Prime
Parliament eulogises ‘scandal-free’ Kyemba
The casket with the remains of Henry Kyemba is wheeled to Parliament yesterday. Photo | David Lubowa
What you need to know:
- Grief filled the air during morning hours, as Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa led the legislators to receive the casket containing the remains of Kyemba, which was eventually placed in the House’s Central lobby opposite the South Wing parking lot.
A sombre mood hung over Parliament yesterday as legislators paid tribute to the late Henry Magumba Kyemba, a former legislator, minister and public servant.
Grief filled the air during morning hours, as Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa led the legislators to receive the casket containing the remains of Kyemba, which was eventually placed in the House’s Central lobby opposite the South Wing parking lot.
The MPs were joined by government officials, relatives from Kyemba’s family and other well-wishers. One by one, they made their way to the open casket to have a final glance at Kyemba’s remains before proceeding to sign the condolence books.
The procedure was so emotional for some of the family members who were seen uncontrollably shedding tears.
At 2pm, the casket draped in the national flag was wheeled into the House chambers, to a full House, including opposition legislators, who interrupted their boycott to honour a man described as a true patriot and statesman who served his country diligently.
Mr Tayebwa, who chaired the special sitting, hailed the deceased for the critical role in exposing the brutality of the Idi Amin regime, and for his documentation prowess that leaves history for future generations.
First Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga led the government in paying tribute to Kyemba who succumbed to diabetes in Kampala on October 19. He was 86.
“He was a diligent leader who immeasurably participated in shaping the destiny of Uganda and served Uganda with dedication and patriotism,” Ms Kadaga said.
Vice President Jessica Alupo, christened him “a distinguished statesman.”
Mr Nsaba Buturo, a former Ethics minister, said the deceased was “one of the finest men this nation has seen,”
Opposition MPs, who have boycotted parliamentary sittings pending a resolution of their concerns, took exception yesterday to attend the House in honour of Mr Kyemba.
“Today, common sense brings us into the chamber… We came for this sitting and we retreated into our banker until normalcy returned home,” Mr Mathias Mpuuga, the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, said.
The Nyendo–Mukungwe legislator described Kyemba as a “statesman on one hand and politician on the other”, a mix that is rare to find. He, however, chastised the current government, accusing it of frustrating the dreams and hopes of those who had believed in them.
“His heart began to break, the moment it sank that the liberation he had been a part of would become a byword of dictatorship, a gross violation of human rights, corruption, and inefficiency which would result in poverty, disease, brutality and the collapse of the economy,” Mr Mpuuga said.
Mr David Zijjan (Butembe County) hailed the deceased as a politician and civil servant with no scandal across the multiple portfolios he held.
“Uganda through our institutions needs to revive the factories, which manufactured civil servants, public servants and politicians such as Kyemba. Mr no scandal,” he said.
Mr David Isabirye, the MP for Jinja North Division, where he will be laid to rest, said the deceased always put country before self and was always available to serve, and guide young people.
Dr Timothy Batuwa (Jinja West), asked that the new cancer centre under construction in Jinja be named after Kyemba in honour of his contribution as health minister, and the fight against cancer and polio.
Jinja City Woman MP Manjeri Kyebakutika charged the current government to emulate the deceased by abstaining from persecuting and oppressing our political opponents.
“I do believe that Kyemba did not support the kidnaps happening in Uganda,” she said.
She added: “He served with passion. We have lost a man of wisdom, and a person of value to the people of Jinja. We have been going to him for consultation on matters of Jinja and the country at large, encouraged the value of education, and supported the underprivileged to get scholarships, unlike nowadays where it is the privileged who benefit from scholarships.”
President Museveni granted the deceased an official burial due to his contribution to the country.
A joint local council session is to be held today at Jinja City Hall starting at 10am. He will be buried at his ancestral home in Bugembe Town, Jinja District, on Thursday.
About Kyemba
1939: Year of birth
1957 to 1962: Makerere Univ.
1963: Private Secretary to the Prime Minister
1966: Promoted to Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister
1972: Minister of Culture and Community Development
1974: Selected as Health Minister
1977 to 1979: In exile before returning to Uganda
1994: State Minister for Presidency
1996: MP for Jinja West
