LPG·12 — The Agofe
The Agofe
The Agofe (King) of Lado is the Sovereign Chief of the State of Lado, as a Political Entity, in the Constitution of Lado and in world politics.
Political Biography of the Agofe
The current struggle for the recognition, independence and sovereignty of Lado has its direct roots in 1947, when the case of Lado was first presented before the United Nations by John Anacleto Atobua Agami — father of the current Agofe — who was assassinated by British colonial agents in 1948.
To document this history, we are publishing the political biography of the Agofe in a series of episodes, told in his own words. We have chosen this first-person narrative approach because the Agofe's own life story makes clear the complexity of this struggle, and the real, human cost our people have paid.
This first instalment covers the period from 1960 to 1975, extending into the 1980s. Further episodes covering 1942–1949, 1949–1960, 1980–2010, and 2010 to the present will follow.
Episode I — 1960–1975 (into the 1980s)
This episode is currently only available in English. French and Spanish translations are being reviewed and will be added soon.
I. Part 1 – The Prelude
Previous to my arrest I had been an Officer in the Third Regiment of the King's African Rifles (KAR) in Nairobi, since 1960. It was then I became a full Lieutenant. Before that, I had been an NCO (Non-Commissioned Officer) since 1957. This was as a Lance Corporal. I became a Sergeant in 1958 and a Lieutenant in 1960. And at the same time, I continued to pursue my study at the Philosophical Seminary, Alokolum, and at St Aloysius College, Nyapea.
The Regiment in Nairobi was Scottish commanded. Most of the Europeans there were Scottish. Nairobi was the Headquarters for the entire King's African Rifles, for the whole of Africa, commanded by the Lieutenant General representing the Queen of England (Colonel-in-Chief of the KAR). The KAR Headquarters for Frontier Command was in Freetown, Sierra Leone. South Africa and Eden (Yemen) was Operational Command of KAR.
The whole of KAR was about 85–90 regiments, each regiment commanded by a full Colonel. Each British Colony or Protectorate had at least 1 regiment commanded by a Colonel. E.g. the First Regiment was in Kenya Colony. The Second Regiment was in Nyasaland, Malawi. The Third Regiment was in Nairobi, Kenya, and was in charge of disarming mutinous Regiments or served as a Special Task Force.
The Fourth Regiment had the highest reputation in fighting due to their performance in Burma during the Second World War. 77,000 Soldiers, most of them Sudanics (Ladoan) and Nilotics (mainly Luo/Acholi), fought under Colonel John Anacleto Atobua Agami (my father) against the Japanese. They brought panga fighting techniques with them to Asia, which they used to deadly effect. The crossed pangas on their uniforms was their Emblem. The Fourth Regiment was in Uganda Protectorate. The Fifth Regiment was in Kenya, Nanyuki. The Sixth Regiment was in Tanganyika Territory. The Eleventh Regiment was in Nakuru, Kenya. This was Training Command for the whole King's African Rifles (KAR).
The best seven candidates would then go to Sandhurst Military Academy in England after climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro. This was at Loitoktok School. From Kenya, I went to Sandhurst. I came back in 1961. I was promoted to Captain and stayed in Headquarters Command in Nairobi. I became Adjutant to Lieutenant General Goodwin. I then became High Adjutant (in Diplomatic terms that would be High Commissioner). I was representative for the Imperial Chief of General Staff, Field Marshal Lord Bernard Montgomery, Second-in-Command to Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten, former Viceroy of the British Indian Empire until 1947.
My uncle Major Musa (Moses) Agondoa fought under General, later Field Marshal, Lord Montgomery in North Africa and Ethiopia. My father fought under Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten, who was Commander-in-Chief in South East Asia. Kisoro was my first assignment as Operational Command. Then I was in Karamoja (in Moroto and Lobito), and finally in Yemen.
From there I returned to Nairobi; here I became Adjutant in Personnel Command. I left briefly for home in Arua in December 1961. I became a Personnel Officer at the British American Tobacco Company at Wandi (Oriajini), 8 km from Arua Town, under Mr Peter Hogg, who was the Director of BAT.
It was then I received a letter calling me back to active Military Duties. I had no intention of returning to the army, as I had been forced into Military Service. In 1960, when I was at St. Aloysius College in Nyapea (Lado), I was prevented from taking my Final Exam (Cambridge Examination) as General Lemiro (my grandfather) had been anti-British and had humiliated them militarily on several occasions. Therefore it was decided I should be denied access to an education.
NB – He himself (General Lemiro) was assassinated by British Colonial agents on 17th December 1940.
It was against this background that, when I received the letter, I chose to burn it. A second letter was sent through my mother (Anna Maria Orideru Agami). I was informed that both Lord Montgomery and Lord Mountbatten were coming and a promotion was awaiting me. I was requested to be at Entebbe Airport the 25th of February 1962. The Governor of Uganda at the time was Sir Walter Coutts. The Secretary General for Uganda was Sir Peagram. My relation to the two men was not good.
