accountable to the public: “the Archbishop is telling us that politicians are not doing their work.’’
Minister in charge of general duties in the office of the prime minister Mary Karoro Okurut agreed with the Archbishop, saying he was right to worry because investigations are not satisfying but the government has been able to arrest some perpetrators of such crimes.
“In most cases we Child sacrifice and as you said the follow up is not what we desired but your grace I am beginning to be happy because those criminals, goons are being arrested and caught like chicken thieves one by one so at least we have something to celebrate,’’ Ms Karoro said
