Museveni pledges Shs100m for completion of West Buganda bishop’s residence
The artistic impression of the planned West Buganda bishop's new residence. PHOTO/COURTESY
What you need to know:
- The Shs3 billion church, which has a seating capacity of 1,200 worshippers, was constructed in October 2023 through a partnership between former Foreign Affairs Minister Mr Sam Kutesa and Tororo Cement Limited.
President Museveni has pledged Shs100 million towards the completion of the new bishop’s residence in West Buganda Diocese.
“I am going to give Shs50 million to Sembabule Archdeaconry and another Shs100 million towards the bishop’s home at Kako,” the President said while officially commissioning All Saints Church at the headquarters of Sembabule Archdeaconry in Sembabule District on April 27.
The Shs3 billion church, which has a seating capacity of 1,200 worshippers, was constructed in October 2023 through a partnership between former Foreign Affairs Minister Mr Sam Kutesa and Tororo Cement Limited.
In his address, President Museveni thanked Mr Kutesa and his partners for erecting the magnificent church and paid tribute to the forefathers who preached the gospel that transformed society.
The President also commended the family of the late Hasmukh Kanji Patel of Tororo Cement for building churches across Uganda despite not being Christians, noting that their actions align with Jesus’ teaching that “We shall know them by what they do, not what they say.”
“I want to thank Hon Sam Kutesa for bringing this idea of building a Church to the donors who quickly built it for us here. I thank him so much,” President Museveni said.
“These Indian people have their own religion, they are not Christians, but in their own religion, they have a lot of piety. That's why you see that even if they are not Christians, they aim at purity of life, conduct, and brotherhood.”
Rt. Rev. Samuel George Bogere Egesa, the Bishop of Bukedi Diocese who represented the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, His Grace Dr. Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu, thanked the President for officiating at the ceremony and for his historic decision to split Tororo District into four administrative units, thus creating sanity between the Japadhola and the Iteso communities. He urged the people of Sembabule to maintain love and unity, especially during the election period.
“Your Excellency, we thank you for the peace, stability and security prevailing in our country, and because of that, we have freedom of worship,” he said.
Bishop Egesa also commended Tororo Cement for their generosity, noting that Sembabule is just one of the many places where the company has built churches for the Anglican community.
Former Mawogola County North legislator Mr. Sam Kutesa explained that the church was built for two main reasons: to honor his parents who received salvation and spread the transformative gospel, and as a personal act of thanksgiving after surviving throat cancer, following a promise he made to God during his recovery.
Ms Shartsi Kutesa Musherure, the Member of Parliament for Mawogola North, expressed gratitude to her parents for dedicating themselves to God’s work through building the church. She also thanked President Museveni for his visionary leadership, noting initiatives like the distribution of 100,000 coffee seedlings to villages around Kisozi in Gomba District, among other poverty alleviation efforts.
Rev. Canon Gaster Nsereko, the Bishop of West Buganda Diocese, thanked President Museveni for his continued support to the Church and church-founded schools.
“We thank you and your dear wife so much because we know you are the author of what we are seeing today with our naked eyes,” he said.
Representing the Patel family of Tororo Cement, Mr Manish Varsani thanked Mr Kutesa for choosing a project that benefits society at large, noting that when approached, the former President of the UN General Assembly prioritized building a church and a school over personal gains.
About the new Bishop’s residence
The two-storeyed structure currently under construction features a modern kitchen, visitor’s rooms, a dining hall, a sitting room, a chapel, a modern flower garden, a library, among other amenities.
It is being constructed adjacent to the old bishop’s residence at Kako Hill.
The current bishop’s house was built in 1920 by missionaries of the Church Missionary Society as a coordinating center for their evangelism efforts, which eventually led to the creation of West Buganda Diocese from Namirembe Diocese.
The existing house has been used by all six bishops who have served the diocese.
