Hundreds of mourners on Saturday evening converged at Kibuli Mosque to attend the funeral prayers of former Makindye West Member of Parliament Hajji Hussein Kyanjo who passed away in the morning.
Speaker after speaker described Kyanjo as one of the rare politicians Uganda has ever produced, who is not corrupt and kept his word even amidst grave challenges.
Speaking at the funeral, Prince Kassim Nakibinge, the titular head of the Muslim community in Uganda said he was forced to set aside the Muslim principle of not keeping dead bodies for long before burial because he felt it was important to honour Kyanjo for the contribution he has made not only to the Muslim community but also on the country.
Nakibinge said the highest honour they can ever give anyone who has had such a significant contribution is the offering of funeral prayers at the Kibuli Mosque.
For his part, Supreme Mufti Sheikh Shaban Galabuzi hailed Kyanjo as a politician who kept his word. He said even when it was uncomfortable, Kyanjo was never afraid to express his opinion on issues he believed in.
Galabuzi said that amidst Kyanjo’s other responsibilities, he always found time to work for the transformation of Islam in Uganda. He called upon other Muslim politicians to emulate him and stand up when the need arises to speak or perform for Islam.
During his two terms as MP for Makindye West, especially before he lost his speech, Kyanjo was loved and hated in equal measure for suggesting that Buganda should secede from Uganda especially after the controversial 2010 land Act was tabled in parliament which he interpreted as a ploy to steal Buganda’s land.
The refusal to allow the Kabaka to visit Bugerere County in Kayunga district also rubbed Kyanjo the wrong way and strengthened his call for Buganda to break away.
This and so many Buganda cause that he got involved in endeared him to the Kingdom and its officials.
In his speech today, Prof. Twaha Kawaase Kigongo, the first deputy Katikkiro, said in Kyanjo’s death, Buganda had lost a very strong pillar.
Matia Lwanga Bwanika, the Wakiso district chairperson also said that he has never seen a politician so principled, so fearless in defending what he believes in. Bwanika called upon politicians in Buganda to emulate Kyanjo.
For Prof. Abas Kiyimba who has known Kyanjo for almost forty years said he will be remembered as a man who worked tirelessly for Islam in Uganda.
Kyanjo said this desire to serve Islam pushed him to join politics so that Muslims would have a voice.
Kyanjo has been battling dystonia, a rare disease that affected his ability to speak. It has severally been suggested that it was caused by poisoning.
In 2017 he was also diagnosed with stage four cancer of the colony and was given just six months to live. At 63 years, Kyanjo is survived by two widows and eight children. He will be buried on Sunday at 2 pm at Ntuuma village in Bukomansimbi district.