Abu Mayanja, MP:

The Intellectual Star of Uganda's "Struggle"

for Independence and the Search for a Liberal
Democratic State, 1929-2005.

A.B.K. Kasozi
 Abu Mayanja, MP
The Intellectual Star of Uganda’s
“Struggle” for Independence and the
Search for a Liberal Democratic State

A. B. K. Kasozi
Abu Mayanja, MP: The Intellectual Star of Uganda’s “Struggle” for
Independence and the Search for a Liberal Democratic State

Copyright © 2023 A. B. K. Kasozi

ISBN 978-9970-464-01-2 (Soft cover)

All rights Reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording
or otherwise without the written permission of the copyright holder.

Publisher Progressive Publishing House Ltd

P.O. Box 4114, Kampala, Uganda
[email protected], [email protected]
Tel: +256 757 541671, +256 772 555 888

Printers Marianum Press Ltd

P.O. Box 11, Kisubi,
Uganda

Uganda Cataloguing and Publication data:

Abubakar Bakijjukire Kakyama Mayanja, 1929-2005
Abu Mayanja student leader and activist, 1950-1952
Abu Mayanja first general secretary, Uganda National Congress, 1952-8
Abu Mayanja, political leader in the “struggle” for independence
Abu Mayanja, Minister of Education in the Kabaka’s Government, 1960-1964
Abu Mayanja, Member of Uganda’s Parliament, 1964-1971, 1986-1994
Abu Mayanja, Cabinet minister in Amin’s Government, 1971-2
Abu Mayanja, Cabinet Member, NRM (Museveni’s) government, 1986-1994
Abu Mayanja, Social and political critic of Uganda’s status quo, 1952-2005
Abu Mayanja, Intellectual leader in politics, law, education, culture and religion.
 Contents

Foreword............................................................................................................................. xv
Preface and Acknowledgement..........................................................................................xix

SECTION I: MAYANJA IN THE UGANDAN POLITICAL LANDSCAPE,

1952–2005........................................................................................... 1

Chapter 1: The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda..................3

1. Introduction: Mayanja in the Ugandan political landscape, 1952–1971.........3
2. The state Mayanja wished Uganda to become: A liberal democratic nation..... 6
3. Mayanja’s vision for the role of the state........................................................7
4. The state structures Mayanja advocated for his homeland.............................8
5. The three branches of government................................................................12
6. Officers of the state.......................................................................................16
7. Local government..........................................................................................16
8. Functions of government...............................................................................17
9. Conclusions: Uganda’s past should not be viewed entirely through the
lens of dictators.............................................................................................23

Chapter 2: Early Years: From Ngogwe to Budo and Makerere.................................25

1. Early years and education up to King’s College Budo..................................25
2. Mayanja goes to Makerere and is expelled for leading a student strike.......28

Chapter 3: Mayanja goes to King’s College, Cambridge............................................33

1. Introduction...................................................................................................33
2. Fighting the dark horizon..............................................................................33
3. The scramble to influence Mayanja’s mind through higher education.........35
4. The horizon begins to brighten......................................................................36
5. Admissions to King’s College, Cambridge...................................................37
6. The battle for a scholarship...........................................................................37
7. More bridges to cross....................................................................................38
8. The planned journey to Cambridge...............................................................41
9. Academic activities at Cambridge.................................................................43
10. Other activities..............................................................................................46
11. The impact of Cambridge education and life on Mayanja............................48

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Chapter 4: Uganda National Congress (UNC): The search for a viable political
organisation, 1952–60..................................................................................51
1. Abu Mayanja: the brain behind the Uganda National Congress (UNC).......51
2. Struggle for democracy with traditional authorities in Uganda,
1952–1960.....................................................................................................53
3. The UNC splits..............................................................................................58
4. Colonial officers’ views of Mayanja become more positive.........................63
5. Formation of Uganda Peoples Union............................................................66
6. Formation of the Uganda Peoples’ Congress (UPC).....................................66

Chapter 5: Mayanja and the packaging of the initial Uganda postcolonial state,
1961–66.........................................................................................................69
1. Mayanja was responsible for negotiating the major contents of the 1962
Constitution...................................................................................................69
2. Mayanja connects Muteesa II with Obote at Bamunanika............................71
3. Mayanja and the formation of the Kabaka Yekka party................................72
4. Formation of the UPC/KY alliance...............................................................75
5. The London Constitutional Conference and the making of the 1962
Constitution...................................................................................................76
6. Managing the disputed 1961 Lukiiko elections in Buganda.........................77
7. Mayanja resigns from Mengo.......................................................................77
8. Mayanja is sent to the National Parliament...................................................78
9. The collapse of the initial postcolonial Uganda state, 1966..........................78
10. The 1967 Constitution: Mayanja advises Obote to travel a democratic
path................................................................................................................79

Chapter 6: Abu Mayanja as a public servant of Buganda and Uganda....................81

1. Mayanja as a Minister...................................................................................81
2. The Kabaka’s call cannot be refused: Mayanja joins Mengo as minister
of education...................................................................................................81
3. Mayanja as Minister of Education in the Kabaka’s Government,
1960–1964.....................................................................................................84
4. Mayanja in Idi Amin’s Government, 1971–1972..........................................86
5. Mayanja runs for Parliament as a DP candidate in 1980 and then goes
into exile........................................................................................................86
6. Mayanja in Museveni’s Government............................................................86
7. Other services to society: Academic tasks, honorary and meritorious
awards............................................................................................................87

Chapter 7: Mayanja Arrested: The Price of Political Activism..................................93

1. Prison has been a training ground for many a leader....................................93
2. The colonial period, 1894–1962....................................................................94
3. The Obote I Period, 1962–71: Mayanja was arrested for sedition by
Obote’s Government, 18th October 1968......................................................95
4. Attempts to use Neogy’s citizenship for general political purposes.............98

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5. The Amin Period: Mayanja withdraws to a farm at Nambale near

Mityana........................................................................................................100

Chapter 8: Were Peoples’ High Expectations of Mayanja justified? Mayanja in

Ugandan Society........................................................................................101
1. Introduction.................................................................................................101
2. The press and the public: A Nkrumah of Uganda?......................................101
3. The Uganda National Congress...................................................................102
4. The Protectorate Officials............................................................................103
5. The Muslim Community.............................................................................104
6. The obstacles in Mayanja upward political mobility..................................105
7. Misunderstood due to high intellectual levels of communication or
arrogance on his part?.................................................................................107
8. Tough talk or direct insults?........................................................................110

SECTION II: MAYANJA’S POLITICAL THOUGHTS.......................................... 115

Section II (a): The structures of Mayanja’s desired state.........................................115

Chapter 9: The state’s primary role is to protect and enhance the welfare of the
individual....................................................................................................117
1. The state’s primary aim is to protect and enhance the individual’s life,
liberties, rights, and needs...........................................................................117
2. Detentions without trial...............................................................................119
3. Violations of human rights of the people by the government and its
workers are wrong.......................................................................................121
4. Protection of the freedom of the individual: detainees should be
informed why they are held in custody.......................................................129
5. Respecting and protecting personal rights and secrets................................130
6. Protection of the properties of the individual: Land Acquisition Bill.........131
7. The right to access free and uncorrupted information.................................132
8. Freedom to comment on political and social issues....................................132
9. Protection of national wealth.......................................................................132

Chapter 10: The constitution, Part 1: The agreement on how to constitute a

government to manage the state..............................................................133
1. The constitution is the agreement between the people and the
government on their mutual rights and obligations.....................................133
2. The Wild Constitutional Committee...........................................................134
3. Mayanja and the 1962 Constitution............................................................134
4. The “Pigeonhole” Constitution, 1966.........................................................135
5. The debates on the 1967 Constitution.........................................................137
6. Mayanja on the merits and demerits of the 1967 Constitution...................138
7. The underlying philosophy of a constitution...............................................142
8. The Government proposals for the 1967 Constitution................................145

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Chapter 11: The Constitution, Part II: The agreement on how to manage the
state.............................................................................................................155
1. Removal of the President............................................................................155
2. The Vice President.......................................................................................156
3. The principle of collective responsibility in the cabinet and parliament:
The dawn of bad Governance in Uganda....................................................157
4. The concept of the rule of law is not foreign to Africans............................157
5. Parliament and the concept of representative institutions...........................158
6. Parliament should respect the wishes of the electorate...............................159
7. Qualifications of voters, i.e., who can vote in Uganda................................159
8. Giving the High Court more powers on the electoral process....................160
9. Power to, or not to, consent to a Bill by the president................................160
10. Prolonging the life of Parliament for five years is not good.......................161
11. The time for convening parliament after an election should be short.........162
12. Legislation by promulgating Ordinances....................................................162
13. Command of the Armed Forces and power to appoint and dismiss top
army officers and decisions making concerning military matters...............163
14. The Judiciary...............................................................................................164
15. Protection of certain officers of the state by the constitution......................165
16. Independence of the Public Service............................................................166
17. Kings and other traditional rulers should stay because loyalty to these
entities does not always conflict with allegiance to the state......................166
18. Buganda should not be divided into the proposed four districts.................168
19. The prerogative of mercy............................................................................170
20. Order must be re-established within the law, and the state must take
responsibility for all its actions...................................................................170
21. The state should take responsibility for paying all civil servants...............172
22. Final opinion on the 1967 Constitutional proposals....................................172

Chapter 12: The unity of the state.................................................................................177

1. Uganda should pursue unity in diversity rather than enforced uniformity.... 177
2. Uniformity of administrative structures does not improve efficiency.........182
3. Buganda and the Baganda are not obstacles to national unity....................185
4. Fighting “reverse tribalism” or discriminative behaviour against
Baganda.......................................................................................................190
5. Obote’s political behaviour compared to his statements on unity...............193

Chapter 13: Government, the power of the state.........................................................195

1. Government is the agent, and therefore, the power of the state..................195
2. Functions of Government............................................................................195
3. The separation of powers amongst the three branches of government.......196
4. The Legislative branch of government (or Parliament)..............................196
5. The Executive branch of government.........................................................205

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6. The Third Branch of Government: The Judiciary.......................................208

7. Officers of state...........................................................................................212

Chapter 14: The Roles of Responsible Local Government.........................................213