I reported at the Governor's office in Entebbe and met Montgomery and Mountbatten on the 25th of February 1962. Simultaneously a plot was already being hatched against my life. I was staying at the Amber Hotel in Kampala, next to Amber House – the Coffee Marketing Board.
As I entered my room, I sensed something was wrong and searched the entire room, but found nothing; still the feeling of danger would not subside. I called my mother and she advised me to call Commissioner Daniel Omvia, a Lugbari from Yivu (Loina), who was the Regional Police Commissioner for Buganda Province. He came, and with him was the Deputy Inspector General of Uganda Police, Erinayo Oryema – an Acholi.
The room was inspected and nothing was found. Only when the bed was checked did they find what had been the intended Instrument of my Death: between the covering sheets and the blankets was a snake of the species known as arikoa in Lugbari – a lethally venomous snake. It was a shock.
The snake was killed in the presence of everyone in the room, including Apollo Milton Obote, who was the head of UPC at that time. I was very angry. I remained in the Room, as there were plans for my death, and my enemies would not rest after this attempt. The whole incident was reported as an attempted assassination by the Uganda Police Force and CID branch.
In the morning, the 26th of February, Field Marshal Lord Bernard Montgomery came to the Hotel and found me in full uniform. I was still angry, but he said no matter what, I would be promoted to Colonel and given Command of the 4th Regiment of the KAR, and thereby establish Uganda's army pending independence on the 9th of October 1962.
This is how I became a Colonel. I was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel on 26th February 1962 and to full Colonel on 1st March 1962. The same date, the first Prime Minister of Uganda was appointed and Self Government was formed. It consisted of Benedict Kiwanuka of DP as Prime Minister, and Apollo Milton Obote of UPC was the leader of the Opposition. I was in charge of Security Affairs of Uganda.
There was no Ministry of Defence; therefore, I retained that responsibility and so became High Commissioner of Defence. In the Government that was formed, all ministries went to the Prime Minister, except Foreign Affairs, which was in the hands of the Governor of Uganda, Sir Walter Coutts, and Internal Affairs, which was in the hands of Sir Peagram, who was Colonial Secretary General of Uganda.
Defence was in my hands. Directly under the Imperial Command: Field Marshal Lord Bernard Montgomery was my Immediate Supervisor. Colonel William Scheyen was Defence Chief Advisor to the Chief of Staff (which was me). He had served in KAR as a Brigadier. His Brigade was defeated by the Japanese Army Brigade and he was demoted to a Private. He was then attached to the Fourth Regiment of KAR under (my father) Colonel John Anacleto Atobua Agami, and a friendship developed between the two men. My father returned to Uganda in 1946 and commanded the Fourth Regiment at Bombo until 1947, when he was replaced by Colonel Allen Knight.
From the 1st of March 1962, work started at Jinja, as there was no Kampala Office. The Headquarters of British Uganda Protectorate was at Entebbe, 21 miles away from Kampala. Jinja Military Headquarters was 50 miles away in the eastern direction. The First Office for Defence (Command Post) in Kampala was on Kololo Hill. That served as the Ministry of Defence.
It remained as Command Post.
After this, the Uganda Army was to be established. NCOs were due for Promotion. The first group were Shaban Oplot (a Teso) and Idi Amin (a Kakua, and later President) in 1962. They were given the rank of Captains on the Queen's Birthday Ceremony, in June of the same year, 1962. Some other NCOs promoted to Lieutenants included: Pierino Okoya (an Acholi), Juma Mussa (a Lugbari), Obol (an Alur), and Tito Okello (an Acholi and also a later President), John Omoya, an Acholi, Hussein (a Jonam), and so on.
The First Work we undertook was to establish an Officers Corps, and after that a Training College for Officers. The First Students were accepted on the 15th of August 1962. There were three Cadets: Katabura (Ankole), Ndaura (Bunyoro), and Nyangueso (Samia). The period of study was for 2 years.
In April 1962, at the elections prior to the independence of Uganda, the British manipulated everything to remove Prime Minister Benedict Kiwanuka, as he was a Catholic. Mr Apollo Milton Obote became Prime Minister, with the prospect of the King of Buganda becoming Head of State as President of Uganda.
In September 1962, I was called to sign an Agreement so the Nile Region of Lado (West Nile) could be annexed to Uganda. I would be protected by the British until I died, and the Agami family would be recognized as the Royal Family of Lado. At the last meeting, a British Privy Council document to be signed – an Order-in-Council document of the Privy Council – was refused by me. This was on the 10th of September.
On the 11th of September 1962, I was arrested and brought to what was supposed to be a Military Court Martial but actually was a Kangaroo Court. I was given one last chance. As they said, I could sign and make it easy on myself. My answer remained no. We (Lado) cannot be a part of the British Protectorate of Uganda. Lado will not be annexed or divided. I was sentenced to Seven Years in Prison, Luzira Upper Prison. On the 12th of September 1962, I was transferred to Room 8 at Luzira Upper Prison.
