Owiny-Dollo tells Ugandans to start writing biographies
Amb Francis Butagira (centre) autographing Security minister Jim Muhwezi’s copy of “One Small Difference”, an autobiography at Protea Hotel in Kampala on July 20, 2023. PHOTO/STEPHEN OTAGE
Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo has told Ugandans to start documenting their life stories so that the young and future generations may learn from them.
Speaking at the launch of Ambassador Francis Butagira’s autobiography and a book containing his speeches when he represented Uganda at the United Nations, Justice Owiny-Dollo said Ugandans should embrace the culture of writing.
He said the outgoing generation of Ugandans belong to a category of people who worked and toiled hard to stabilise the country, and the stories about their contribution to national development are dying with them as well as the dying reading culture.
“In general, I am glad that a few Ugandans of the outgoing generation are putting to print their life’s journey. The generation we bring forth to the world belongs to the industrial revolution. Even my granddaughter can operate a phone better than me because we trained them in the reading culture,” Justice Owiny-Dollo said.
He added that the young generation must know that there are people who were not born with silver spoons on their mouths but have immensely contributed to national development the way Amb Butagira did.
“He is living a simple and humble life yet he served as the Speaker of Parliament, toiled hard to establish the law that nullified the economic war decree, thereby enabling Asians to recover their properties,” Justice Owiny-Dollo further said, adding: “He was the brain behind the creation of the army court and he also contributed a lot to ending the war in Northern Uganda by pushing for the signing of the Machakos Declaration, which led to South Sudan’s autonomy from Khartoum and enabled the flushing out of Joseph Kony from South Sudan where he based to destabilise Uganda.”
Prof Mondo Kagonyera, who was the guest of honour, described Amb Butagira’s personality as “profile in courage” because of the high-risk undertakings he made, which sometimes bordered on death.
He cited the killing of two Americans by Amin’s soldiers, which Mr Butagira was assigned to investigate.
He also protested the expulsion of two people from Rwanda by the Obote government, which nearly took his life.