1. The need for responsible local government................................................213
2. Retaining power at the centre reduces the performance of local
authorities....................................................................................................214
3. Centralisation of authority will not necessarily lead to better service........215
4. Responsible local government means elected representatives....................216
5. Elected officials should have powers over appointed bureaucrats..............223
6. Local Governments must have their sources of income: Abolition of
graduated tax was a mistake........................................................................224
7. Administrative units should be economically viable..................................224
8. The roles of traditional rulers in local, regional governance in Uganda.....225

Section II (b): Major functions of government..........................................................227

Chapter 15: The security of the state and the rights of citizens.................................229
1. The security of the state, its citizens and maintenance of their rights are
the major functions of government.............................................................229
2. The state must accept certain risks in order to fulfil its roles......................229
3. Order must be re-established within the legal bounds of the law...............230
4. Government must always operate within the law.......................................232
5. The liability of the state in the process of establishing law and order........234
6. Government should not be exempted from vicarious liability....................234
7. The distinction between the security of the state and that of the specific
incumbents in government..........................................................................235
8. Violence does not resolve political conflicts nor serve as an instrument
of permanent political control.....................................................................236
9. Combat forces like the Special Force and Army should not enforce law
amongst the civilian population..................................................................239

Chapter 16: The administration of justice in building a happy society, Part 1:

The philosophical basis of law in an African country............................241
1. The proper administration of justice is vital for the harmony of the state..... 241
2. Law should be informed by African ideas and concepts of justice:
Harmonising customary and written (i.e. British) Law...............................242
3. Administration of Justice is the foundation of a just society......................252
4. Law cannot be imported wholesale: Trial by Jury not usable in
Karamoja.....................................................................................................255
5. Reasons for not appointing magistrates instead of justices of the peace....258

Chapter 17: The role of the administration of justice in building a happy society,
Part II: Unjust laws retard progress.......................................................261
1. The state should not enact unjust and, therefore, harmful laws..................261
2. The Deportation Bill....................................................................................262

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3. Retrospective application of the law is wrong............................................266

4. Forced integration of courts in Buganda should not eliminate traditional
structures of administering justice...............................................................267
5. Integration of courts does not necessarily improve the efficiency of
administering justice...................................................................................268
6. The Police should use their powers reasonably when investigating
crimes..........................................................................................................270
7. Enacting mistakes are not permissible........................................................271
8. The severity of punishment does not eliminate crime.................................274
9. Focused investigations rather than the severity of punishment can reduce
crime............................................................................................................277
10. The underlying reasons for imprisoning a person: danger to society.........279

Chapter 18: The role of the administration of justice in building a happy state,
Part III: The human and facilities components are important.............281
1. The human factor in the administration of justice.......................................281
2. The human factor in law is crucial..............................................................281
3. High Court Judges, like other human workers, must feel secure if they
are to give independent pronouncements....................................................282
4. Work overload is not suitable for the judges...............................................284
5. Sufficiency of judges and the facilities under which law is administered
matter...........................................................................................................286
6. The role of Lawyers in the administration of justice..................................288

Chapter 19: Foreign affairs, Part I...............................................................................291

1. Introduction.................................................................................................291
2. The problem of starting from scratch..........................................................291
3. Fundamental principles that should guide Uganda’s foreign policy...........293
4. Peace in Africa and Uganda’s role in the struggle for freedom on the
continent......................................................................................................301
5. Domestic Affairs influence and conditions a country’s external image......314

Chapter 20: Foreign Affairs, Part II.............................................................................315

1. The population should be constantly briefed on foreign issues..................315
2. The bombing of two Ugandan villages by the USA supported Tshombe...317
3. Nations should stick to and implement their publicly declared positions
or keep quiet................................................................................................320
4. Diplomatic privileges should not undermine the rights and liberties of
Ugandans.....................................................................................................321
5. Unequal treaties with external nations: Electricity Agreement with
Kenya..........................................................................................................324
6. Foreign investors should be attracted..........................................................324
7. Image of Uganda: Improving the state of the arrival/departure building
at Entebbe....................................................................................................325

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8. The Image of Uganda: The Heartbeat of Africa Dance and Cultural

Troupe in Cairo...........................................................................................326
9. Closer East African union: The East African Federation idea.....................327

Section II (c): Secondary Functions of Government.................................................333

Chapter 21: Enhancing the standards of living of the people.....................................335
1. Raising the standards of living of the people is a noble idea......................335
2. Wastage of resources through corruption and mismanagement
undermined the ability of the state to lift standards of living......................335
3. Government should sell electricity to domestic consumers at affordable
prices...........................................................................................................341
4. The need to have a good and constantly improving public service............343

Chapter 22: The need to plan government tasks.........................................................347

1. The philosophy of planning for the nation..................................................347
2. The national plan should define the type of society Ugandans would
like to create................................................................................................348
3. Mayanja pays tribute to colonial officials and the Minister........................352
4. Education planning is necessary before changing its structures and
methods of delivery are made.....................................................................352
5. Development is impossible in an atmosphere of fear.................................355
6. Planning and state participation is essential................................................356

Chapter 23: Protection and proper use of national wealth.........................................357

1. Protection of the properties of the people is one of the primary reasons
why states exist............................................................................................357
2. Wastages of the finances of the state are not acceptable.............................357
3. Acceptable levels of taxation and expenditure by Government..................358
4. The farmer was overtaxed...........................................................................360
5. Loans or tax money for development..........................................................361
6. Abrupt and unnecessary monitory change..................................................361
7. Lack of transparency in awarding of major contracts: Apollo Hotel,
Uganda Television and Obote’s House at Kololo.......................................362
8. Mayanja on corruption and race..................................................................363
9. The Traffic Police are identified as corrupt by Mayanja.............................364
10. The use of the state for personal gain during the Congo crisis...................365
11. A full inquiry not only of Colonel Idi Amin but the whole conduct of
the relations with the Congo was considered necessary to clear the
Government.................................................................................................370
12. Declaration of wealth and assets should be mandatory for top officers......371
13. Criticism of corruption in the NRM period, especially when he was no
longer in that Government...........................................................................374
14. Mayanja’s behaviour regarding public finance...........................................376

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Chapter 24: Agriculture should be well planned and managed.................................377

1. Introduction.................................................................................................377
2. The Government should have a well thought out defined policy on
agriculture....................................................................................................378
3. The importance of helping the farmer to the Uganda state.........................381
4. Farmers should benefit from their production.............................................383
5. Enlarging farming units: The alternative of using group farms..................385
6. Group farms and the Baganda excuse.........................................................387
7. Marketing boards and parastatal bodies......................................................390
8. The trouble with marketing boards.............................................................393
9. The co-operative movement not benefitting farmers..................................394
10. The monopoly of ginning by co-operatives................................................395
11. Africanisation of coffee processing a myth.................................................395
12. Registration of tobacco growers should not penalise farmers.....................397
13. Monopolies are not suitable for production................................................397
14. The importance of the extension service.....................................................397
15. Popularisation of agriculture amongst the young........................................398
16. Preservation of and planting of forests........................................................398

Chapter 25: Commerce and industry including trade unions, Africanisation of

business and communications..................................................................401
1. Introduction.................................................................................................401
2. Finding capital for industry and commerce.................................................402
3. Terms of trade with developed countries....................................................403
4. General economic policy: Let the law of supply and demand govern rent
control..........................................................................................................405
5. Industry: Spreading locations of industry...................................................406
6. The difference between parastatal bodies and government departments....409
7. Parastatal bodies and marketing boards should be started when thorough
preparations have been made......................................................................413
8. The Uganda Development Corporation (U.D.C.).......................................414
9. The market, the size of U.D.C. and small-scale industries.........................415
10. The Management of the Uganda Development Corporation (U.D.C.).......416
11. Nurture, supervise but do not over-control trade unions.............................418
12. Roads and air Communications: Gulu Road and Entebbe Airport
Terminal......................................................................................................420
13. Uganda Television.......................................................................................421
14. The failure of Africans to fully participate in industry, commerce, and
the upper levels of the economy..................................................................421

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Chapter 26: Mayanja’s views on education and culture.............................................427

1. Introduction.................................................................................................427
2. The underlying philosophy of education for an independent African state... 428
3. Education is more than bricks and mortar, number of students or
institutions...................................................................................................428
4. The unifying role of education....................................................................431
5. Africanisation of the curriculum.................................................................434
6. Broad education better: “Fuse, rather than separate” Arts and Sciences....436
7. Education planning is necessary before changing its structures and
methods of delivery are made.....................................................................437
8. Free primary education................................................................................438
9. Teacher education........................................................................................439
10. Higher education critical to national development.....................................440
11. Makerere expenditure per student should be decreased..............................442
12. Private education.........................................................................................443
13. Clarity of laws: The Medical Practitioners and Dental Surgeons’ Bill,
1968.............................................................................................................444
14. Culture: The state must develop, protect, and nurture African culture
through education and the media in a liberal environment.........................445

Chapter 27: Social justice for all: Mayanja and the “Muslim Question”.................447
1. What is the “Muslim Question?”................................................................447
2. Mayanja confronts Obote on the “Muslim Question”.................................448
3. Fairness in distributing school resources and facilities to religious
groups..........................................................................................................453
4. The National Association for the Advancement of Muslims (NAAM)......455
5. Government favouritism of NAAM as opposed to the Uganda Muslim
Community of Kibuli..................................................................................455
6. Police at a Kawempe Mawlidi....................................................................457
7. Muslims in Teso..........................................................................................458
8. Opening an embassy in Jeddah and helping Muslims during the
pilgrimage....................................................................................................459
9. In support of Shari’ah law for Muslims......................................................459
Appendix 1: Published works by Abu Mayanja................................................................460
Appendix 2: Published works about Abu Mayanja by other writers................................463
Appendix 3: Founders of the Kabaka Yekka Movement...................................................489
Annex 4: Bibliography of published works consulted.......................................................490
Annex 5: Interviews held by Kasozi and other named persons........................................495
Appendix 6: Index.............................................................................................................496