II. Part 2 – The Room 8 experience
My Court Martial was held at the State House in Entebbe, situated on Nsazi Hill. On the 11th of September 1962, I was sentenced in a Kangaroo Court Proceeding. After being sentenced to 7 years' imprisonment, I was incarcerated with immediate effect. It was the British Government who was behind it.
I was transferred to Luzira Upper Prison (maximum security), 7 miles from Kampala City. I was put in Room 8, next to the Execution Chamber, overlooking Lake Victoria. It was solitary confinement. Various things took place. One of them was that the room was filled with water up to my waist. It was in this environment I lived. Next, this was followed by physical torture. I was beaten daily by British Military Officers (not Prison Officers). I was denied food. I was given two to three spoonfuls of beans, or one or two pieces of cassava, sometimes sweet potato. This was intended to weaken me physically.
The purpose was to discipline me, meaning force me to accept the British Policy on Lado. The State of Lado was to be partitioned into 2. The British Sector was to consist of East Lado, and the Western sector of Lado (Ituri, capital Bunia; Uele, capital Dungu) would be Belgian. Lado is occupied to this day by Belgium and Britain.
The British Sector consisted of what is today colonially named NAC (Native Anglican Community), or West Nile (capital Arua). The Northern part of Lado remains colonially named Equatoria (capital Juba). The border with South Sudan runs approximately 7 degrees north.
This border was established by three countries: Britain, France, and Italy, by the Anglo-Franco-Italian Agreement of 13th December 1906. Following the previous Anglo-Egyptian Agreement of 19th January 1899, and the Brussels Conventions of 12th May 1894 between Belgium and Britain; and the Franco-Belgian Agreement of 29th April 1887 and the Constantinople Agreement of 1887 between Britain, the Ottoman Empire, and Egypt. The borders of Lado were drawn by the Colonial Powers.
To this we can add the Agreement that led to the partitioning of Africa: the Paris Resolution on Africa, 3rd of August 1875, and the Berlin Treaty of 26th February 1885. Article 6 of the Berlin Treaty was supposed to protect the tribes concerned. Article 12 was to be used in case there was a conflict between the Europeans, or in case an African Chief refused to be colonised by refusing to give his/her thumbprint acknowledging European Supremacy over his/her people and land.
It was to be referred to the Berlin Council on the Partitioning of Africa, on which King Leopold II and Prince Otto Bismarck held the Chair (Conference on Africa).
The British Military Authorities did the practical work of torturing and punishing me. The aim was to force me to give the Thumbprint for the partitioning of Lado. I was threatened with statements such as: I would die in prison, or no one will ever know what you died of.
NB – in colonial times, political assassinations carried out in Room 8 were always referred to as death by dehydration.
A prepared document was brought, on behalf of the British Privy Council, for me to sign and thumbprint as evidence for the Council of Berlin that I had accepted to be under British Influence and further Occupation, which would eventually lead to full Colonization of Lado under British Sovereignty.
To understand why I could not sign, and resisted even under pains of torture and threats of a terrible death, is as follows. In 1906 France had agreed to quit the Upper Nile Valley, meaning Lado and Bahr-el-Ghazal, in exchange for the Kingdom of Morocco – leaving the way for Britain.
During this time Lado was officially still a territory of Egypt under the Sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). Since Agofe Ayingani was assassinated on the 7th of March 1887, the Administration of Lado had been in the hands of the Lado Army, headed by Lieut. Col. Hamid Aga, as Agofe Regent. On 19th August 1888, the conference of Lado was arranged by the Lado Army for the Defence of Lado. The leader was Fadh Mula Aga Babua, a Lugbari by tribe from Obi.
On the 15th of November 1888, the Agofe Regent, now Colonel Hamid Aga, and his wife and children were massacred. Fadh Mula Aga Babua became Agofe Regent, which ensured that the war against the Belgians and the British continued up to 1894. The Agofe Regent Colonel Fadh Mula Aga was wounded at the Battle of Bura (Rhino Camp) – between Lado and Britain, assisted by Uganda.
This occurred on the 26th of January 1894 and led to his death on 30th March 1894. He was the Grandfather of Bura Chief Juma Bondo of Obi Irea Anuifira of Omugo County.
This battle was followed by the Brussels Convention of 12th May 1894 between Belgium and Britain, which set the Eastern border between Lado and Uganda, dividing Lake Ombizaku into 2. The Western side (western part) remained as Lake Ombizaku, and was supposed to be for Belgium. The eastern part was Lake Albert, and was to be British (or for Britain).
So according to International Law, there are two bodies of water: Lake Ombizaku for Lado (Western Part) and Lake Albert for Uganda (Eastern Part). Belgium did not bother to change the name for Lake Ombizaku. Prince Albert was the husband of Queen Victoria of England. Uganda was a British protectorate. Lado was not a British protectorate at all, but an occupied territory.
