Embaga ya Mwenemu; and the spectacular failure of colonialism

The Basoga say “owekiwalata na mana bwa bitta mu kapanga,” (the one who bears a bold head devises their own ways and means of navigating through a thicket of very short, thorny shrubs called Kapanga, well knowing the threats to his scalp.)  So we shall leave those on both sides who consider themselves ready and suited for the, church-wedding vs no church-wedding contest, to embark on it, for they surely understand the consequences. 

Our major concern is how Africans got here in the first place and how they are progressing on the journey.

Before the British embarked on their dubious colonial project in Africa and Uganda, there were forms of societal governance at the macro level. We had mainly hereditary Kings in nations like Buganda and Ankole and Chiefs in places like Busoga and Acholi. They wielded a lot of unquestioned power and authority over their charges. They also enjoyed several privileges like blind obedience and ‘compulsory’ allegiance.

At the micro level, polygamy was the norm. Men married as many women as they could afford to maintain -and even those they couldn’t. One of the purposes of polygamy was among others to agglutinate society by forming as many familial ties as possible.

 The wedding between man and wife followed certain norms, many of which were very private between the families of the bride and groom until they were ready to inform the public when all the boxes were ticked. They included ‘breaking the secret,’ visiting and introduction. These varied in different nations or what the colonialists contemptuously called tribes.

The groom typically paid dowry and bride price to the head of the family of the bride. The bride was then handed over to them and basically that constituted the wedding. In the case of the Gabula Nadiope VI who is the fourth and current Kyabazinga of Busoga, that ceremony took place on September 7 this year and in this context he married his Queen. The colonialist then came with ‘civilisation,’ purportedly to make us better people. Basically civilisation meant ridiculing and total destruction of indigenous culture, and norms which were dismissed as backward. Then they went after the belief systems which were dismissed as paganism and witchcraft. These were to be shunned and held in contempt lest one allegedly risked generational curses.

Christian belief system and English cultural norms and practices replaced them. Judeo-Christian norms would become the yardstick for morality. So polygamy had to go because the English said so through various arguments including being a source of disease and poverty, as if the British predominantly found sickly and poor people when they landed.It came down to one man, one woman. They created a very glamorous, exciting, expensive wedding ceremony to market it. Today, many can’t afford it and require crowd funding to make it happen. The traditional wedding was then relegated to a mere ‘introduction’ ceremony, with the authentic one being the ‘church wedding’. It encountered several challenges.

The late Eriya Tukahiirwa Kategaya once told a story on the floor of Parliament about a Musoga man who converted to Christianity and was tasked to bring one of his wives into holy matrimony (church wedding.) When taking his vows the celebrant asked if he would leave all others and love ‘this one and only this one’. His response was ‘ako katolemu,’ (leave that one out!) How would he realistically leave the other women whom he was supposed to look after?

Today many men go into holy matrimony after fathering several children and then secretly maintain ‘side chicks’ or ‘baby mamas’ or outrightly run multiple homes. Some Britons and Europeans do the same in a subtle, discreet way called ‘cheating’. By men here we include priests of the church of Christ. They simply go to the altar to go through the motions. In fact many children in Uganda are born far outside holy matrimony with very few people ever getting married.

That aside, just like many go to the altar then do the family thing in the traditional way, many still secretly practice traditional worship. This, a critic on the BBC radio aptly called being ‘Anglican by day and African by night.’ The simple reason is that most beliefs, traditions and culture go hand in hand. So many good Christians practice not only polygamy but also polytheism - the belief in multiple deities.

Now when it comes to governance, they are equally torn apart. On the one hand they will demand and question political leaders for accountability. On the other they will submit to the authority of an infallible traditional leader whose actions, however outrageous they may seem to the rational, are always deemed right and judicious. For this reason the Western democratic system has failed. It is not the way many Africans appreciate choosing a leader. That is why however perfect it may be it has caused more disharmony in Africa than before it was ever introduced.  This is why many Basoga are angry with the contents of ‘ogubaluwa’. A king’s authority can’t be questioned because he believed his authority comes down from his ancestors whom in African societies are viewed as divine. Besides a king is the Mwenemu so, many find it incomprehensible that a commoner has the audacity, whatever their legal concerns, to question his decision to marry any number from among his people.

Thirdly the majority who were born through polygamy deem unrealistic and selfish to sanction it - whatever the church thinks. They wonder what will happen to the ‘excess’ women who outnumber men.

The enthusiasm surrounding the Busoga Royal wedding shows that whatever colonialism achieved, it was a spectacular failure when it encountered three crucial aspects; The way Africans appreciate leadership. The whole concept of marriage and family, and traditional belief systems. What was frustrated in public by the Church and common law simply went underground.

Twitter: @nsengoba