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 SECTION I
MAYANJA IN THE UGANDAN
POLITICAL LANDSCAPE, 1952–2005

1
 1

The postcolonial state Mayanja

wished to emerge in Uganda

1. Introduction: Mayanja in the Ugandan political landscape,

1952–1971
It is evident from the sources I have been able to consult that Abu Mayanja was the intellectual
star of Uganda’s “struggle” for independence and initial postcolonial efforts to build a happy,
stable Ugandan postcolonial state from 1952 to 19711. First, in most of his political activities,
speeches, and writings, he exhibited a higher level of understanding of the challenges that
faced the Uganda postcolonial state than his contemporary politicians. Those Ugandan
“founding fathers” politicians faced complex political, economic, and social challenges that
were on many occasions, beyond their intellectual capacities to comprehend. The political
challenges included creating a participatory political system that would guarantee peace and
give African peoples the freedom colonialism was accused of taking away, maintaining the
unity and integrity of the state in the face of competing tribal and subnational forces and
building mechanisms for the peaceful transfer of power. The economic challenges included
the establishment of a viable national economy, which would be a basis for unity and raising
the standards of living of the people. The social challenges included the proper administration
of justice and efficient delivery of public services. However, the immediate and more
significant challenge was the rushed granting of independence by the colonial power. Not
only did independence come before Ugandans developed political tools to manage a state
but also the governance structures the colonial administration was trying to put in place were
not yet consolidated. Yet the UK was in a rush to scramble out of Africa. A combination of
internal forces within the UK and the impact of World War II accelerated the pace of
decolonisation in Africa faster than many policymakers had imagined or planned.2 Most of

1 His full names were Abubakar Bakijjukire Kakyama Mayanja. He shortened Abubakar to Abu for the
sake of his peers, many of whom being Christians, who found it difficult or were unwilling to pronounce
or accept Arab/Islamic names.
2 Lord Hailey’s African survey report published in 1938 advised for economic development before
political experiments in the administration of African colonies. Independence was thought to be very far
off in the future. But left-leaning social groups within the UK preferred a planned exit from the colonies.
However, due to the impact of WWII, the UK lost the capacity to hold on to the empire, making a
planned exist difficult. Read Pearce, R. D. (1982). The Turning Point in Africa: British Colonial Policy,
1938-1948. London: Cass; Pearce, Robert. “The Colonial Office and Planned Decolonization in Africa.”
African Affairs, Vol. 83, No. 330 (Jan. 1984); pages 77-93; Flint, John. “Planned Decolonisation and Its
Failure in British Africa.” African Affairs, Vol. 82, No. 328 (July 1963); pages 389-411; Thornton, A.P.
“Decolonisation.” International Journal, Vol. 19, No.1, (Winter 1963/64); pages 7-29; Cell, J. W. “On
the Eve of Decolonisation: The Colonial Office Plans for the Transfer of Power to Africa.” Journal of

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 ABU MAYANJA, MP

the educated elites, the so-called “freedom fighters” who took power from colonial officials,
did not have the experience nor the intellectual capacity to understand and resolve these
challenges. As Ajayi pointed out, African leaders “were much clearer about what they wanted
to end than what they wanted to put in place”.3 As the reader will find out, Mayanja was
frank about his colleagues’ low levels of understanding of issues in Parliament, often referring
to them as “ignorant, monumentally dense, one-track-minded”, and so on.4 From 1952 to
1962, the focus of Ugandan African politicians was capturing the postcolonial state and
enjoying the fruits of power. None of the political parties that aspired to lead the country
fully defined the nature of the postcolonial Ugandan state they wanted to establish after the
exit of the colonial officers. For example, the Uganda National Congress (UNC) motto was
“Self-Government Now” without fully explaining what would follow. Although Mayanja
was more informed of the problems of constructing a Ugandan postcolonial state than his
colleagues, his descriptions of the state he wanted Uganda to be were articulated after
independence especially on the floor of parliament from 1964 to 1968. He admitted, in 1999,
to a lack of thorough analysis of the type of state pre-independence Ugandan politicians
wanted to establish, saying that “…. there was a lot of expectations. We thought we would
make a better deal for the country if we got behind the steering wheel. Independence came
too soon. Sooner than we expected”5. Fifteen years later, he said, “My vision was that we
would be in charge of our affairs. Many cases of abuse, shortcomings and failures were
attributed to colonialism. We thought that independence would result not only in the Africans
taking over the reins of Government but also the economy.”6 Second, unlike other politicians
whose vision was limited to taking over the postcolonial state by merely “falling into things”
and enjoying lucrative positions vacated by colonial officers without changing state structures,
Mayanja reimagined the structures of the postcolonial Uganda he wished to emerge more
clearly than the rest of Uganda’s “founding fathers” except E.M.K. Mulira and, to some
extent, Benedicto Kiwanuka. As a result, his ideas dominated Uganda’s political landscape
more than any other local politician in that period. According to the Parliamentary records
of 1964-1968, Mayanja was far ahead in understanding and defining the nature of the state
Uganda should be and solving the political problems that faced the nation more than most
of his contemporaries. He imagined forming a liberal democratic state using African ideas
of social justice and organisation as the foundation for building a happy, harmonious political
community. He believed freedom of thought was the taproot of development and it required
free minds well prepared by a broad Africanised education curriculum to succeed. He also
believed that such free minds could only operate in a just society. For Mayanja, the rule of
law prevails over autocracy in a just society. He thus sought a Ugandan political community
based on the consensus of citizens and the rule of law. He argued that the Uganda postcolonial
state should be built on Africanised liberal democratic structures through which the people’s

Imperial Commonwealth History, Vol. 8, 1979/80 (May 1980), pages 234-57; Derek Johnson “On Safari”
In Brown, Douglas, and Marcell Brown (1996). Looking Back at the Uganda Protectorate: Recollections
of District Officers. Dalkeith, Australia: Own published, pp.151-3
3 Ajayi, Ade J. T. “Expectations of Independence” Daedalus. Vol. 3, No. 2: Black Africa: A Generation
after Independence (Spring 1982); pages 1-9.
4 Look at chapter 8, sections 7 & 8, as well as Hansards: 5th July 1965 pp. 2694-6, 7th January 1966, pp
295-7 for a few of the many examples of his insults to some unfortunate members of Parliament and
frustrations regarding the low level of understanding of members of Uganda’s first Parliament.
5 New Vision, 9th October 1999, page 54.
6 New Vision, 8th September 2004, page 31 and New Vision, 9th October 2004.

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 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

will superseded those of rulers. He saw the state as the servant of its citizens. Its role was
to protect individual rights, liberties, and freedoms, including the right to a free life, own
property and make social choices. Although Mayanja saw government as state power, he
emphasised that it should operate within the law, even in a complex process of re-establishing
law and order. To achieve this aim, Mayanja preferred a moderate government—one strong
enough to govern yet restrained sufficiently to guarantee individual rights and freedoms. He
thus advocated for the Westminster model of government to separate powers amongst the
legislative, executive and judiciary branches to attain such a balance. He believed that the
Government’s most important function was the proper administration of justice based on
laws informed by peoples’ concepts of the values of their society. For Uganda, this meant
that the philosophical basis of law should be African ideas of justice. To this end, he
contributed more recorded Parliamentary speeches and published materials and received
more press coverage than any other Ugandan non-head of state of his generation. Third, he
was the brain behind most of the documents produced by Uganda’s first political party, the
Uganda National Congress, including drafting the party’s constitution, making its leaflets,
and writing minutes of important meetings and speeches for the officials of the party. Until
John Kalekezi joined the UNC, Mayanja wrote most of the party’s propaganda documents.
Fourth, as a leading member of the Kabaka Yekka, Mayanja wrote most of the ideas and
documents of that organisation.7 Fifth, although Mayanja never occupied the nation’s top
position or political party, he was recognised by his contemporaries as a person who
understood the country’s problems well and had the brains and courage to expound them.
He performed well at school, and a colonial officer noted that Mayanja was the best brain
the Protectorate had ever produced (chapter 3). John Nagenda, a writer and journalist, pointed
out, “Academically, he (Abu) was one of the brightest people of his or any other time Uganda
has ever produced”.8 As we shall note later, Peter Mulira was of the same view.9 Sixth, due
to his high level of understanding of political issues of the time, Mayanja was more prolific
in producing and publishing ideas concerning Uganda and African politics, especially from
1952 to 1960, than any of his contemporary Uganda politicians. Appendix 1 lists some 111
publications in newspapers and magazines which Mayanja produced. He continued to write
and was a weekly contributor to the New Vision until he died in 2005. The late Ali Mazrui,
who was a prominent academic at Makerere, was reported to have told a group of Makerere
students that Mayanja should have been an academic instead of a politician10. Both Mayanja
and Mazrui were contributors to the “Transition” magazine, and the former protested when
Obote arrested Mayanja without a fair trial (chapter 7, item 3). He wrote more well-argued
articles in local and international publications than his contemporary Ugandan politicians.
His ideas were well received in the press, and many academics and journalists debated them
in the media and other forums. Appendix 2 lists one thousand and sixty nine (1069)
publications in which Mayanja’s ideas were discussed by other commentators including
local and foreign journalists and academics. Sixth, he was the leading brain in putting together
the political coalition to which the colonial officers handed power in 1962. He linked Muteesa
II and Obote at Bamunanika and designed the KY/UPC alliance that took control of Uganda

7 Earle, Jonathan L. (2017) Colonial Buganda and End of Empire: Political Thought and Historical
Imagination in Africa. African Studies Series. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, pp. 129-164
8 New Vision, 12th November 2005, page 8.
9 New Vision, 8th November 2005, page 10.
10 Interview with Issa Lukwaago, former Secretary to the Bank of Uganda and Lecturer at Makerere.