The main capital of Ombizaku Region, which was Kavalli, was moved to Tunguru, known today as Mahagi. The people of Lado continued the war and refused to accept the colonisation of Lado by European Powers, specifically Britain and Belgium.
This historical background describes the struggle of our people, and explains why I could not betray the struggle of our ancestors, who had sacrificed their lives in defence of the people and the land of Lado in Central Africa.
Therefore, I refused to sign the British Document that would officially permit the partitioning of the State of Lado, occupied since 1871 under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) as Equatoria, a province of Egypt.
This is why I was being tortured – so I would die of dehydration, the official Colonial excuse for political-prisoner assassination. What happened was, I stayed in prison for nearly 6 weeks. I was beaten very badly and was losing large amounts of blood. But I had a spirit to survive and overcome the fear of Death.
I was, during this period, taken out of prison briefly to raise the Flag for the Independence of Uganda at midnight on Kololo Hill, where the War Office (Command Post) had been situated. The Routine Military Work was done at Jinja Barracks, 4th Regiment of KAR.
Still I refused to sign, and my mother (Anna Maria Orideru Agami) said the same. During the day of 29th and 30th of September 1962, where I was beaten so badly, I vomited blood and collapsed. One Prison Warden, an Acholi girl who was related to my Adjutant Pierino Okoya, informed him that I was at the point of death due to loss of blood. I was unconscious at this time.
All my knowledge of what happened after this is from what Okoya told me. Before I collapsed, I had written on the wall, in my own blood, “The Bastard English have killed me.” Captain Okoya told me he had brought a certain herbal remedy, which they had put in my mouth. It gave me the strength to survive and revitalised me. When I opened my eyes, I saw my Adjutant Pierino Okoya. He called me by a nickname: “Akuna Man,” meaning Mr Nobody.
Okoya took notes and requested me to write something, a note. I wrote: either I am out, or I will die here. I will never sign the Privy Council Order, which according to Article 6 of the Berlin Treaty would legitimize the partition of Lado. Never.
The plan for the escape started from here, with the assistance of Lieutenant/Captain Pierino Okoya. After 2 weeks, everything was ready. Some local fishermen on Lake Victoria were organised with canoes in case I got out alive. There was no way to escape on land. The only way was through Lake Victoria (Nalubale).
The date and the time were chosen. The beatings usually took place between 1700 and 1900 hours. Generally there were 3 officers who carried out the torture. They were all English, of course – who else, in my case?
As I knew all was ready outside, when the officers arrived I caused a problem to provoke a fight. Despite being a lightweight boxer, I was a professional boxer, and with that skill and faith in God, as well as the hope to be alive, I declared war on the three English officers. When you overcome fear, you have overcome Death. So “to be or not to be” was not the issue.
The fight, being in a narrow space, was not easy and was interesting. In the end, with the help of God, I succeeded in overcoming them (the enemies) one by one. I removed their pistols from them and ordered them to lie down, with their faces on the ground, or else I would kill them. I was serious. I meant it.
I locked them in Room 8 and came out with their pistols. I began to run from the Upper Prison to the Lower Prison. It was close to 1900 hours. I fired my guns and there was return fire. I was attacked. The shooting started in earnest.
I headed for the Main Gate. Captain Okoya and his supporters gave me covering fire. In the exchange, I had to roll out of the Prison. There was a pitched battle at the gates of Luzira Prison. The casualties were not my concern. There were losses on both sides – that is the consequence of War. People die, of course. I am a soldier; I know that. There is nothing to talk about.
I made it to the Lake, where the canoes were waiting for me. My opponents thought I would escape through Kampala, as they didn't dream anybody would escape through Lake Victoria and be alive.
From here, I escaped to Sudan. The Prime Minister at that time was Lieut. General Ibrahim Aboud. He requested I be taken to Khartoum, where I was taken to the Military Hospital. I was greatly injured. After 2 weeks in hospital, General Aboud was informed that the facilities were not good enough to treat me in Sudan. President Abdel Nasser of Egypt then sent a military plane for me so I could be treated at the Military Air Force Academy in Egypt.
In December 1962, tests showed that my ribs were pressing on my internal organs, so arrangements were made to fly me to St. Petersburg Air Force Hospital in the then USSR (Russia). After 6 months' treatment, I returned to Egypt, where I stayed in Alexandria for a while longer before leaving for Ethiopia.
In 1963, arrangements were made with Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, who wanted me in Addis Ababa. President Abdel Nasser told me I would be in good hands and was willing to provide any possible assistance I needed, or would need, in the future.
At the same time, KANU President Jomo Kenyatta was out of prison and preparing for the Independence of Kenya. He demanded I come to Kenya. He looked upon me as a son, as my father had entrusted me to him in 1947, when we were in New York, USA.
