According to the Waltham page under www.boston.com, non-Baganda Ugandans in the Boston area: “will gather at Waltham Square Saturday to share their condolences and raise money for the Kasubi Tombs, an important Ugandan landmark that was destroyed in a fire last month.” Many Baganda were not impressed and mounted a campaign to boycott the NRM funded event and, if possible to have Mmengo reject the funds. Click on Ekiba_Kibe22Apr10A to listen to the campaign by Baganda using Ekiba Kibe program on SMS based Free Buganda Radio.
The online article quotes Ruth Ndyabahika, a Rwandese and one of the event organizers saying that: “the tombs are culturally important to Ugandans and many are feeling the loss.” This writer has also seen information from the organizers showing that the event is sponsored by non-Baganda groups of Ugandans like Twegayite and Banyakigezi. Ironically, members of these same group openly made fun of Buganda and labelled the Kabaka of Buganda a trouble-maker. When Baganda in Boston and New York/New Jersey organized events to mourn the loss of Kasubi Tombs these non-Baganda kept away.
As of Friday April 23, 2010, the NRM’s chief agents in the USA, Perez Kamunanwire and Ruhakana Rugunda planned to attend, with Rugunda as chief guest. Funding for the event reportedly came from the New York NRM station chief, Rugunda.
The main concerns are that (a) organization such as Banyakigezi and Twegayite never send any condolences to established Baganda institutions like Ggwangamujje NY/NJ or Ggwangamujje Boston or to the elected Kabaka’s representatives in area, (b) in the organizers minds, Kasubi Tombs are just a Uganda landmark or tourist attraction, As one email we got from Boston put it: “Bano Abakiga n’Abasoga abamu balowooza nti obukulu bwa Kasubi tourism. Kiringa Omuyitale obutamanya nti Vatican eri ku mutima gwa buli Mukatuliki, ye nalowooza nti omugaso gwaayo kuleeta balambuzi mu Yitale.” (“Some of these Bakiga and Basoga think that the most important things about Kasubi is being a tourist site. It is like an Italian who does not understand that the hearts of Roman Catholics and thinks that the Vatican is an Italian tourist attraction.”)
The campaign by the NRM to promote Kasubi as a “Ugandan” historical site is especially sensitive to Baganda because it suggests intentional cultural genocide. To them, Kasubi is an active burial site for Buganda’s Kabakas and all grand children of its founder, Ssekabaka Muteesa II. Members of the fast reviving Basamize (Buganda native religion) movement believe that the spirits of all the four Kabakas buried at Kasubi live in the Kibira section of the tombs. Miraculous, the Kibira was not destroyed by the Kasubi fire on 3/16 due to a sudden cloud of rain that fell for a few minutes just before the whole building could get destroyed.