5
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

in 1962. He brought Buganda and Uganda to agree to a shaky political arrangement to permit
the colonial administration’s power transfer to Africans (chapter 5). Seventh, he conceptualised
the 1962 Constitution by making Obote and Mutasa II engage in what was politically possible
at that period. Eighth, as the Minister in charge of elections at Mengo, he managed the 1962
Lukiiko elections in favour of the KY/UPC alliance, which gave Obote the 21 Parliamentary
seats he needed to get power. Ninth, when he was sent to Parliament to represent Kyagwe
Northeast, he became the most articulate Parliamentarian the country has ever had. He spoke
on virtually every aspect of governance. Due to his oratory and speaking capacity, a few
people jokingly refer to him as Uganda’s “Edmund Burke”. There was often opposition to
his ideas and personality, but, in many cases, the Government used his ideas and suggestions
in managing the state and drafting laws. Over his political career, he moderated or influenced
law formation more than any other Parliamentarian in the same period. This book, wherever
possible, presents Mayanja’s words and analysis of events as he wrote or said them. A
biography of Mayanja is, therefore, a story of the early Ugandan postcolonial state as it gives
a personal chronicle of what Professor Phares Mutibwa has referred to as the “unfulfilled
hopes” of many Ugandans.11 Tenth, Mayanja was never reported to have been involved in
corruption because he had a cause to pursue. He believed that the aim of political participation
was to enhance public service. He participated fully in Uganda’s political processes for most
of his adult life. He was a member of Parliament for many years and served as a cabinet
minister in many postcolonial governments between 1960 and 1994. While debating on the
infamous “Gold Scandal”, Mayanja prophesied that corruption would lead to the destruction
of the state. As the reader will find out, Mayanja was the first Parliamentarian to propose
that public officers declare their wealth before taking office. He lived modestly and left no
wealth except a few real estate properties. Lastly, he was deeply dedicated to serving the
nation by pursuing politics and public service as a full-time occupation. This behaviour
made him different from his colleagues who regarded politics as a part-time activity and
were often referred to as “weekend politicians”. Studying Mayanja’s life can also help us
understand why Uganda has failed to develop institutional mechanisms for peaceful power
transfer.
To appreciate Mayanja’s style in contributing to the designing and management of the
Ugandan postcolonial state, this chapter will summarise and define what he wanted Uganda
to become. Chapters 2-8 will focus on Mayanja’s early life and political activities until 2005.
Chapters 9-27 will elaborate on his political thoughts and practice. These chapters will
allow the reader to peruse the very words Mayanja spoke in Parliament, at political rallies,
or wrote in newspaper columns. My role will primarily be to introduce his ideas and their
historical context. Some quotations are long, but they reflect how he used to communicate.

2. The state Mayanja wished Uganda to become: A liberal

democratic nation
Mayanja wanted Uganda to be a liberal democracy in which citizens’ rights and liberties
were assured by a government freely constituted by the people through regular and fair
elections and in which the people recognised and defended the state and its government. For
him, the pillar of this democracy was the supremacy of the people over their rulers. He lived
and spent most of his political life searching for an ideal liberal democratic Uganda. The

11 Mutibwa, Phares (1992). Uganda Since Independence: A Story of Unfulfilled Hopes. London: Hurst.

6
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

Constitution would be an agreement between the people and the government for establishing
and maintaining democratic political behaviour, permitting only elected people to make
national or local laws. Mayanja believed that election laws should ensure that the people’s
choice of a candidate for any governing body—Parliament or local councils—was upheld.
Indeed, since the establishment of the postcolonial state many Ugandans have tried, in vain,
to search for a liberal democratic state in their homeland.
On the social level, Mayanja envisaged a just postcolonial society in which all ethnic,
religious, racial and gender groups lived in mutual respect without enforced unity into one
mega tribe or a need to give up their unique traditions and customs. He strongly felt that
unity did not mean uniformity. To guarantee participation in the governance of their country,
Mayanja preferred to constitute responsible governments (both central and regional) elected
by the people. He advocated a moderate executive branch, arguing vehemently against
dictatorship, “whether local or foreign”. Mayanja argued that the best way to moderate
government power was to effectively divide powers across the three branches of government
(executive, Parliamentary and judiciary). However, he believed that Parliament superseded
the other branches because it was the “watchdog of the people”. Although he favoured a
moderate government over a dictatorship, he thought that government should be strong
enough to govern while sufficiently moderate to guarantee individual rights and liberties.

3. Mayanja’s vision for the role of the state

For Mayanja, the state’s role, and therefore major function, was to guard and protect life,
individual rights, liberties, and freedoms. These included the basic rights to live freely, to
own property, to freely express one’s views, to have freedom of association and to select
one’s leaders through regular and fair election. Further, he though Ugandans should have
other various derivative freedoms such as freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention without
trial, and the freedom of movement within and outside the country. He believed that the
second major function of the state through its government was to enhance the welfare—
and therefore the happiness—of its citizens.12 As he often pointed out in the press and in
Parliament, the justification for asking the colonialists to go was that they denied Africans
the freedoms and rights the latter deserved. However, to his disappointment, postcolonial
African governments took away their citizens’ freedom, which even the colonial state had
never dreamed of curtailing. On one occasion, he said in Parliament that:
This Government of ours which is directly elected by the people is taking away even the
slightest iota of liberty which the imperialists did not expect to take away13.
While debating proposals for the 1967 Constitution, Mayanja again emphasised this point,
saying that14
….. the justification for Uhuru was not only because we wanted to be ruled by black men on
a purely racial principle, but because colonial rule was a bad rule in the sense of depriving
us of certain things, what we considered, what we had been taught in schools were very
important fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual, the right to decide who shall
govern you, the right to meet freely, the right to disseminate ideas, the right to acquire the
freedom of speech, the right of property and so on. Now I want to say that although we

12 Hansard, Enactment of a New Constitution, 5th July 1967 - page 604

13 Hansard, 2nd Rdg. - Police Ordinance (Amendment) Bill, 1965,18th February 1965 pp 735 – 742).
14 Hansard: Enactment of a new Constitution, July 5th, 1967, pp 611-612.

7
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

indicted colonial rule, and that was one of the platforms because it denied fundamental
human rights, nevertheless, there were many human rights which were guaranteed under
colonialism, and I am very disappointed to see that there were some rights which we had
even under colonialism, but which we are taking away under these proposals.
Mayanja believed that while the state had the right to maintain law and order, it must do so
within the law. Accordingly, the state and its workers should not escape real or vicarious
responsibilities as they exercised their functions. Government agents like the police must
operate within the law, never infringing upon citizens’ rights, liberties, or freedoms. As an
example, Mayanja thought that permitting detention without trial was one of postcolonial
Uganda’s most unfortunate decisions, arguing that it
“…eats, it corrodes into all the other rights and freedoms which we are trying to guarantee
the peoples of Uganda under chapter III of the proposed Constitution. Even God cannot
condemn a person unheard for on the last day of judgement angels will read out the files of
each and resurrected minds will be permitted to say something. …………. for to deprive a
man of liberty, of the right to see the sun, to hear the birds singing, to enjoy his home with
his family not because a man has broken the laws of his country but because it is feared
that he may do so at some future point, is absolutely indefensible”15.
At the same time, Mayanja realised that individuals needed state protection to achieve their
potential. For that reason, he urged Ugandans to accept the jurisdiction of the state through
its government. However, he pointed out that the formation of government, especially its
powers and limitations, must be agreed upon by the people in a contract called a constitution.

4. The state structures Mayanja advocated for his homeland

(i) The Constitution
Mayanja wanted to live in a Uganda that observed and respected a national constitution,
which he saw as defining (and guaranteeing) the rights and liberties of citizens in a liberal
democracy. To him, this document was the legal basis for state action, for constituting
the government, for defining the relationship between the people and the government, for
clarifying citizens’ rights and obligations, and for outlining the values and principles for
which the nation stood. He insisted, however, that a constitution was not a cure for every
political problem. It was only a guide to political behaviour, and state managers would
make it flourish or fail. Mayanja was involved in the drafting, criticising, and moderating
of all Uganda’s constitutions except the Pigeon Hall Constitution of 1966. He was the major
architect of the 1962 Constitution, the main outspoken critic of the 1967 Constitution, a
member of the Constituent Assembly that drafted the 1995 Constitution and an opponent
of the 1995 Constitution’s amendments. According to Mayanja, the
“………underlying philosophy of our Constitution is, that all men are under the law and
no one is above the law”16.
He also pointed out that any constitution must balance the interests of the state with those
of the individual. For him, therefore,

15 Hansard, Enacting of a New Constitution, 5th July 1967, pp 611-17.

16 Hansard, Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 6th July 1967, page 648.

8
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

“…any Constitution must be built on the assumption that the state exists for the individual:
i.e., for the good of the citizens. However, while providing security, the state should
guarantee the liberties and freedoms of the individual”17.
To achieve this goal, a constitution must balance the interests of the individual with those
of the state, especially its security, for:
…. every constitution attempts to resolve two apparently conflicting claims or interests.
It tries, on the one hand to reconcile the claims of freedom with the interests of security.
It tries to reconcile order with liberty, the state with the individual. You can use whatever
word you want but basically the basic problem which any constitution maker has to resolve
is this one. “How do I reconcile a government strong enough to govern and to move ahead
with the objectives of personal liberty and of freedom of action?”18

(ii) A United Uganda

Like Obote, Mayanja wanted to live in a united Uganda. But unlike Obote, who advocated
for the total union of “one Country, one President and one Parliament” based on total equality
and similarity of governance structures for all regions of Uganda, Mayanja thought that a
loose confederation that recognised local peculiarities was the most practical for Uganda
at that time. For Mayanja, unity did not require total amalgamation and uniformity. He
thought that people of different cultures and traditions could live in one state without giving
up their traditions and their ways of life. He thought that given the many diverse tribes in
Uganda, unity in diversity was the most practical option for achieving consensus to work
together as a nation. He felt that Obote’s goal to achieve total unity within a generation was
impossible because of the diversity of the peoples of Uganda. The country’s various tribes
did not only have different cultures but were also at different levels of social development.
Preferring unity in diversity, Mayanja felt that Uganda should aim at creating a society like
that of Switzerland rather than risk becoming another Congo, where enforced unity had led
to chaos. Speaking in Parliament, he said:
Mr. Speaker, we have got here the opportunity to make this a happy country, to make of it
another Switzerland where people are united, irrespective of their diversities of origin. We
have got an opportunity to build here another Switzerland, or we have got an opportunity
to build here another Congo, and there is no half-way house between these two19.
Mayanja often referred to the Heartbeat of Africa Troupe as exemplifying Uganda. This group
presented separate tribal specific songs and dances separately. As most of the peoples of the
nation were represented, its concerts conveyed a clear image of Uganda’s many cultures.
If it had instead combined all songs and plays from the various peoples of Uganda into one
product, however, the result would not have been admirable. Mayanja thought that one could
remain loyal to his sub-state (or tribal chief) while accepting the sovereignty of the state.
He realised that the claims of various tribal entities, including Buganda, Bunyoro, Toro and
Busoga, were real and could not be erased in a generation. He also believed that kings and
chiefs without executive powers would not undermine the integrity of the Uganda state. He
stated as follows:

17 Hansard, Enactment of a New Constitution, 5th July 1967 - page 604.

18 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 5th July 1967, pages 603-4.
19 Hansard: Address in reply to H.E the President’s speech: 8th December 1966, page 255 – 260.