Another negotiation took place with the British Foreign Office, including Imperial Chief of General Staff Lord Montgomery and Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Louis Mountbatten. Brigadier William Scheyen and Colonel Allen Knight, plus other Military figures, stood behind me. They felt if Britain pushed me too hard, they would force me towards the Soviets. There was an ideological divide.
Simultaneously, the OAU Committee of Five (1965), consisting of Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, and Liberia, sought the advice of the ICJ (International Court of Justice) on the Lado issue. They established that as long as I, as Agofe of Lado, did not take any other nationality, the issue of Lado would remain unresolved. We were, and are still, an Occupied Territory. I became a Stateless Person in the same year and have been so ever since. Neither I nor my family are Nationals or Citizens of any State. We are Stateless Persons, according to International Law, pending the Decolonization of Lado.
It all ended, and I returned to Kenya. I was employed by a (certain) Captain Williams in the East African Shipping and Landing (EASL) company at Mombasa, which later became part of the East African Cargo Handling Services, which was a part of the East African Common Services Organisation (EACHS), stationed at Mombasa Port, Kilindini. This later became East African Harbours Corporation (EAHC).
I started as a Grade C Import Clerk. I rose to Grade B. In 1964, I was sent to training school and then became Export Foreman for East African Goods. After training, which involved study trips to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Marseille, New York, Tokyo, Bombay, London, Genoa, Venice, and Hamburg.
Up to 1965, I worked and studied at Oxford: Economics, Philosophy and Politics (PPE). I completed my BA in 1965. I left Mombasa for Rome to study Canon Law and Civil Law at the Gregorian University in Rome. I finished in 1967, and got my Master's in Canon and Civil Law. After that I went to the Sorbonne, from 1968 to 1972, and attained a PhD in Economics (Monetary Economics – Money and Banking).
I then returned to Uganda in 1973. I briefly took an appointment at Makerere, Department of Economics and of Commerce (Money and Banking). I could not stay, as the conflict and hatred being waged against me was still strong. I returned to Lado and took up teaching Economics at Mvara Secondary School and at St. Joseph's College in Ombaci. This was from 1973 to 1974. In 1974, I went into exile for a second time, when a fight erupted between Ladoan and Ugandan Soldiers, as again I refused to be part of Uganda.
The State of Lado is an Occupied Territory. I am the Agofe, who is the Sovereign of Lado. I must defend the State (Kingdom) of Lado until I am dead. Period.
III. Part 3 – The second exile – a background
To understand my Second Exile, it is necessary to go back to the coup d'état, or rather the counter coup d'état, of 1971, which took place in Uganda. There was a split between the Sudanics (Ladoans) in the Army and the rest of Uganda. The troubles had originated in a plan known as the Lango Master Plan (see included Appendix I) of 1967.
The plan of 1967 was that the so-called West Nile Region of Lado was to be cleared of Sudanic people. It was a plan for genocide. Our Sudanic people were to be driven towards the River Nile and massacred. Those who were not killed were to be forced into the River Nile to drown. This would allow the West Nile Region to be annexed to Uganda, once and for all.
Atamva Idi Amin was a Major General at the time of the coup in 1971. He had become Chief of Staff after Brigadier Shaban Oplot, who was sympathetic to the Buganda Kabaka, Sir Edward Frederick Mutesa II, who was in conflict with the Prime Minister Apollo Milton Obote (a Lango). He (Brigadier Shaban Oplot) was, therefore, removed as General Chief of Staff of the Ugandan Armed Forces and put in prison in Luzira. This is the same prison I was put in, in September 1962.
Idi Amin was a Colonel at that time, and was promoted to Brigadier General, replacing Shaban Oplot. He later rose to the rank of Major General. Both of them were Captains when I was Chief of Staff, from 1st of March 1962 to 11th September. I was replaced as Chief of Staff by an Englishman, Lieut. Colonel Groom. Uganda got Independence on 9th of October 1962.
The Lango Master Plan of 1967 was designed to remove all Sudanics (Lado People) from the Army in order to clear the ground for the Extermination of the People of South Eastern Lado (Nile Region). It was said, “it should be made into a driving place,” and repopulated with non-Sudanic Citizens of Uganda in East Africa.
This led to the coup d'état of 1971. They tried to arrest all the Sudanics in the army of Uganda (Madi, Lugbari, Kakua, etc.), and the fight began. It first broke out in Malire Barracks. They fought for two days straight, commanded by the then Sergeant Major Mussa Yega (he later became a Lieut. Colonel), Sergeant Jackson Asiki (a tank specialist trained in Israel; later he became a Lieut. Colonel), and Sergeant Longino Ofuruku (a tank specialist) from Obi-Isia of Omugo County.
The reason why it was NCOs (Non-Commissioned Officers) who led the struggle was because, by the time the struggle broke out, all Sudanic Officers were in prison awaiting execution, or had been given leave and sent on holiday. As the fighting took place in the barracks, Major General Amin himself was making his way to Moroto (Uganda) in the east, and did not take part in the actual struggle. The fighting took place from 24–25 January 1971.
