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Kabaka Ronald Mutebi’s 23-year legacy at 61 years of age
Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga and the Kabaka. Photo by Joseph Kiggundu
What you need to know:
After clamouring for a federal status for more than a decade, Buganda Kingdom seems to have embarked on a new direction that harnesses its cultural and economic potential to achieve its vision
In April last year, Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, drove through a massive crowd to the Bulange area in Mengo to celebrate his 60th birthday. His first stop was a building that had been an eyesore to thousands of Baganda subjects for more than three decades. A constant reminder of what his kingdom could have been.
The sight of an incomplete gigantic building besides his administration headquarters was always a talking point for the Baganda and others who sympathised with his limited financial power; and a proud moment for those who always wanted to denigrate Kabaka Mutebi. Several proposals had always been made, including an alleged plan to mortgage it to a bank.
This time round, Kabaka Mutebi was not only greeted by a huge jubilating crowd but a magnificient building draped in white and blue – the official colours of the kingdom.
A smiling Mutebi pulled the strings of a huge Buganda flag to reveal a brass lion atop the Masengere building.
Masengere, a name he had chosen for this building, was now open for business. Instead of an eyesore, it was a symbol of what Buganda could do if her people forged unity instead of the usual bickering and demanding of a federal political system modelled to the pre-1960s. The Kabaka gave no speech but his body language spoke volumes of the mood in his kingdom.
Masengere had been completed by his subjects by collecting money and handing it over to Charles Peter Mayiga, the Katikkiro (prime minister) in a fundraising drive popularly known as etofaali.
Before his 61st birthday, Kabaka Mutebi will return to the same building in Mengo, this time to launch the kingdom’s own TV channel, Buganda Broadcasting Services (BBS TV).
The launch of the TV channel on his 61st birthday is an indicator that the unveiling of Masengere was not a one-off. It sets a precedent that Kabaka Mutebi will not be an idle watcher in the economic sphere of Uganda and every time he celebrates a major milestone, there will be something to show for it.
But it also reveals how Kabaka Mutebi has changed his leadership style over the last 23 years as the Buganda King. Where he could previously have appointed a Katikkiro to take on the mighty power of the central government, he chose one who prefers negotiations to wrestle the little he can get from the government, one piece at a time.
Katikkiro Mayiga has been quick to remind the Baganda that a federal system of governance is a priority for the kingdom (expressed by the recent appointment of Apollo Nelson Makubuya as third deputy Katikkiro with the sole responsibility of demanding for federo) but the kingdom cannot stand still until federo is granted.
“You cannot say you will not work because somebody owes you money. We will continue to push for a federal status but at the same time, empower our people to be self-sufficient,” Mayiga says.
Nevertheless, Mayiga, in office since May 13, 2013, has devoted most of his time in building a culturally strong institution that is financially self-sustaining.
This perhaps explains his devotion to the Kasubi Royal Tombs reconstruction. Before he assumed office, the tombs had been lying in ruins years after they were burnt down by unknown people in March 2010.
Although a perimeter wall was built on 68 acres and houses for caretakers rehabilitated and refurbished, the main mausoleum (Muzibu Azaala Mpanga) is still not yet done. It is a blight spot on Mayiga’s impressive out-tray and something that gives him sleepless nights.
“The firing of the Kasubi caretakers, the cabinet reshuffle at Mengo last year and the fact that he is launching a television project when Mayiga’s detractors were keen to indicate that the Kabaka had refused to do so at an end of year function, reveals the maturity of Kabaka Mutebi in exercising his power,” says a source at the kingdom.
On his part, Mayiga in a telephone interview, deflected himself from self-praise, attributing all his achievements to his boss.
“I only do what the Kabaka asks me to (do). Whether it is Ngule Beer, Mirembe Villas or rehabilitation of the Kabaka’s Lake, I simply implement what Ssaabasajja Kabaka instructs me to do,” Mayiga says.
As Kabaka Mutebi turns 61, he can know that the path being taken, which forges unity among his subjects and the central government, is the right one and in Mayiga, he has a chief executive with the right credentials needed to move forward the almost 1,000-year old monarchy in the 21st century.
Kabaka ronald muwenda mutebi’s legacy
Mayiga says Kabaka Mutebi’s legacy is centred on the restoration of Buganda Kingdom, 27 years after it had been abolished.
“It is very rare that kingdoms that have been abolished are restored later. In countries like France, Germany, Greece, Congo or Zimbabwe where kingdoms were abolished, they were never restored even when people demanded for them. In my view, Kabaka Mutebi must be very skillful if he managed to restore his kingdom and that will always be his lifetime legacy,” Mayiga says.
He says “equally important is the fact that the people who are more interested in Buganda Kingdom are actually very young people. You would think that it would be the old ones because they were here when Buganda Kingdom was abolished. You would think that the youth would look at Kabakaship as old fashioned but that is not the case. That is why Kabaka Mutebi has very rare skills in galvanising people.”
Former Kingdom minister, Medard Segona Lubega describes Kabaka Mutebi’s legacy can best be traced to the return of throne and the glory of his forefathers; “We did not have kingship but it was restored. Once again, the Kabaka gave us an identity that was not there for decades,” says Lubega, MP for Busiiro East.
He says Kabaka Mutebi has reconstructed the morals and rescued the Kingdom property, which his subjects had virtually given up for years; “But he came and led the struggle.”
“Kabaka has educated our children through the Kabaka education fund; rebuilding the infrastructure like schools from nursery to university and he continues to contribute to the economic rebirth of Uganda through efforts in giving out seedlings, encouraging people to go back to the gardens and trainings,” says Lubega, also a Kampala lawyer.
According to Lubega, Kabaka Mutebi’s legacy can be seen in the field of communication where his reign has led to establishment of radio and television stations as well as a telecommunication network which form the basis for mobilization.
He says that Kabaka Mutebi has contributed to the employment sector to the people of Buganda and Uganda as a whole through the various projects; “And he has contributed money to the health sector through camps and mobilisation as well as participating in the immunisation campaigns.”
Brief bio of Kabaka Mutebi
Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi is the son of Edward Frederick William David Walugembe Mutebi Luwangula Muteesa II, the Ssekabaka of Buganda, who reigned from 1939 to 1969.
On 21 November 1969, upon the death of his father, he succeeded him as the head of the Royal House of Buganda.
He returned to Uganda in 1988, after a long exile. He was proclaimed at Buddo on July 24, 1993 upon the restoration of the traditional kingdoms.
On July 31, 1993, he was crowned at Buddo as Kabaka of Buganda.