9
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

I feel that we can be loyal to the state and render to it all the services that are due to it, in
order that the state can also serve us, whilst at the same time we can retain other loyalties,
and that separate loyalties, in fact, do cement each other; they are not mutually opposed, or
exclusive. That, of course, brings in the third problem which is that of unity or uniformity.
In my humble submission, true unity does not connote or require or even imply sameness
or uniformity20.
Mayanja also thought that members of Parliament failed to resolve the problem of unity by
blaming Buganda and the Baganda. He felt that Government’s failure to manage diversity was
the cause of disunity rather than the Baganda. He insisted that the Baganda had contributed
to state development by serving in various parts of the country, spreading religion and
welcoming others into their sub-state as workers and settlers. As discussed in this book, he
deplored what he often referred to as the unequal treatment of the Baganda in several areas
of state management by the Obote government.
Like many members of Parliament, however, Mayanja was convinced that Buganda was a
part of Uganda. At a Uganda National Congress (UNC) conference on 5 November 1958,
he criticised the suggestion that Buganda could go it alone, claiming that it was “a dream
that will never be realized”.21 In 1961, he likewise vehemently opposed the resolution to
unilaterally declare Buganda independent of the UK. He felt that it was “folly” on the part
of Lukiiko members to pass such a resolution.22

(iii) Citizenship
Mayanja envisaged a multiracial, multitribal society in Uganda in which discrimination
based on race, religion or gender was not permitted. As early as 1952, Mayanja was clear
about the criteria for Ugandan citizenship. For example, during a press conference following
the launch of the UNC, Musaazi was asked by an Asian reporter what he meant by placing
the economy in the hands of citizens, and he could not give a straight answer. Immediately,
Mayanja jumped to his rescue, stating that no foreigners coming to Uganda to settle as citizens
should be denied UNC membership and by implication, state citizenship.23 In addition, when
several members of Parliament suggested including deprivation of citizenship as a clause in
the 1967 Constitution, Mayanja realised that the proposal was aimed at Asians and strongly
opposed it. He felt that it would be unfair to deprive people of citizenship, even if they
had dual citizenship. He argued that doing so could lead to creating stateless persons24. In
another debate in Parliament, Mayanja emphasised that race does not determine corruption.
He thought it unfair to accuse a specific race or tribe of being corrupt, as such behaviour
is found among all peoples. He asserted, for example, that corruption had been practiced
by colonial officers. He also thought that some Asian traders in Uganda were corrupt, not
because of their biological make up but because it enhanced their businesses. He emphasised
that corruption, like prostitution, has no racial barriers.25

20 Hansard, Motion: Enactment of a New Constitution, 5th July 1967, pages 605-6.
21 Uganda Eyogera, 6th November 1958, See also FCO 141/18247/16/, National Archives
22 Uganda Argus, 10th April 1961, page 2.
23 Uganda Herald, 22nd March 1952.
24 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a New Constitution, 5th July 1967, pages 610-11.
25 Debate on Annual Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the Year 1967/6, Hansard 7th August 1967,
pp. 1391.

10
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

(iv) A strong but moderate democratic government

In his Parliamentary speeches and press communications, Mayanja pointed out that
government is the state’s political and economic power and therefore the guarantor of citizens’
liberties and rights. He therefore advocated a Ugandan government strong enough to govern
but sufficiently moderate to guarantee—or to be forced to guarantee—the protection of
individual liberties and rights. Although he wanted a strong central government, he thought
local affairs should be managed by responsible local and regional governments. He opposed
over-centralisation of power because it strengthens the executive while weakening other
branches of Government.
In practice, however, Mayanja’s ideas sometimes changed to address political reality. The
delicate roles of kings and chiefs in African governance, which were noted by Lord Hailey
in his African survey and kept alive by Lord Lugard’s indirect rule policy, haunted Ugandan
politicians26. While the educated elites who took over postcolonial Uganda preferred an
integrated, unified state, the political and social authority of the monarchies—which had
existed for more than six hundred years before the establishment of colonial rule—could
not be extinguished overnight by the wishes or bullets of politicians. They required careful
handling.
Though his original push was for a centralised state in which traditional leaders had no
political roles, Mayanja’s views softened to accept a federal state strong enough to perform its
responsibilities but sufficiently broad to accommodate chiefs and kings deprived of executive
powers. The UNC, whose constitution he drafted, and which sought to unite all tribes and
races of Uganda, did not initially focus on the role of traditional leaders. If anything, Musaazi
and Mayanja’s battles in the early 1950s were against the Buganda government as an agent
of imperialism. At a press conference on 5 November 1958, Mayanja said, “Independence or
self-government should not be handed to traditional leaders but to the people.”27 In February
1958, Mayanja was reported by the London Daily Mail as saying, “Our first task will be to
kick out the British and then find a way of Government which may or may not include the
king.”28 However, kingdom residents’ attachment to their monarchies impacted on the UNC’s
position, and before long, the UNC was calling on the protectorate government to replace
the existing Legislative Council with an assembly of representative of district councils and
traditional rulers.29 Late in 1959, the UNC changed its motto from “Self-Government Now to
Self-Government in 1960 for rulers, chiefs and the people of Uganda”.30 By 1962, Mayanja
had modified his position to accept a federal state in Uganda with substantial powers devolved
to local authorities and guaranteed by “a strong Government in Buganda, an independent
and efficient civil service, an impartial and independent judiciary and the necessity to have
experienced men with integrity and initiative in both the central and Kabaka’s Government”.31

26 Hailey, Lord. An African Survey: Oxford, (Revised edition of 1957); Native Administration in the British
African Territories, 4 vols.1951
27 CO 822/1419, National Archives, London
28 R.E Stone to F.D. Weber, 27th December 1958, CO 822/1419, National Archives, Kew
29 Martin, Commissioner of Police to P/S Local government, 30th December 1957, FCO 141/18247/5,
National Archives, Kew, London. See also Uganda Argus, October 14th, 1957
30 Uganda Argus, 30 October 1959.
31 Uganda Argus, 16th February 1962, see also chapters 14 and 17 of this book.

11
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

Likewise, in constituting the government through elections, Mayanja insisted—as made clear
in his famous 1958 “Rubicon” letter—that Buganda join the rest of the country.32 His views
on voting methods, however, changed to accommodate Buganda’s political reality. In 1959,
he was still insisting that Buganda participate in direct elections and play a part in shaping
Uganda’s destiny.33 For example, in a 1959 meeting with D.G. Reid of the Protectorate
Government, Mayanja insisted on “direct election in Buganda”.34 When the DP victory
rekindled the struggle over resources using religion as an instrument of political struggle
among different religious groups, prompting Protestants and Muslims in Buganda to form
the Kabaka Yekka (KY) movement to counter what they saw as a threat from Catholic elites,
Mayanja accepted indirect elections in Buganda. He later argued that Macleod’s permitting
indirect elections of Buganda’s Parliamentary representatives to the National Assembly
was perfectly justified by “the Agreement between the UK and Buganda”, suggesting that
DP’s walkout during the London Constitutional Conference was motivated by a desire to
maintain power.35

(v) Separation of powers

Having been influenced by classical and late enlightenment writers, Mayanja envisaged
a postcolonial Uganda managed by a government moderated both by the concept of the
separation of powers and African ideas of social justice and good governance. He felt that
traditional authorities were not as autocratic as many members of Parliament depicted
them. For Buganda, he admired the checks and balances on the power of the Kabaka by the
Namasole, the clan heads and the Katikkiro. For managing the postcolonial state, he fully
embraced the Westminster model, which includes separating powers across the Parliamentary,
executive and judiciary branches of government. In most of his Parliamentary speeches and
published writings, Mayanja emphasised the importance of such separation, provided the
powers were based on African ideas of justice and good governance. He felt Parliament should
be stronger than the executive branch because the former was “the watchdog” of the people.
He wished to have a completely free judiciary, in which judicial officers were selected by
a committee and merely approved by the executive branch. To watch the operations of the
three branches of government, Mayanja stressed that the Ugandan state should have two
“officers of the state”—the auditor general and the director of public prosecutions. These
two officers should be protected by the Constitution and should be the watchdogs of the
peoples’ finances and administrative services.

5. The three branches of government

As noted above, Mayanja was an ardent believer in separating powers among the three
branches of government. He wanted Uganda to be managed by a government that was
moderated by strict divisions of responsibilities of each of its branches. He believed the
legislative branch should make laws, the executive branch should implement them, and the
judiciary should interpret them.