On the 25th of January 1971, the Sudanic Soldiers defeated the predominantly Luo/Nilotic Soldiers of the Uganda Armed Forces. President Milton Apollo Obote was overthrown while he was at a Commonwealth meeting in Singapore. He could not believe it. This is the situation we were in, on the 25th of January 1971.
Suddenly the entire land of Uganda was in the hands of the Sudanics of Lado (Central Africa). This was a terrible Diplomatic Issue/Matter to sort out, in order to save the State (Kingdom) of Lado (Land, People, Government, Sovereign).
IV. Part 4 – The second exile – My return and departure
On the same evening as the Lango Master Plan of 1967 was initiated, I was in France at a dinner where the Ugandan Ambassador was present. His name was Mr Barungi and he came from the Bunyoro Kingdom. He was the former Chief Clerk of the Uganda House of Parliament during the independence period in Uganda.
NB – during this period Museveni was in State Research (Intelligence Agency of Uganda).
It was a Sunday. Mr Barungi was in a very arrogant mood. He said “we are nothing” (the Sudanics). “Very soon Obote will have everything in his hands.” The dinner was arranged by Mr John Mpuga, who was also from Bunyoro Kingdom. He called me aside to apologise for his fellow's rude behaviour, when a phone call came from Kampala. The struggle had started. The War had started on the 24th of January 1971, between the Sudanics and Nilotics. The Sudanics were desperate.
I left the dinner to communicate with Kampala. The fighting continued throughout the night. I gave them full instructions and urged them to resist. The outcome would be clear the following day. Either we shall perish or survive. We have no choice but to fight, for our life and Ladoland.
In Malire Barracks, what had happened was that the Sudanic Forces had been disarmed. The Arms Depots were locked shut. Initially, they defended themselves with whatever was at hand, and even with their bare hands or panga knives.
Sergeant Jackson Asiki (Kakua, Adibu), who was a tank specialist, had made a secret extra copy of the key for his tank, and with it managed to break down the doors of the Arms Depot (Armoury House). Now the Sudanics, who up to now had been fighting for their lives with anything they could find, were armed. They took up the fight. Throughout the night, the fighting went on.
The overall Commander of the Sudanic Forces was Sgt. Major Mussa Yega (later Ambassador to Saudi Arabia). The commander of the Ugandan Forces was Tito Okello. When it was announced on the 25th of January that President Obote was overthrown, a problem arose: who was to be President of Uganda?
They (the Sudanics) had never expected to be in Government. It had been a fight for survival. I was asked to return and head the Government. I refused, and explained that if I were to do that, it would mean the end of Lado. The State of Lado would die, following the ICJ Advice of 7th December 1965, if I had accepted.
They then proposed Lieut. Colonel Obitre Gama. But according to Military Law, it is the Chief of Staff who becomes the Head of the Government in case of a coup d'état – that was either Major General Amin or myself. We were the only two options to become head of the Military Government.
Lado would be dead if I became the Head of State of another country. As long as I remain stateless, the issue of Lado remains that of an Occupied Territory. It all ended with Major General Idi Amin becoming the Military Head of Government of Uganda. But I agreed to return to help form the Government, and run it until further notice.
All Ministers resigned, or were removed. The Permanent Secretaries of each ministry became Ministers, except for one: Secretary to the Treasury, Gino Geria, of the East African Customs and Excise. The Governor of the Bank of Uganda, Joseph Mubiru, was asked to resign. He was replaced by Mr Onegi Bel, an Alur from the State of Lado.
In June 1971, I arrived in Kampala. I reviewed the economic situation of Uganda, as I was doing my PhD in Monetary Economics, and set it straight. I stayed until November, where I prepared the establishment of the Uganda Development Bank, signed by President Idi Amin, 23rd November 1971.
I got married on 21 September 1971 to Sally Salome Yisa. She was a final-year student at Makerere University, doing her Bachelor of Education. She finished in March 1972.
The Law Development Centre of Uganda was also our creation. Mr Benedict Kiwanuka, former Prime Minister, was released from Luzira Prison and appointed Chief Justice. Brigadier Shaban Oplot was also released. Nearly all were released, and given positions.
Major General Idi Amin Dada was promoted to General. Many people believe the name Dada is a Swahili name. This is a mistake. The name Dada is the name of his grandfather (a Kakua). Amin was his father's name, and Idi was his own name. His great-grandfather, Affendi Bilal Amin, was executed by the British in 1897, for leading the Sudanese mutiny in Uganda (Bilal Amin). The full name of General Idi Amin is Idi Awongo Izaga Amin Dada, commonly known as Idi Amin.
In brief, General Amin is the second son of the family. His brother was Mr Ramadan Amin. When he was young, his parents separated. Idi, as the second son, went with his mother. He stayed with her in Terego, where he went to Catholic Primary School. Idi's Kakua name is Awongo. His mother gave him the Lugbari name Izaga.
