UMSC kicks off Martyrs day festivities
by Ayub Walulya
At the launch of activities to commemorate the Muslim martyrs day, the state minister for Veteran Affairs, Huda Oleru, praised President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni for showing Muslims the importance of documenting their history.
According to Oleru, Muslims were awakened by a 2012 letter Museveni wrote to all religious institutions in the country, urging them to document their history.
The minister spoke at Shuhadah Mosque in Namugongo, Wakiso district, where she represented the 3rd Deputy Prime Minister, Lukia Isanga Nakadama, during the commemoration of Muslim Martyrs on Friday, June 8, 2024.
About 70 Muslims were executed at Namugongo in 1877 on the orders of Kabaka Muteesa I for disobedience.
Not much has been written about the Muslim martyrs which according to Oleru, a lot needs to be done to educate Muslims about the history of Islam in Uganda.
“The most important thing is that we have started, and we are now going to recruit others. We should use all available avenues, like social media, to share the correct information,” she said.
She added, “The next budget that will be passed, Insh-Allah (God willing), if I am still in the cabinet, will be better than what we have today. I will be your ally. We must prepare ourselves better and avoid public complaints. Let’s do it better next time.”
This year, the government allocated Shs 200 million for the commemoration of Muslim martyrs day.
Speaking at the same event, the Deputy Mufti, Sheikh Muhammad Waiswa, called on Muslims to understand the objective this commemoration than rushing to criticise the organisers.
“It’s not easy for people to understand. We can all go to school, but we can’t all understand at the same level. One of the projects we intend to establish here is a theological college to teach such people,” Sheikh Waiswa said.
He advised those developing the Masjid Shuhadah project to exercise honesty and efficiency and praised Museveni for his open-mindedness and support for various faith groups.
“We thank the government, particularly President Museveni, for his open mind and the support he extends to people of faith. I come from the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda (IRCU) and know the support that the president extends to us,” he said.
Professor Badru Kateregga, the chairperson of the Masjid Shuhadah development committee, noted that he became interested in the history of Muslim martyrs while studying at Makerere University.
“I came across a small paper written by Prof Welborn and Ahmad Katumba on the forgotten martyrs of Uganda. I took interest in that small page and decided to do more research. We decided to reduce the ignorance of our people about Muslims,” Prof Kateregga said.
He criticized those opposed to the commemoration of Muslim martyrs, saying they are ignorant about Muslim history.
“Those disputing with us, how much do they know about the history of Islam in Uganda? The ignorant can’t teach because they know nothing. Our duty is to increase knowledge. We should be knowledgeable enough and kind to our people,” he said.
“The living have a duty to help the dead, which is why we are here to pray for these people. Nobody should intimidate you. The problem today is that everyone who studies a little Arabic becomes a Mufti,” he added.
He emphasized that it is the duty of Muslims to remember their martyrs. “They are not saints because Islam doesn’t have saints. We don’t come here to worship these people because they are just dead Muslims. The uninformed shouldn’t dominate us. You should stand up to be counted,” he said.
The prayers were part of the pre-activities of the main event scheduled to take place at the UMSC headquarters on June 10.
According toAbdurazak Alinda, the deputy secretary-general in charge of planning at UMSC, the Muslim body is in talks with the government to develop the Namugongo Shuhadah site to include a bigger mosque, a shopping mall and a school.
