Africa-Press – Uganda. Today, the late Jacob L’Okori Oulanyah will be buried at his ancestral home in Lalogi Sub-county, Omoro District.
According to the official burial programme, prayers are slated to begin at 9am with a sermon from Church of Uganda Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba.
Later on, eulogies will be given by the Speaker of Parliament, Ms Anita Among, Chief Justice (CJ) Alfonse Owiny-Dollo and a family representative, who will be accompanied by the deceased’s children.
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Other tributes expected are from Anthony Akol (Kilak North County legislator), who also doubles as the chairperson of Acholi Parliamentary Group (APG), Dr Jackson Orem (executive director at the Cancer Institute in Mulago), Dr Opiyo Oloya, a cousin of the deceased, and Mr Norbert Mao, a close friend of the deceased, among other leaders.
Burial will proceed after the prayers. The deceased will be accorded a gun salute, a climax of the official send-off, an honour accorded to designated government officials and clergy leaders while either alive or posthumous.
The burial will mark the final chapter on Oulanyah following his death declaration on March 20 at the University of Washington Medical Centre in Seattle, United States, where he was receiving treatment.
The former Speaker reportedly died as a result of multiple organ failure triggered by cancer-related complications.
Taking stock of the last three weeks
Tributes, for the past three weeks, have flown in from around the country with a notable number of Ugandans praising the deceased as a leader who was devoted to serving this country.
It is a shame, many said, that Oulanyah never got a chance to show his style of leadership as Speaker following his election into the seat on May 24, 2021.
Mourners pay their last respects to former Speaker of Parliament Jacob Oulanyah in Omoro District yesterday. PHOTO / MARKO TAIBOT
This was after previously vowing to restore public confidence in Parliament.
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“….if you are to ask me, my honest assessment is that the next five years of Parliament should not be like the last term. There are things we must change whether I’m Speaker or not. We have to restore public confidence in this institution,” Oulanyah said on May 20 (last year) at Parliament shortly after he was sworn in as Omoro County MP.
And once he had become Speaker, Oulanyah informed legislators that the era of fidgeting with speeches in the House was over.
“And you (MPs) will not speak if you have not done research. It must be evidence-based. The era of gambling with speeches is over,” he said.
A section of legislators told Daily Monitor yesterday that losing Oulanyah was a great loss both to the country and Parliament as he did not get the opportunity to “walk his talk.”
Before his demise, Oulanyah only chaired a few sittings following his continuous absence from the House as he secretly battled illness.
Mourners pay their last respects to former Speaker of Parliament Jacob Oulanyah in Omoro District yesterday. PHOTO / MARKO TAIBOT
Away from the tributes, Oulanyah’s death has also been engulfed with criticism, especially surrounding the budget made by the government for his burial and funeral expenses.
Daily Monitor on March 28 first broke the story of government allocating Shs2.5 billion for the funeral and burial arrangements, triggering an avalanche of condemnation from Ugandans.
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The criticism prompted government to slash the amount to Shs1.8 billion and again to Shs1.2 billion, which amount was released to Parliament on the night of April 4.
Oulanyah leaves behind eight children and three grandchildren.
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