MPs attempt to block Muteesa from visiting contested counties

An illustration of Banyoro making a fire in the middle of the road to block Kabaka Muteesa from visiting the contested counties in 1964. ILLUSTRATIONS BY IVAN SENYONJO

In the early 1960s, the Ndaiga crisis nearly caused war between Buganda and Bunyoro kingdoms. Had Banyoro protesters harmed Kabaka Edward Muteesa II of Buganda, a war between the two kingdoms could have erupted.

The furious protesters had attacked the Kabaka’s convoy and smashed the windscreen of his car. The convoy was travelling to Ndaiga from Kakumiro. The incident happened in Bugangaizi County. Bugangaizi was one of the contested counties between Bunyoro and Buganda kingdoms, with the other being Buyaga.

The two counties were in 1899 taken from Bunyoro and given to Buganda as a reward for Buganda’s military support against Bunyoro’s King Kabalega.

Kabalega, who waged a war against the British imperialists, was defeated in 1899. Kabalega and then Buganda King Mwanga, were captured in Dokolo, northern Uganda, and sent to exile in the Seychelles Islands in the Indian Ocean.

Tension between Kabaka, Banyoro
In his book The Desecration of My Kingdom on page 163 Muteesa says: “Another time a gift of a barrel of beer was brought for me by a very shifty character. He was stopped at the main entrance to the camp and word was sent to us.

“Kita sprung up and said he would soon settle this. When he reached the gate, he told the donor to have a drink himself. This suggestion was not well received. The stranger protested more and more and eventually turned and ran into the bush.

“The presumably poisoned beer was poured into the bush. Other less sinister were forthcoming and greatly received.”
The book was published in 1967 in London, where the Kabaka had run to exile a year before.

“The lost counties were a difficult issue and I don’t blame [former president Milton] Obote for not giving me his complete and immediate support. It must be made clear that, however, this way, the cause of a split was not the cause of a split between us,” Muteesa writes.

Since 1899, when part of Bunyoro territory was given to Buganda on the orders of Col Colville Evatts, a British soldier, the Banyoro had always had a grudge with the Buganda, who they accused of conniving with the British to grab their land after Kabalega was militarily defeated by a combination of Buganda and Sudanese forces commanded by the British.

Besides, Baganda chiefs posted to Bunyoro by the British colonial administrators always humiliated the Banyoro, especially when collecting taxes. Matters were, however, worsened when Kabaka Muteesa went to Bunyoro and burnt a market.
In his book, Muteesa explains what led to the decision.

“There were a few clashes. A village, which only opened its market on Saturday decided to open it on a Sunday in order to hold a meeting to whip up feelings against me. I thought a firm, dramatic move was needed to show that I was in earnest, so I had it burnt down, first asking the permission of the owner, who was delighted as no one had paid him any rent for years,” he writes.

Parliament attempts to block Muteesa
On March 16, 1964, Parliament convened to debate whether the president, also Kabaka of Buganda, should be allowed to go to Buyaga and Bugangaizi counties that had been designated ‘disturbed areas’.
The motion, “President’s visit to disturbed area” was moved by George Magara, the Member of Parliament representing Bunyoro South West.

The motion sought to block Muteesa from going back to the contested counties. But it was, however, defeated.
In his opening remarks, Magara said: “Mr Speaker Sir, I beg to move that this House do advise the president to desist from going to Ndaiga as long as the area remains a disturbed area.”

It is important to note that earlier, on March 11, 1964, a motion titled “Unrest in Buyaga and Bugangaizi” had again been debated in the House.

“Another point which I think must have brought unrest in the area is the introduction of people who are not supposed to have lived in the area. These are the ex-servicemen called Kawonawo [survivors]. These people are termed Kawonawo because at one time they served in the army either as porters, soldiers, cooks or in some other capacities. How did these people come into this area?” Magara continued.

He also registered doubt about Muteesa’s alleged hunting expedition. “We heard of the famous hunting in Buruli, which moved down to Singo and in the end it went down to Ndaiga. It was a hunting trip for hunting animals. But I have come to believe that it was not a trip to hunt animals, but it was a trip for hunting human beings.”

Protester shot dead
Having failed to block Muteesa through Parliament the first time, the Banyoro were left bitter and took matters in their own hands.
Magara went on to deliberate how Banyoro were either arrested or killed during protests against the Kabaka.

“I remember well when the Kabaka was going to Ndaiga, a big fire was made in the middle of the road. I deplore that. On that occasion, one man was killed on the spot and three others were captured and today they are missing. Their names are Andrea Isoke, Saulo Tekabaigire and Zakayo Bagada.”

Nineteen others were arrested and sentenced to 15 years in jail by the Buganda High Court in Mengo, Kampala.

“In fact, the judge said had he the powers to kill them, he would have ordered them to be hanged. Because the maximum sentence was 15 years, the convicts received 15 years sentence each,” Magara told Parliament.

“If honourable members were to put themselves in their [convicts] places; you are imprisoned in Luzira for 15 years and then come out. What would you think? You would be asking yourself who caused you to go to prison. Anything can happen. That is why I say the president should desist from going to the area so long as it is a security risk for him to go there.”

While contributing to the motion, Vincent Rwamwaro, Member of Parliament for Tooro East constituency, said: “For the information of members, about last month when the Kabaka was returning from Ndaiga, his car windscreen was smashed by stones. These stones were thrown by bad people… we know how much emotions there is in this kind of thing. We know the government’s difficulties and we sympathise.

“In this motion, we are not asking for too much or for the impossible, but we would like to have complete and full information from this area because members in this House and the public outside may think that the situation in these counties has returned to normal. Indeed, it is the opposite.”

The resettlement scheme
Rwamwaro also spoke about how ex-servicemen were being ferried to Ndaiga ahead of the referendum to decide on which kingdom the people in the lost counties wanted to belong to.

“Mr Speaker, as far as I know, women are usually collected at Katwe [in Kampala] and other places, put in lorries and taken to Ndaiga for a good time. When you go into the scheme itself, the whole scheme is disgraceful. All the houses are of temporally materials, every house is having only a thatched roof and not a single house is made of permanent material to show that these people have moved into the area forever.”

“Mr Speaker, we have heard a lot about the Ndaiga scheme and I feel that the president should have nothing to do with Ndaiga whatsoever because it is a shame not only for Buganda, but for the whole country. Ndaiga as a scheme is a failure.”

Earlier that year, Munno newspaper of February 19, 1964, had led with a story “Esente ze gwanika lya Buganda zigweredde Ndaiga”. (Money from Buganda’s treasury spent on Ndaiga)

Buganda had secretly launched the Ndaiga resettlement scheme with financial and technical support from the central government.

The kingdom called on all Baganda ex-servicemen to go and resettle in the two counties, although not all responded.

The purpose was to swell the numbers of Baganda in the contested counties before the referendum. But immediately the Baganda settlers started migrating to Buyaga and Bugangaizi counties, skirmishes started between them and the Banyoro.