Why Supreme Mufti Ndirangwa resigned

The head of the Muslim sect based at Kibuli Hill in Kampala, Sheikh Silman Kasule Ndirangwa, announced on Thursday evening that he had resigned as the Supreme Mufti.   

Sheikh Ndirangwa assumed the position following the abrupt death of his predecessor Sheikh Zubair Kayongo in April 2015. 

Sheikh Ndirangwa was the second to assume the title of Supreme Mufti of the Kibuli faction, which in 2009 broke ranks with the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC) leadership at Old Kampala amid accusations of abuse of Muslim properties.  

The Kibuli-based Muslim sect has since had misunderstandings of their own, and one of the prominent sheikhs, Obed Kamulegeya, who was influential in the break away from Old Kampala, has since parted ways with Kibuli.   

It was not immediately clear why Sheikh Ndirangwa resigned but in his resignation statement, which was circulated to the media, he provided a glimpse into what seems to be boiling beneath the surface. 

Sheikh Ndirangwa said: “I would like to inform you, brothers and sisters, that I have effective today resigned from being the leader of Muslims. I have made this decision for the sake of the Islamic religion and to protect it because I as Silman Ndirangwa, I am just a very small component of the Islamic religion. Islam is broad. For the sake of Islam I cannot be engaged in friction with my bosses… that’s why I have decided to resign.”

He said his resignation will give an opportunity for others to take the Islamic religion forward. 

The Kibuli-based faction is heavily influenced by Prince Kassim Nakibinge, the grandson of Nuhu Mbogo, who is referred to as the grandfather of Islam in Uganda. 

We were unable to speak to Prince Nakibinge for this story.
Sheikh Mahmood Kibaate, the deputy Supreme Mufti, said he was surprised by his boss’s resignation. 

“We did not expect the Supreme Mufti to resign at this time and it’s not good at all for the Muslim community but we think he had personal issues which forced him to resign,” Sheikh Kibaate said. 

He said the Muslim leadership was due to discuss the resignation and resolve on the way forward, urging the Muslim community to be patient. 

In his resignation statement, Sheikh Ndirangwa thanked President Museveni for the support he has rendered to the Muslim community, saying the President recently donated vehicles to district Kadhis across the country. 

Sources say President Museveni’s car donations caused a stir at Kibuli Hill, with some influential figures demanding that the vehicles be returned to the President.  

About Sheikh Ndirangwa 
Silman Kasule Ndirangwa was born on October 9, 1962, to the late Hajji Muhammad Kasule and Hajjat Ajiri Nakawungu of Kirayangoma, Kisekka sub-county, in present-day Lwengo district.

Ndiragwa went to Madarasat Noor Kirayangoma Primary School and then joined Sseke Primary School near Kinoni township in Lwengo where he sat for his Primary Leaving Examinations.

In 1974, he joined Bilal Islamic Institute for his O-levels and graduated with an Idaad certificate with which he enrolled at Dar-al-hadith Makkiyah in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for his equivalent of the A-Level.

In 1985, Ndirangwa enrolled at the Faculty of Da’awah studies at the Islamic University of Madinah in Saudi Arabia, graduating with a degree in Da’awah (propagation of Islam) in 1989.

In 1992, he was appointed the Imaam of Kibuli mosque, a position that cast him in the limelight. 

During 2000 election which were held at Uganda Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC), Sheikh Ndirangwa passed unopposed to become a representative of the Kibuli Twaale (County) to the Kampala Muslim District Council.

He was appointed as Kampala district Kadhi, in 2000 until he became a Supreme Mufti. 

He is the director of Swafah & Mar’wa Hijja & Umrah travel services, an agency that takes Muslims for the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca.