Uncertainty clouds JTDS choice of Masaka Amir

By Ibn Zakariyya Kabuubi

A month after Tabligh leaders in Masaka forwarded three names for consideration by the Amir Ummah, anxiety is mounting within the community as the long-awaited decision on who will become the substantive District Amir remains unresolved.

The uncertainty follows the decision by the Jamuiyyat Tabliigh Da’awa Assalafiyya (JTDS) national leadership to decline to endorse any of the three nominees, raising questions about Amir Ummah Sheikh Yunus Kamoga’s willingness to resolve a bitter standoff that followed the removal of Sheikh Abdallah Mutazindwa and the appointment of Sheikh Muhammad Harunah Mwebe in his place.

On August 27, the JTDS special electoral supervision committee nominated Sheikh Umar Sserunjogi, Dr Qassim Idrisa Mutazindwa and Sheikh Uthuman Bulungu for consideration for the Masaka district Amirship.

The three nominees were subsequently presented to the JTDS national executive committee (NEC), which met at Nakasero Mosque on September 1 to consider the nominations.

After extensive deliberations, however, the NEC declined to select any of the three candidates, instead raising concerns about aspects of the nomination process.

In a September 3 letter to the chairperson and members of the special electoral supervision committee, JTDS secretary-general, Jamil Ibrahim Mayengo cited concerns relating to documentation, transparency and impartiality.

“While noting certain concerns relating to documentation, transparency and impartiality, NEC emphasised the importance of strict adherence to approved guidelines,” Mayengo wrote.

Despite the concerns, Mayengo indicated that the process would proceed, with the JTDS leadership expected to consider the three nominees in accordance with Article 33(d)(2) of the organisation’s constitution, which provides for the appointment of a substantive Amir for Masaka.

Disagreements among the Tabligh community in Masaka erupted in August 2025, when the JTDS leadership appointed Sheikh Muhammad Harunah Mwebe to succeed Sheikh Abdallah Mutazindwa as the Masaka District Amir.

The appointment was rejected by a section of Muslims in Masaka, while Mutazindwa also declined an offer to assume a newly created regional Amir position and join the Shuurah Council.

Mutazindwa argued that his removal as district Amir had not followed the organisation’s constitutional procedures.

The dispute persisted for more than six months before a settlement was reached in February, when the JTDS Shuurah Council convened in Masaka and encouraged Mutazindwa to assume the regional Amir position.

Dr Qassim Mutazindwa, one of the three nominees in the latest process, is Abdallah’s younger brother and is reported to be among those favoured for the district Amirship. Kamoga, meanwhile, was reportedly keen for Mwebe to remain in the position. With Mwebe’s name absent from the three nominees, however, the Amir Ummah now faces a narrower field as he considers who should take charge of the district.