Lango leaders accuse Amongi of bias and tell her to leave Gender

Lira |Owitong me Lango (Lango cultural leaders) from the Lango Cultural Foundation have accused Gender Minister and Oyam South MP Betty Amongi of bias and sabotaging their planned activities.

The leaders want President Museveni to remove Amongi from her ministerial position. All of them disclosed that Amongi has been threatening them, Lango Paramount Chief Mzee Yosam Odur Ebii, and the Lango people who have faith in them.

Yosam Odur Ebii will step down as cultural leader in November, and clan leaders loyal to him have been preparing to elect his successor.

The election was scheduled for October 11, which Amongi and some regional security officers oppose.

In a letter to Minister of Internal Affairs Gen Jeje Odongo dated October 1, Minister Amongi requested that no election for Lango Paramount Chief take place.

SP Okema, the PRO of North Kyoga Region Police, issued a statement late on October 10 demanding that no planned elections take place.

However, his statement was incorrectly dated as 10th 202. Lango did not exist as a tribe or person at that time.

However, during a media conference on Thursday at Lira Palm Gardens, the chairperson of the electoral commission for Lango Cultural Foundation, Rtd Col Dan Opito Odwe, accused Amongi.

He said that a group at the Lango Cultural Institution led by Eng. Michael Odongo Okune who was “illegally elected in March this year” was helping to facilitate Amongi to thwart the election of Won Nyaci.

According to Odwe, Lango Paramount Chief Yosam Odur Ebii has expressed his willingness to step down from his seat due to old age after serving for more than two decades. He pointed out that there was no need for Okune and his group to rush into holding their illegal election.

On June 27, both factions met with President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni at State House, and he advised them to seek mediation and legal redress, which Lango has yet to receive.

Four candidates expressed an interest in being elected: Amb. Dickson Ogwang Okul, clan leader of Palacol, Dr. Dan Okello, clan leader of Guna, Dr. Richard Nam of Okii Amat, and Benjamin Okii of Okiibura.

The four candidates criticized the Minister’s letter and questioned why Amongi is (mis)using her position to divide Lango.

It is worth noting that Minister Amongi was opposed to Eng. Odongo Okune’s parallel cultural operations for many years, and once threatened to arrest him for dividing Lango and disrespecting Mzee Yosam Odur.

But after expressing a desire to relocate politically to Lira City, where Lango cultural business is also partially conducted, Amongi became more subdued and began to demonstrate Mzee Yosam and his team’s lack of complete cooperation and support.

Clan leaders loyal to Won Nyaci Odur see this as a game plan that is politically motivated and culturally embedded in her quest.

According to the chairperson of the electoral commission, polling stations have been set up in all 649 parishes, with more than 700,000 people expected to vote.

By Felix Omara.