Lango war claimants cancel planned demonstration

The Lango War Claimants Association members have called off their planned demonstration over the delayed cattle compensation from the 1980s.

The decision was reached on Sunday after a meeting with the Government Chief Whip, Denis Hamson Obua.

Addressing the media on Sunday, September 21, 2025, at Tasha Hotel in Lira City, the Government Chief Whip—who also serves as the NRM Regional Vice Chairperson for Northern Uganda and the Ajuri County MP—outlined five key resolutions from the meeting.

While reading the resolutions, Obua cited the first point: The leaders of the Lango War Claimants have agreed to cancel the demonstration scheduled for Monday, September 22, 2025.

The demonstration was intended to pressure the government over its failure to compensate people who lost their cattle during the conflict of the 1980s.

Obua stated that the claimants’ leaders have been invited to meet with the President to discuss their issues directly.

Additionally, it was agreed that the list of the Lango Presidential Cattle Restocking and Rehabilitation Committee be amended.

Furthermore, the attendees of the Sunday meeting also agreed to jointly support the proposal by President Yoweri Museveni to provide “restocking directly” to households in Lango.

Finally, it was agreed that a serious investigation will be launched. This will involve the Office of the Attorney General, the Ministry of Finance, the district level, and the coordinators themselves.

Anyone whose name appears on the compensation list but is found to be fraudulent will be arrested and prosecuted under the law.

The meeting was chaired by Canon Richard Ogwang Odero who appreciated both the claimants and the government representatives for attending the meeting and called off the demonstration as they continue to seek more solutions.

This meeting followed earlier tensions. On Wednesday, September 17, 2025, Dickness Etum, the Lango sub-region coordinator for the claimants, addressed the media at the Life Line Guest House in Lira City.

He had lamented that recent statements by Minister Obua on the radio were misrepresentative and did not reflect the voice of the Lango people.

The now-cancelled demonstration was planned to be a peaceful protest by over 169,000 claimants under the Lango War Claimants Association.

The group had alleged that some of their leaders had turned the compensation issue into a political football, further complicating the matter.