32 Uganda Argus, March 6th, 1958.

33 Uganda Argus, June 1957
34 CO 822/1419, National Archives, Kew, London.
35 Uganda Argus, 4th October 1961, p.5.arliament

12
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

(i) Parliament
Mayanja viewed a Parliament as the supreme authority in a well-governed state. To him, it
was the highest manifestation of representative government and institutions, the watchdog
of the rights, liberties, and properties of the people. He believed government should not
implement any law or spend any money without Parliament’s approval. While discussing
items of the proposed 1967 Constitution, he said:
But I think it is of the utmost importance that this House should be aware as a watch dog
over the liberties of the people, or such liberties as they may possess during the state of
emergency. It is this House which authorises that the emergency should continue in force.
It is this House which can revoke a state of emergency although the President can also
revoke it. It is this House which approves such regulations, or such extraordinary measures
as may be taken during a period when a public emergency is in force. Therefore, it is right
Mr. Speaker, that this House should be kept informed periodically of what is happening
to those people who are detained under a state of public emer­gency36.
Because Mayanja believed that Parliament epitomised ideal representative governance, he
maintained that only citizens were entitled and qualified to elect its members. He argued that
neither the president, Parliament, the judiciary nor any other state organisation had a right
to elect or nominate members of Parliament. He criticised the maintenance of “specially
elected” House members because, in most cases, they were failed politicians who had
been rejected by voters.37 Further, while emphasising Parliament’s foundation as the will
of the people, Mayanja pointed out that Parliament had no right to extend its term for five
years. While a three months’ extension in special circumstances could be understandable, a
decision to extend as long as five years belonged to the voters. To guard the people against
power-hungry regimes bent on retaining authority, Mayanja suggested that Parliament
convene immediately after an election to prevent a defeated incumbent government from
manoeuvring to stay in power.38
Mayanja was keen to define Parliament as the legislative arm of the government, saying that:
“……It is the right, duty and responsibility of Parliament to make the laws and it is similarly
the right, duty ad responsibility of the Courts to interpret these laws39.
He also believed, however, that Parliament had a moral responsibility to make good laws
and avoid enacting unjust ones.40 He reminded members that they should participate fully
in the functioning of Parliament instead of merely voting and picking up allowances, the
subject of Godfrey Mwene Kalimugogo’s novel The MP Who Resigned.
Between 1962 and 1971, the Ugandan Parliament, influenced by Mayanja, aspired to work like
the mother House in London. The two Parliaments maintained good relations, with messages
commonly exchanged between Kampala and London. Mayanja informed his colleagues about

36 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a New Constitution, 6th July 1967, page 624, and 635
37 Hansard: Enactment of a New Constitution, 6th July 1967, pp 635-6 also 7th September 1967, p 1583-4.
38 Hansard: Enactment of a New Constitution, 6th July 1967, p 637.
39 Hansard: “Bills: 2nd Reading – The Magistrates’ Courts (Amendment) Bill, 1966”, 18th July 1966 page
855.
40 Hansard. Motion: Annual Estimates of revenue and Expenditure, 9th August, 1967, pp 1457-8 Hansard:
Bills: 2nd.Rdg. The Minor Crops (Marketing Authority) Bill, 1967. 6th February, 1968, pp2665-9.

13
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

proper Parliamentary language, speaking behaviour and courtesy when addressing fellow
members as well as what he thought was appropriate “Parliamentary dress”.41

(ii) The executive branch

Mayanja wanted to live in a Uganda in which the head of the country had moderate powers
to govern on the principle of collective responsibility with his cabinet colleagues. While such
a head of state would have power to manage the nation, these powers would be moderated
and checked by other organs of the state. In his Rubicon letter, which was published in the
Uganda Argus on 6 March 1958, Mayanja promised to dedicate his political life to fighting
dictatorship and autocracy, whether local or foreign:
Speaking for myself, I have crossed the Rubicon. I have set my face firmly against any
dictatorship whether it be foreign and imperialist or native and traditional. I stake my future
and dedicate my life to the realisation of democratic principles in my country no matter
from which side the obstacles may emanate. This is a declaration of political faith, and I
call on other intellectuals to do likewise42.
Mayanja kept his word. From 1965 to his death, he was at loggerheads with centralising
forces that wished to concentrate power in the executive branch. As the reader will learn in
subsequent chapters, Mayanja advocated a head of state who was a first amongst equals, a
primus inter pares, ruling on the principle of collective responsibility.43 While discussing the
1967 Constitution, he warned Parliamentarians that creating a powerful presidency that would
allow the leader to do whatever he wanted was dangerous and would lead to dictatorship
and bad governance in Uganda as follows.
These highest, huge and enormous powers, the power to declare war, the power to detain,
the power to appoint all the important officers of State, the power to put into force all the
laws of Uganda which we make here, the power to invoke the laws and put them in motion,
to say that all these powers shall be put in the hands of one man and that in the exercise of
those powers, he shall not be responsible to anybody, is really to make a charter and open
the door to the introduction of bad government in Uganda44.
When the president was given the power to encroach upon individual freedoms and rights,
Mayanja further warned state managers that:
We know that these things are only for the record so that when the time comes – it may be
twenty years hence, may be a hundred years – when people of this country will be crying,
when they will be suffering, perhaps including hon. Members of this House, we shall at
any rate have clean consciences that we told you the truth, that we told you that you were
destroying the liberty of the country for which we fought45.
Indeed, several members of Parliament became victims of the monster executive they had
created when Amin took over the powerful presidency they had crafted. Amin used those

41 Hansard: “Communication from the Chair” 24th June 1965 Page 2345), Hansard: “Motion: 1965/66
– Estimates of Expenditure – Ministry of Education, 6th July 1965, pg. 2798; “Motion: Government
Guarantee on a Loan to the U.E.B Tuesday February 8th 1967, page 1665; Tuesday 6th December 1966
page 1187).
42 Uganda Argus of March 6th, 1958
43 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 6th July 1967, page 630-31.
44 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 6th July 1967, page 634.
45 Hansard, 2nd Rdg. - Police Ordinance (Amendment) Bill, 1965 18th February 1965 pp 735 – 742.

14
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

powers to rule Uganda by blood and iron. In his outspoken way, Mayanja also told the
Government that Ugandans should not be ruled like savages:
And, Mr. Speaker, when we said that we were ready to govern ourselves, we did not mean
that we should govern ourselves as savages, because everybody knew that before the
Europeans came here, we were also governing ourselves………. We are not here to govern
this country like savages, we are not going to reject standards which have been accepted
by the rest of the civilised world, we are part and parcel of the civilised world community.
Mr. Speaker, we cannot run away and we cannot justify autocracy, we cannot justify the
granting of dangerous powers which destroy the liberty of the people of Uganda on the
grounds that Uganda is backward and that we cannot afford a civilised government. We
can afford a civilised government and we must strive to have a civilised government; we
cannot opt out of civilisation; this is my stand on that, Mr Speaker46.*
Despite Mayanja’s protests, those presidential powers were approved and consolidated
into the 1967 Constitution. While Obote hoped to use them, it was Idi Amin who benefited
from what Parliament had crafted and approved, using these powers according to his level
of sophistication.
Mayanja believed that the president should be elected either directly by the people or through
their representatives, making the constituency that elects the head of state transparent.47 Unlike
many today, in his early days, Mayanja did not believe in term limits for elected leaders.
He believed that a person could run for president as many times as the people wished him
to do so.48 But his views changed with time. In his last twenty years, Mayanja supported
presidential term limits. Because Parliament’s role was to make laws, he believed the president
should never be allowed to rule by promulgating ordinances.49 Similarly, Mayanja felt that
the president’s role as commander in chief should be limited to setting general policies, not
operatively commanding the armed forces. He thought that detailed field operations and
tactics were best planned by professional field commanders and officers appointed by the
president on the recommendation of an independent armed services committee, much like
judges are recommended by the Judicial Services Committee.50 However, Mayanja did not
detail the nature or composition of the army he believed Uganda should have. Nor did he
fully discuss the role of violence in the formation and maintenance of the state.
While Mayanja accepted that the president should have the prerogative of mercy to free
convicted criminals, he insisted that there should be a special committee to examine each
case and advise the president accordingly.51 Finally, Mayanja warned Ugandans of the blurred
line between the interests of the state and those of the person holding the position of head of
state. On many occasions, absolute rulers have mixed these roles for their own interests.52

46 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 6th July 1967, page 631-34. *Look at chapter 13, item
5 for the fuller context of this quotation
47 Enactment of a New Constitution, 6th July 1967, pages 625-7.
48 Hansard: Enactment of A New Constitution, 6th July 1967, pages, 625-7.
49 Hansard: Enactment of a New Constitution, 6th July 1967, page 639.
50 Hansard: Enactment of a New Constitution, July 1967, pp.640-44.
51 Hansard: Enactment of a New Constitution, July 1967, page 1962.
52 Hansard, Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 5th July 1967, pages 617-8

15
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

(iii) The judiciary

Mayanja wanted to live in a country where the judiciary branch of government played an
independent role in interpreting the laws made by Parliament. In a debate on the Magistrates
Bill, Mayanja informed Parliament that its role was to make laws and the courts’ role to
interpret them. To do so, the judiciary must be completely independent.53 He felt that the High
Court should have the power to interpret all laws and functions of government, including the
power to pronounce on all the country’s electoral laws and outcomes.54 To assure the integrity
of the bench, he thought that judges should be given security of tenure, be well remunerated
and their status guaranteed by the constitution in order to eliminate any temptation to use
their positions for profit.55 He also thought that justice should be administered in a good
environment, calling on the government to improve the quality of court buildings, offices,
libraries and transport systems.56 He felt lawyers were an important part of administering
justice in any country. He believed their role was to expose rather than conceal crime.57

6. Officers of the state

Mayanja believed that two specific officers of the state—the auditor general (AG) and
the director of public prosecutions (DPP) —were positions of public trust that should
have authority to audit and investigate the financial and administrative actions of both the
government and its officials, including the head of state. To give them the independence
needed to make impartial judgements, he thought they needed life tenure and their roles
clearly defined in the Constitution. Defending their protection, he said in Parliament, “The
auditor general acts as a trustee for all of us, the taxpayers, to ensure that our money is not
squandered, misused and is not misappropriated”, and to achieve equal application of the law
for all, he likewise argued that the DPP must also have a constitutional guarantee of security.58

7. Local government
Mayanja felt that devolving powers to local authorities would not only enhance national and
local administrative efficiency but also increase the number of people participating in state
governance. Thus, he believed that local governments should be responsible to the people
they serve and never constituted from the centre through nominations. To perform well, local
governments should have power to collect and spend revenue, initiate local development
projects and deliver major services uninterrupted by the central government. He thought that
in local settings, elected officials should have authority over civil servants. He denounced the
enlargement of Kampala’s jurisdiction to include most of what was Mengo-Kibuga before
making a proper physical and financial plan.59 He advised the government to avoid applying
uniform administrative structures to local governments, urging it to take into account each
area’s social and political peculiarity.

