Leaders of the Lango Cultural Foundation (LCF) have issued a rallying call for a cultural revolution, warning that the Lango identity faces extinction unless the younger generation abandons “foreign” habits and embraces traditional values.
Speaking during a leadership handover ceremony for the Lango Student Association (LASA) at the Uganda Christian Institute (UCI) in Boroboro on April 18, 2026, top cultural officials decried the erosion of language, discipline, and traditional customs.
Frederick Ogwal Oyee, the Prime Minister of the Lango Cultural Foundation, who currently serves as the interim Paramount Chief (Won Nyaci) lamented on the identity crisis in Lango culture urging students to view their clans as their primary identity.
“The future of Lango culture is doomed without instilling cultural discipline and practices in the young generation,” Oyee stated.
He challenged the students to build a strong bond with the LCF, noting that the institution needs to build the capacity of the students he described as “young, law-abiding future leaders” to deviate their attention from a sect of Lango leaders whom he called a “crop of masqueraders.”
The “crop”, Oyee says, are currently causing confusion within the Lango community.
“Leadership starts when we are young,” Oyee, who was the guest of honour during the event, told the students. “Endeavor to embrace it now so you may blossom in leadership in the future. The journey you start here at a low level will take you places.”
The Speaker of the Lango Cultural Foundation, Laury Ocen (PhD), outlined a framework for reviving the culture, centering on three “eroded” pillars.
Regarding naming conventions, Ocen criticised the currently lingering impact of colonial-era missionary influence, noting that many Lango people feel “offended” when addressed by their traditional names in preference to foreign names which is not their true identity.
“What makes you a member of a particular ethnic paternity is your cultural name….You find someone named Auma, Apio feeling insulted when addressed by these traditional names but when addressed as Clara and so forth, they smile out of negligence of their true identity,” Ocen emphasised.
On language literacy, he described it as an “embarrassment” that many youths take pride in speaking English while being unable to read or write their mother tongue.
Concerning preservation of culinary heritage, Ocen challenged UCI to incorporate traditional Lango dishes into its Food and Nutrition program.
“We need specialists in Lango cuisine to promote cultural tourism, a skill we are losing,” he emphasised.
The speaker also highlighted the central role of women as the “carriers of culture,” encouraging young women to specialise in modeling cultural regalia to promote and enhance cultural tourism, a lucrative avenue that according to him has been ignored for years.
As a leader of LCF, he challenged young women in UCI and other institutions in Lango to embark on practicing creating cultural art and displaying them for exhibition on events like cultural gala, a move he reiterated would bring pride to Lango as a tribe and cement a strong bond between the institution and LCF.
During his speech, Senior Counsel Emmanuel Egaro Omiat, of Egaro and Company Advocates linked cultural adherence to appropriate character, professional success and reduced crime rates in offices.
“Employers are looking for professionals, but many lack the integrity exhibited through cultural discipline. This is why we see rising corruption and domestic violence,” Omiat said.
Omiat who officiated the swearing in of the UCI new LASA leaders, noted that the highest population of prisoners is currently composed of young people, a scenario he attributed to poor character development, a gap that cultural discipline is designed to fill.
Solomon Adim, Executive Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, Lango Cultural Foundation acknowledged the contribution of UCI in preserving Lango tradition through building cultural leadership and playing a huge role in establishing Lango as the national centre of academic excellence.
Adim informed the gathering that the LCF is currently running several youth-focused projects. These include initiatives centered on sexual reproductive health, harmony in marriage and the fight against gender-based violence (GBV).
The LCF leadership has recently intensified its outreach, visiting several academic institutions, including Victoria, Florence Nightingale, King James Schools of Nursing and Midwifery with the latest being UCI to spread the message of cultural revival.
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