When he was in Catholic school (in Primary 3), he was baptized as a Catholic with the names Andrew Izaga Awongo. This created a religious conflict and his mother moved to Buganda. And he grew up there as a Muslim, Idi Amin (his Kakua clan is Adibu). His mother is from the clan of Okapi, who are Lugbari (Tara). Her name was Aate. She came from a noble family.
His dislike of the British is due to the fact that they executed his great-grandfather, Bilal Amin. Colonel Colville was the British Commander and Commissioner of Uganda who executed Affendi Bilal Amin in 1897. General Idi Amin's father was a Police Officer.
I left again for Paris to finish my PhD work, which I completed in 1972 and defended in December 1972, after 6 months' rest. In these 6 months I travelled to Italy, Hungary, and Yugoslavia. I spent the time learning more about my father through his friends and political associates, including Marshal Tito of Yugoslavia.
In January 1973, I arrived back in Uganda. I took up employment at Makerere, but because of problems, I went to teach at Mvara Senior School and Ombaci St. Joseph's College. Again, Amin called me to assist as Economic Advisor. I got involved in politics, because Uganda was to be reorganised.
On 31st May 1973 we negotiated. I brought the issue of Lado up. It (Lado) is not a part of Uganda and cannot be a part of Uganda. An Agreement was reached on that issue. Uganda is Independent within the Commonwealth, while NAC is the Nile Region of Lado, not Ugandan territory. The British were unhappy about that result.
They (the British) said Uganda had no Authority. It was still a British and Belgian affair. The British adopted the codename for our land as the “Area,” or the Native Anglican Community (NAC). So the Protestants regarded themselves as Her Majesty's People, affiliated to the British. Thus the calling “West Nile” meaning the Native Anglican Communion (NAC), or Anglican Protestants.
This was the issue that was hotly debated in 1956, when the Madi rejected being called West Nile, since they are predominantly Catholic. Aringa County was referred to as Muslim Aringa, as they are predominantly Muslim. Omugo County and Ofude County were declared reservation areas, as they fought the British tooth and nail – such as the Battle of Bura, the Battle of Tara, the Battle of Irea, the Battle of Onugari, the Battle of Oru, etc. – all fought in Omugo and Ofude.
So the situation was tense in 1956. The solution was “West Nile” and “Madi.” The reason for this was because the British wanted to annex our land. The next 50 years were to be used educating (Moru, Logo, Lendu, Bari, Kuku, Lugbari, Madi, Kakua, Alur) everyone to believe they were Ugandan, Congolese, and Sudanese. The 5 counties of Omugo, Ofude, Adumi, Logiri, and Oluvu would not exist. The British said they were bad people.
NB – The existence of Lado was maintained through the resolution of the OAU (1965) Committee of Five, Resolution of the 7th of December 1965. The OAU Committee of Five (1965) consisted of Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, and Ghana. This is the issue of Lado.
For this reason, when Uganda was to be divided into Provinces headed by Commissioners, and later Governors, the Nile Region of Lado did not fall under Uganda. I, as the Agofe, was the Governor of the Nile Province, with effect from June 26th, 1973. The Provinces to be created were Kampala Province, Western Buganda, Eastern Buganda, Northern Province (Acholi, Lango, Karamajong), Eastern Province, Western Province, and so forth. These were all Colonial strategies to break the State of Lado.
On the 31st of May 1973, the borders of Lado were maintained as they were since 1887–1907:
– 12th May 1894, dividing Lake Ombizaku and Lake Albert
– 31 August 1907, the river Ayugi border between Lado and Uganda
– 1914, separating Acholi and North Lado (what today is mistakenly called Equatoria)
– Equatoria is the Colonial name of Lado since 20th May 1871 under the Ottoman Empire (Turkey)
The borders of Lado were recognized. This was based on the Berlin Treaty of 1885, including the Cairo Convention and Resolution of July 1964, by which it was agreed that the colonial borders formed/made should remain the same until all African countries are liberated. Then an overall Conference on Africa was to be held to deal with issues of borders and the general reorganisation of post-colonial Africa. The Chairman was President Colonel Abdel Gamal Nasser of Egypt, in 1964.
This caused a conflict. It was not General Amin alone, but at that time General Amin was president. The British, plus the rest of Uganda, were not happy. That is why the tensions flared and a fight broke out. In April 1974, the Army split into two – this time it was the Pro-Lado Sudanics versus Anti-Lado Sudanics on the one hand, and Pro-Lado Sudanic Supporters versus Uganda on the other hand. The Chief of Staff, Brigadier Charles Arube, was killed.
NB – Idi Amin was not a Major in 1964; in 1966, Amin was a Colonel and Chief of Staff.