53 Hansard, July 6th, 1967, p. 645.

54 Hansard: Enactment of a New Constitution, 6th July 1967, p.636)
55 Hansard: Bill: 2nd.Rdg. Judicial Officers (Validation) Bill, 1966, 6th December 1966, pp.1209-11).
56 “Bills: 2nd Reading – The Magistrates’ Courts (Amendment) Bill, 1966” 18th July 1966 page 855)
Hansard: Questions and Answers: February 19, 1968, pp. 3023-6)
57 Hansard: Bill. 2nd Rdg. The Police (Amendment Bill, 1967; 7th February 1967, pp. 1622-5).
58 Hansard. Motion: Enactment of a new constitution, 6th July 1967, page 647-9).
59 Bills: 2nd Rdg - The Local Administration (Amendment) Bill, 1965 pp. 2026, 1st June 1965). Also, at
Hansard: Bills: 2nd Rdg. - The Administration (Western Kingdoms and Busoga) Amendment Bill, 1965 –
2nd June 1965, page 2052).

16
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

8. Functions of government
In Parliamentary speeches, political rallies, press communications and interviews, Mayanja
stressed two categories of government function: major and secondary. He addressed both
categories whenever discussing what the government should or should not do.

(i) Major functions of government

For Mayanja, the major functions of government included defending the nation and
administering justice. However, according to him, defending the nation should not be used
as an excuse to deny citizens freedoms, rights or liberties..

a) The security of the state

Mayanja believed the major function of government was to ensure state security. Government
was licensed by the people to use violence to protect individual life, property, and liberty
as well as the environment. However, in doing so, the government must distinguish the
interests of the state from those of government leaders and workers, must operate within
the law of the land and must accept liability for any wrongdoings as it performs its tasks.
Although there are risks in performing these functions, the government must execute its
responsibilities within the bounds of the law because any act of establishing order implies
prior existence of law for one cannot achieve order where there is no law.

b) The administration of justice

For Mayanja, the “administration of justice was perhaps the most important function of
Government”.60 He thought that administering justice meant executing a country’s legal
system to ensure equality of all before the law and that proper administration of justice was
the foundation of a happy, harmonious society. Mayanja wanted a decolonised legal system
for Uganda because he believed that people’s ideas and concepts of justice formed the
philosophical basis of law. Colonial laws reflected foreign ideas of justice. He thus criticised
the government’s attempts to import a system of trial by jury into Karamoja for use by
“people who raid cattle” and “justices of the peace” in other areas of the postcolonial state.
He thought that elders’ courts were more appropriate to African legal practice than either of
these suggestions. He pointed out that political problems should not be resolved via legal
means, as the government was attempting to do by encumbering the Karamojong people
with harsh laws. He pointed out that unjust laws retard state development by alienating the
population from the government. He cited several such laws, including the deportation law,
laws that permitted the police to violate citizens’ rights and bills that aimed at retrospective
application of law. He criticised the deportation law, saying that:
“…it is immoral, it is illegal, it is unconscionable, it is unjustifiable, it is unnecessary, it
is unconstitutional, it is uncalled for and it is unworthy to appear on our Statute Book”61.
Mayanja also warned the government about making harsh laws that legalised capital
punishment for robbery with violence (Kondo). He felt that it was better to determine
and address the social causes of crime rather than use harsh punishments in the hope of
eliminating it. He told members of Parliament that lawyers were an important component

60 Hansard: 2n Rdg. Magistrates Bill, 1964, 21st December1964, pp.564-76).

61 Hansard: Bills: 2nd Rdg. – The Deportation (Validation) Bill, 1966, 26th July 1966, pp. 1087 – 1092);

17
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

of the justice system and that their roles should be understood as crime preventers rather
than crime boosters.62

c) Foreign affairs
For Mayanja, conducting positive foreign relations was essential to the survival of a nation.
He emphasised that the aim of foreign affairs was to guard the state against external enemies
and to pursue policies that would increase a nation’s internal capacity. Accordingly, he
believed that Uganda’s foreign policy should be based on a sound underlying philosophy
and not pursued as a reaction to external crises. He argued that the government should
analyse global issues to develop an accurate evaluation of global forces that could impact
the welfare of Uganda.
When Mayanja was active in politics, the world was divided into two camps: the capitalist
West led by the US and the communist countries led by the USSR. He advised Uganda to stay
out of this competition by taking a neutral stance of non-alignment. While he accepted the
principle of helping other colonised nations to free themselves from oppression, he insisted
that Uganda must first deliver freedom to its own people before trying to help others. He felt
that Uganda’s many domestic problems and issues rendered it unqualified to guide others.
These problems included tribalism and nepotism as well as failures to unite the state, improve
standard of living, modernise agriculture and industry, and increase state capacity to perform
its functions. He criticised the government for being opaque in its foreign affairs, insisting that
the people should be continually informed of the reasons for Uganda’s harmony or conflicts
with other countries, such as the conflict that was then happening on the Congo border. As
for the possibility of an East African Federation, Mayanja was willing to support the collapse
of Uganda’s borders if it merged into such a federation, but he feared that Ugandan rulers
were more interested in being big fishes in the small pond of Uganda than small fishes in a
big East African nation. He urged East African leaders to seek ways to unite the region into
one state, which he believed would increase the quality of East African lives.

(ii) Secondary functions of government

Mayanja envisaged the secondary function of a liberal democratic government of Uganda
as enhancing the welfare of citizens through several tasks that cannot be achieved through
individual actions. These included all properly administered activities that raise citizens’
living standards through good and impartial professional civil service, a cooperative private
sector and a participating population. Mayanja believed that to succeed, the government
needed to build a vibrant economy by carefully planning all political and social actions that
impact on development. This included practicing good financial management, developing
an agricultural strategy, delivering rigorous decolonised education, planning state
industrialisation, encouraging functioning co-operative unions, managing parastatal bodies
well, regulating or abolishing marketing monopolies, empowering Africans in business
without discriminating against other citizens and cooperating with workers and trade unions.
Mayanja also realised, however, that fostering co-operative and friendly relations amongst
Ugandans was important to building a harmonious political community. For most of his

62 Hansard, 2nd Rdg. Administration of Justice (Karamoja) Bill, 1964, 22nd December 1964, pp.598-604;
Hansard: “Bills: 2nd Rdg – The Justices of the Peace (Amendment) Bill, 1966, 26th July 1966, pp. 1067 –
1069.

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 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

life in Uganda, income and access to natural resources were not only unequal but varied
along tribal, racial, religious, and regional lines. Part of Mayanja’s political life was thus
spent trying to mitigate such social injustices. In Buganda and eventually Uganda, Muslims
occupied the lowest levels of society and had the poorest access to resources such as
education, public administration jobs and land63. As a Muslim, he acted and spoke on the
behalf of Muslims in Parliament, in the courts and in press communications. Pursuing social
justice, Mayanja supported equal access to schools from 1960–1964, advocated upgrading
Muslim schools to the secondary level in 1964–1965, contested the Obote government’s
interference in Muslim affairs and asked the state to assist Muslim pilgrims by opening an
embassy in Saudi Arabia. But defending Muslims was not the core of his political life; it was
part of his search for social justice. Unlike many Ugandans, he did not resent the presence
of Asians in Uganda. Although Asians had higher incomes than Africans, Mayanja detested
using racial explanations to address the problem. For example, in Katwe, he was almost
mobbed for flouting Augustine Kamya’s boycott of Asian goods. Later, he commented that
he did not think boycotting Asian shops would empower Africans with the skills needed to
manage commerce and industry. He argued that traders, whether Asian or African, aimed at
maximising profits and that changing the racial component would not help consumers. As
noted earlier, in a discussion on corruption in Parliament, he similarly denied that corruption
was a disease spread by Asians.

a) Planning government tasks

Mayanja would have liked to live in a Uganda whose activities for enhancing citizen
welfare were well planned and based on a clearly defined vision of society. He argued that
planning should not only be based on a concrete ideology but also designed transparently in
consultation with the public. He warned that government should never embark on unplanned
projects with unknown implementation challenges or any projects that Uganda could not
afford or were irrelevant to the country’s vision of society:
My final general comment is very important – in my opinion at any rate, Mr. Speaker.
It concerns the question of the kind of society that we want to build here. Yesterday
the Minister spoke at some length on this matter and with considerable feeling. I agree
with him. But neither in his plan nor in his speech did he succeed in actually defining or
outlining or even elaborating on the kind of society which it is desired to build in Uganda.
He remained vague64.
Despite his past antagonistic attitude toward the colonial state, Mayanja paid tribute to
colonial officers for having planned state structures and business innovations like the Uganda
Development Corporation.

b) Protecting national wealth

Sticking to his position that the state exists for the individual, Mayanja insisted that
government is a mere custodian, not the owner, of public wealth. On many occasions,
therefore, he condemned corruption and the use of public assets for private gain by state

63 Oded, Arye (1995). Religion and Politics in Uganda: A Study of Islam and Judaism. Nairobi: East
African Education Publishers; Welbourn, F.B. (.1965) Religion and Politics in Uganda, 1952-1962.
Nairobi: East African Publishing House; Kasozi, A.B.K. (1986). The Spread of Islam in Uganda. Nairobi
and Khartoum: Oxford University Press
64 Hansard: “Motion- Second Five-Year Development Plan” 12th July 1966 pp. 704 – 710).

