Anglican Church calls for transparency in criminal investigation

The Church of Uganda (COU) has asked the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to showcase distinguished transparency in their investigations.

The Namirembe Cathedral dean, the Rev. Can. Jonathan Kisawuzi, says in the event of major crimes such as murder, suspects should be released after proof of their innocence beyond a reasonable doubt.

He made the remarks yesterday following a service attended by hundreds of FRONASA members who joined the rest of Ugandans to celebrate and remember the late Janani Luwum, who was allegedly murdered in cold blood by the late Idi Amin's government.

A group of over 100 members of the Front for National Salvation (FRONASA), led by the Bristol Band, walked five kilometers from Bwaise roundabout in Kampala to Namirembe Cathedral as they sensitized Ugandans and praised former COU Archbishop Janani Luwum for boldly standing up against the bad leadership of the then government.

FRONASA was a 1970s rebel group led by President Yoweri Museveni, which later joined forces with other militant groups to fight alongside Tanzanian forces against then-president Idi Amin.

The government of Uganda declared February 16 of every year a public holiday to commemorate Luwum's life and martyrdom.

Kisawuzi said many people are easily granted bail after pleading innocence. According to him, a transparent investigation should be carried out to find the exact truth before bail is granted.

"A criminal will leave a clue that will lead to him, and the investigator must look for that clue that was left by the criminal that will lead to finding him out," he said.

Kisawuzi made this statement about the time when Luwum was thought to be the victim of an accident, but it was a planned murder.

"All the vehicles were crumbled, but the number plate was intact; how can that be on a vehicle that had been involved in an accident?" he asked.

Kisawuzi also asked Ugandans to emulate Luwum's resilience in fighting against bad governance and to promote unity and togetherness in the country.

“Luwum fought for the cause of humanity, and people belong to one nation; there are no people for the government, and for the church, we are all the same,” he said.

Janani Luwum

Luwum, who was the archbishop of the Church of Uganda from 1974 to 1977, was murdered on February 16, 1977, on the orders of the then-president of Uganda, Idi Amin Dada, over allegations of wanting to overthrow the government.

He was the head of the Anglican ecclesiastical province, which was then composed of four countries (Burundi, the Eastern Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda).

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