NB – It must be clear, as a matter of fact, that when Self Government was established in Uganda in 1961, the Head of Government was called the Chief Minister of Uganda. In March 1962, the title of Chief Minister was changed to Prime Minister of Uganda, and it was Rt. Hon. Bernard K. Kiwanuka who became the first Prime Minister of Uganda. H.E. Sir Walter Coutts was Foreign Minister and Governor of Uganda.
On the 22nd of April 1974, the Uganda Forces wanted to invade the Nile Province of Lado. We fought them and defeated them at the border. I was the Commander. This is what led to my second exile. I went to Congo – Zaire.
Both my mother-in-law (Mrs Yvonne Saida Akulu Wayi) and my mother (Anna Maria Orideru Agami) asked me to leave and continue the work for the Decolonization of Lado from outside, as my mother-in-law was a blood relative of President Amin. Through marriage we are related. Therefore, their view was: we are in the same family; therefore, to fight would be wrong.
My mother supported this idea and said the work of decolonization could continue, but at the moment, to fight was not the way to achieve decolonization. I myself was not very willing to leave. I had already spent 10 years in exile and was now ready to fight and die in my homeland.
In the end I agreed. The Lado Forces remained to ensure the security of the State of Lado, and told me to continue the work by other means. They felt that as long as the land of Lado is in our hands, they would wait, no matter how long it took me to complete the work. But should anyone try to occupy the State of Lado, they would fight to the end. The 29 Lado tribes are the People of Lado (Africa).
The British, on the other hand, spread the propaganda that the struggle was between me and Amin, and was a fight for power – which is nonsense. In truth I was fighting to protect Lado against the British plan to use Uganda to wage a proxy war on the State of Lado. The problem had been growing since February 1974.
They had even tried to arrest me, but it failed. They tried to kill me; it failed.
So on the 25th of April 1974, on the advice of my mother and mother-in-law, I left Arua. I left in the evening. I was taken to Anyavu in Logiri, where I spent the night at the Catholic mission. I was with my cousin, Rev. Father Silvio Amandua Alija (he is dead now). On the 26th of April 1974, I crossed the river Aru to the Catholic mission there.
From Aru, I was taken to Kinshasa, Zaire (now DR Congo), by the Lugbari network, who also ensured my personal safety while I was in Congo, especially in Kinshasa. The names of those who helped cannot be revealed yet.
V. Part 5 – Conclusion
When looking at today's politics, it becomes clear to me that all the talk of a Nile Republic or State including North Uganda, Lado, and South Sudan is nothing more than the continuation of the Lango Master Plan – which, in its essence, is an Anglo-American plot to unleash genocide in Lado, to exterminate the Sudanics of Lado (Lugbara, Madi, Moru, Bari, Kakua, etc.) and resettle foreigners on our land of Lado, sooner or later.
Note – the British used simmering historical bitterness among the Luo Peoples towards the Sudanics of Lado. You must remember, in the 1700s our people fought a 60-year war against the Luo in defence of the land of Lado, in which they were finally defeated. Through the Lango Master Plan, the British aimed to revive this conflict to destroy us – the people of Lado, who are mostly of Sudanic origin.
The massacres of 1979–1986 and beyond did not accelerate into the full Master Plan because certain groups defended their areas. The same thing with the Anglo-American backed attempt to annex the Ituri and Uele Regions of Lado into Uganda. This plan failed because the people of Lado resisted and defended themselves.
In fact, the most painful fact of the massacres of Lado People is that it was our own elites (school-educated Lado citizens and military officers) who collaborated, and at times even signed documents, allowing the Commonwealth troops to murder and kill our people of Lado. This cannot be denied. There is enough evidence to substantiate the fact that some elite of Lado have been evil or malicious to the people of Lado.
The work to overthrow President Amin was organised by Britain and America in 1979, at the Arusha Conference in Tanzania. Some Lado elites signed the documents which opened the door to the killings of their own people of Lado. Statements such as “the enemy is north of river Onoo” are not forgotten. This comes back to the philosophy of “good Lugbari” and “bad Lugbari,” denoting the anti-British Lugbari, primarily Omugo and Ofude, as targets to be destroyed, and the pro-British Lugbari as a people to be protected. This is one of the problems affecting us as a people of Lugbara. It is the issue of “Lee ki Indripaazi ki.” The Lugbari People must unite, or else we shall die as a people of Lado.
Even the killings that took place in 1986 in Madi also involved some Lado politicians who signed papers opening the doors to the murder of 50,000 of our brothers and sisters in Madiland.
We, as a people of Lado, must work together. We must stand together. We must sink or swim together as a people of Lado. It is the people of Lado who will liberate themselves and be free. Freedom is taken. Freedom is not given. Freedom is defended by our own blood. We cannot expect a foreigner to come and free us from oppression, and discrimination, and racism. We want freedom for the people of Lado. We, the people of Lado, must overcome our fear in order to overcome death. The time has come to struggle for the Independence and Sovereignty of Lado. Greetings to the Citizens of Lado (Africa).
