Prime
Fort Portal pilgrims set for journey to Namugongo
Pilgrims at Namugongo during 2019 Martyrs Day celebrations. PHOTO/ FILE
What you need to know:
- 1997 in charge. The year the diocese last animated the celebrations.
- Bishop Robert Muhiirwa of Fort Portal Diocese will flag off the pilgrims at 3pm after celebrating mass.
The Fort Portal Catholic Diocese, which was selected to lead this year’s June 3rd Uganda Martyrs celebrations at Namugongo, Wakiso, has set May 23 as the date to flag off its pilgrims.
The chairperson of the pilgrims committee, Fr Titus Winyi, said they are mobilising all the faithful in the diocese to attend the fete.
“All is set to have this year’s pilgrims from Fort Portal to walk to Kampala, we expect more than 1,000 pilgrims to take part,” he said.
Fr Titus said on May 22, other pilgrims from Kasese and Bundibugyo districts will arrive and sleep at Virika Church in Fort Portal, before being flagged off the following morning.
Bishop Robert Muhiirwa of Fort Portal Diocese will flag off the pilgrims at 3pm after celebrating mass.
“After the bishop has flagged them off, he will walk with them around Fort Portal City led by the UPDF band and we expect the pilgrims to arrive in Busenga on May 31 as they proceed to Namugongo,” he said.
The pilgrims from Fort Portal will be first to walk after two years of Covid-19 lockdown that saw last year’s celebrations held virtually.
The Uganda Episcopal Conference (UEC) this year selected Mbarara Ecclesiastical Province to lead this year’s celebrations, which also selected the diocese of Fort Portal.
The chairperson of the organising committee, Fr Charles Oyo, said the preparations are in high gear.
He said the diocese has collected more than Shs500 million out of Shs1 billion needed for the celebrations.
On April 20, President Museveni pledged to contribute Shs1 billion towards the fete.
“The diocese has held one fundraising dinner in Kampala and we managed to raise some money. We are planning another dinner in Fort Portal on May 21 at Mountains of the Moon hotel where we expect to raise more money,” he said.
He said for better preparations, Bishop Muhiirwa constituted several committees, which are working tirelessly to see that the day becomes a success.
Fr Joseph Musana, who is in charge of the choir, said they have so far lined up a team of 300 members who were picked from different churches around the diocese.
He said 250 choir members are needed.
Fr Musana said for the last two weeks, all the choir members have been undergoing residential training at St Mary’s Minor Seminary.
“We have already procured the uniforms for men and women, bought music instruments and we are planning to have a concert to showcase to our people what we have been training,” he said.
Being a national function, he said they have selected a number of songs of different languages.
This year’s celebration will be under the theme “Baptised and sent to witness Christ with love and hope”.
