I was shot in the back – Bugingo

“When the attacker(s) started firing bullets through my co-driver’s seat, I hid under the steering wheel and that is how I survived. Unfortunately, my church member didn’t because most of the bullets hit him,” he said.

A large group from the House of Prayer Ministries International flocked to Pastor Bugingo’s residence in Wakiso District’s Nakedde Village in Namayumba to pray for him. Standing before them, the pastor narrated how as the alleged shooter(s) reportedly kept firing, he took cover in his car which he was driving at the time.

On Tuesday night at around 9pm, unknown assailants reportedly ambushed the vehicle at Bwalakata Junction in Kasubi, a Kampala Suburb as the pastor was heading home in the company of his bodyguard, Corporal Richard Muhumuza.

The soldier, who was a member of the elite Special Forces Command, an army formation from which the presidential guard is drawn, is reported to have been killed that night.

“I lost someone who is irreplaceable. He is a hero. He died for the cause. I commit myself to taking care of his family. They will never lack anything. I will do everything for them until my last day in the world,” he said, without elaborating what he meant by “the cause”.

Since the day of reported incident, members of the House of Prayer Ministries International, which the pastor leads, his neighbours and government officials, have continued to flock the Namayumba home. Together with his wife,  Ms Susan Makula, the pastor, a well-known avid supporter of President Museveni and First Son Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s movement, attended to guests as they came.

There was sombre mood even as believers delivered to the couple words of hope, and commended Pastor Bugingo for counselling Ugandans through prayer and encouraging them to love God.

Pastor Bugingo said his first instinct had been to drive towards the expansive and nearby Lubigi Wetland, but quickly changed his mind, fearing another attack.

“God guided me to Mulago National Referral Hospital. I chose Mulago because I was assured of safety [there] unlike nearby private facilities which I feared would be harbouring killers,” he said.

By the time he arrived at Mulago, several kilometres away, Pastor Bugingo said both him and his bodyguard were soaked in blood.

“We were both rushed to treatment rooms and a few minutes later, doctors told me that my colleague had breathed his last,” he said.

The pastor described Muhumuza as someone who had become part of his family and was committed to his job for the last 10 months he had worked for him.

“He (Muhumuza) had always assured me that if anything happens, he would die to save me or he would do what it takes to ensure that we both survive,” he added.

He told the flock that the deceased’s family, including the widow and two-month old son along with other children who are in secondary school, were at his (the pastor’s) home

“I thank God for giving me another chance to live, and have learnt that someone can leave the world at any time. I need people’s prayers. I have bad memories of what happened,” he said. He urged Ugandans not to make fun of people’s troubles and to always be ready to forgive.

“Don’t hide hatred in the heart. Don’t overload your heart with negative thoughts, and don’t celebrate when other people are facing challenges,” he said.

Speaking at the same gathering yesterday, a senior police officer, who works in the office of the Chief Political Commissar, Mr Apollo Kabandize, said his close friend, the pastor, told him the alleged attackers targeted him when he slowed down at a hump in the road.

Corporal Muhumuza is expected to be laid to rest today at his ancestral home in Ssembalule District.