19
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

managers. For example, while discussing the suspicious circumstances under which a contract
for building a state hotel later named Apollo and International was awarded, Mayanja said,
Mr. Mayanja: Mr. Speaker, you know you live in this country as I do and hon. Members
know, what is being said outside of this House. The same thing was said about television.
We have not come to govern this country in order to make riches, we have come to govern
this country in order to provide public service and it is extremely important that we should
be seen to be providing just and non-corruptible public service. I am not suggesting that
anybody has been corrupt or received bribes or anything of that kind, I am saying that the
performance of our duty should be seen to be above board. It is not good enough that these
things which should not be done in any country should be done here without any apparent
explanation. Is it really because the building of the State Hotel involved “planning” are we
now going to say that every scheme which passes through the Planning Commission will
be implemented under the supervision of Mr. Kakonge or Mr. Nekyon and the planning
section of the Ministry of Planning and Community Development? No, of course not65.
Mayanja also singled out traffic police officers as corrupt, accusing them of using their
positions to solicit money from drivers and motor vehicle owners. He supported a motion
to investigate Colonel Amin’s involvement in the Gold Scandal to uncover the truth.
Unfortunately, Obote blocked the move by arresting five ministers who supported the motion
and later suspended the Constitution. Mayanja said he was pained by Obote’s failure to
address corruption. In 1958, a colonial officer praised Mayanja’s political intentions, saying
that “His interest in politics is not immediate financial gain, as is the case with some less
distinguished politicians.”66
To reduce corruption, Mayanja suggested that officers be required to declare their wealth
before being confirmed as government servants. At the time, his idea was vehemently opposed
by the Minister of Defence Felix Onama as well as other ministers and several members of
Parliament. Now, however, it is standard administrative practice in Uganda. Mayanja also
warned the government against taxing people beyond their capacity to pay, a practice that
could reduce production. He advised the government to expand the tax base, which was then
80% dependant on rural farmers, who were finding it hard to carry the burden.

c) Developing agriculture
To improve citizens’ standard of living within 15 years as the Government wanted, Mayanja
thought that the Uganda Government should plan agriculture very well. He pointed out that
agriculture, which was then the major source of income for both the state and individual
citizens, should be based on scientifically researched ideas and policies, arguing that the
government should apply research findings to develop ideas and innovations that improve
agricultural output. Recent studies indicate that before the start of World War II, the colonial
government invested little in the production of food crops, spending most of its funding for
agricultural research and development on cash crops (e.g., coffee, cotton, tobacco).67 Mayanja
asked the government to expand this focus to include the production of food crops, which
would reduce the country’s food import bill and better manage famines. He complained that:

65 Hansard: “Motion - Address in Reply to the Presidential speech” 7th January 1966 page 295.
66 R.E. Stone to F.D. Webber, The Activities of Abu Mayanja, 27th December 1958, CO 822/1/68/6/04,
National Archives, Kew, London.
67 Najjemba, Harriet (2019): “Indigenous agricultural knowledge and food production in Uganda: Buganda
region from the 19th century to 1997”. PhD Thesis, Makerere University

20
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

But, listening to the speech of the Minister as rendered by the other Minister, there was
very little, if any, mention of the measures that the Minister is taking to shift emphasis
from cash crops which depend upon the world market over which we have no control, to
production for home consumption68.
Mayanja also felt that the quickest way to increase the quality and quantity of agricultural
output was to improve the productivity of the small-scale peasant farmers who produced
over 70% of the country’s agricultural output.
Now, from 1948, I think, up to the present day the farmer has been directly subsidizing
every other sector of our economic activity. The money which has put up almost everything
in Uganda in so far as it has come internally within Uganda, has been contributed by the
farmer69.
He also advocated increasing the agricultural extension system. Although he agreed that
large farms would bring better yields, he noted several problems with shifting to large-
scale agriculture. First, the settlement patterns of Ugandans, who tended to live in isolated
homesteads surrounded by small gardens, would pose difficulties for conversion to large
farms. People would resist abandoning their small peasant holdings to concentrate in
specific areas like UK villages. Second, the government’s efforts to enlarge cultivated
areas by forming group farms failed because it was poorly executed, and people lacked
a sense of ownership of such farms. Mayanja therefore advised the government that for
the foreseeable future, the small-scale peasant farmer was likely to be the mainstay of the
country’s economy. As such, he recommended that the government should encourage that
farmer by reducing the appropriation of his output through reduction of export and import
taxes; improving agricultural product marketing by eradicating the massive corruption
practised by marketing boards, co-operative unions and local administrators; reducing the
import of food products that could be grown at home; including agriculture in the school
curriculum; extending services to disseminate agricultural research findings to the people
and protecting the country’s forest cover to keep the agricultural environment friendly. His
final advice was to implement a thorough agrarian revolution to modernise agriculture for
the small-scale farmer concluding that:
In this way the aim should be so to revolutionalise the concept of agriculture and of the
farmer so that the farmer is not regarded as the man who uses muscle and sinew only to
the concept of the farmer as the man who uses his brains and intelligence70.

d) Fostering industry and commerce

Mayanja felt that in the medium term, industry and commerce were supplementary to
agriculture as sources of income for the Uganda postcolonial state. He felt that the success
of industrialisation would depend on how the state was managed. Local and foreign investors
would consider a well-governed state an assurance of security for their investments. Although
he regretted the constant flight of capital, which he thought was partly due to Uganda’s
adverse trade terms with industrialised nations, Mayanja believed the country could achieve

68 Hansard: Motion: 1967/68 Estimates of Expenditure- Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Co-operatives,
12th September 1967, pp.1696-7
69 Hansard: Debate on the 1967/68 Estimates of Expenditure for the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and
Co-operatives, Hansard, 12th, September 1967, pages1677- 1681.
70 Hansard: “Motion - Estimates of Expenditure - Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives” 5th July 1965,
pp. 2689 – 2694.

21
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

sufficient surpluses from its agricultural output to invest in agro-industries. He acknowledged

the work of colonial officers, especially Sir Andrew Cohen, who started several state-owned
industries, including those grouped under the Uganda Development Corporation. He warned
the government against managing parastatal bodies as civil service departments, arguing
that they were profit-making enterprises to which the law of supply and demand applied and
thus should be managed as such. Although he wanted businesses to Africanise, he did not
consider race a major bottleneck for success in business and commerce, as implied by the
Kingdon Report. Instead, he believed that it was a lack of business knowledge and general
education that caused many Africans to fail in business. However, he warned beneficiary
racial groups that since many people could not distinguish class and race, it was in everyone’s
interests to expand the participation of all races in commerce and industry:
But let that matter sink deep. It seems to me to be plain that any hard-headed businessman
would be the first to know that in this world in which changes are taking place the way
they are taking place, it is matter for their own insurance to let the people of the soil have
a stake in this business, because if they do not have a stake in these business, if these
business continue to give the appearance of organs of foreign exploitation, they will be
the first thing to be attacked. But if Africans are there, maybe they will be attacked, maybe
they will not be attacked71.
On the topic of transport, Mayanja thought that roads link not only regions of the state but
unite people, arguing that the state should have a large network of roads connecting all regions
of the country and therefore uniting peoples of Uganda. Believing that increased mobility
enhances economic activities and performance, he also thought that the Government should
subsidize public transport either by eliminating taxes on public vehicles that carry more than
forty people (such as buses and trains) or by giving grants.

e) Developing education and culture

As he thought education develops the minds and skills of the men and women who build
nations, Mayanja wanted to live in a state that regarded education as the greatest investment.
To him, access to education was a right, so any institution receiving public funds should be
forced to admit students irrespective of race, tribe, gender, creed or region of origin. He would
have liked to live in a nation that invested not only in physical structures for education, such
as buildings and playgrounds, but also—and more critically—in what was taught in those
structures. In his speeches and administrative practice, he emphasised that what is taught
should not only cultivate the minds of students but also respond to the needs of the nation.
In a debate in Parliament over education matters as addressed in the President’s January
1966 speech, Mayanja said that:
The problem of education is not merely one of bricks and mortar. You do not solve the
problem of education by building more and more schools. This is a very important aspect
of the solving of the problem of education, but there is another and ultimately even more
important problem or aspect and that is the question of the content of the education. What
are you going to teach in these schools? It is my contention, Mr. Speaker, that this problem
of the content of our educational system has not yet received any attention or if it has, it
has not received the attention that it deserves72.

71 Hansard: “Motion – 1966/1967 Estimates of Expenditure - Ministry of Commerce and Industry 27th June
1966, pp. 400 – 402.
72 Hansard: “Motion - Address in Reply to the Presidential Speech.” January7, 1966 pp. 295 – 297.

22
 The postcolonial state Mayanja wished to emerge in Uganda

Pursuing closer attention to educational content, Mayanja urged the decolonisation of

curriculum to reflect African needs and culture by including African studies, music, folklore,
dance and drama. He urged the state to sponsor publication of relevant books and to fund
African theatre groups, radio broadcasts and television programmes, as he believed that
education and culture dovetailed, benefitting one another. Accordingly, he felt they should
both be fully funded by the government. To develop broadminded citizens, Mayanja
encouraged teaching higher education students both arts and sciences. This was because he
thought that people were both physiological and philosophical beings who should know the
society in which they lived and the nature of things in their environment.
Although he credited boarding schools with fostering unity by bringing students from all parts
of the country to study together, he later moderated his esteem for these institutions because
they were expensive to run and therefore reduced access to education. He instead urged the
government to build day schools in urban areas or in locations where the population was
large enough to fill them. As he deplored teacher shortages, he suggested that all members
of Parliament and other qualified politicians volunteer to teach a few hours each week. He
also thought that autonomy enhanced the quality of higher education institutions, arguing that
universities should have the freedom to appoint their instructors and to determine what and
how to teach as well as to plan their research agendas without external interference. In 1971,
when he was minister of education, Mayanja said that he would amend the dictatorial 1970
Makerere University Act. However, he was transferred to the Labour Portfolio before doing
so. He did not regret the break-up of the University of East Africa, as a quality assurance
unit for the three constituent colleges was established and he believed more universities were
likely to emerge in the region due to increasing demand for university places. In a reversal of
his 1952 stance, he argued that the Government was spending too much per Makerere student
and that reducing this cost would increase access to the university. Regarding professional
credentialing, Mayanja urged the Government to make clear laws about the teaching and
licensing of critical workers like doctors, engineers, architects and lawyers to guard the
population against quacks and pretenders.

9. Conclusions: Uganda’s past should not be viewed entirely

through the lens of dictators
Mayanja’s life sheds light on the last days of colonialism and the early postcolonial
history of Uganda and other African countries. First, it shows that despite the chaos
that overwhelmed Uganda four years after independence, there were voices of reason
that leaders could have listened to. Mayanja is one of those public intellectuals who
stood up to autocracy and voiced what ought to have been done through words and
actions. Although Africa and Uganda in particular, is viewed by popular imagination
through activities and images of dictatorial and corrupt African leaders like Amin,
Obote, Mobutu, Bokasa, Bongo and others, there were, and still are, original political
thinkers and actors on the African continent. It is high time academic communities
brought to the surface shining African examples of brilliant and normal human beings
who knew what to do to save the continent from stagnation. Secondly, his career
shows that most Uganda African “leaders” who took control from European colonial
officers neither had the experience, nor the knowledge, nor the wisdom to manage

23
 ABU MAYANJA, MP

the state they took over. His ridiculing of those in power for their failure to know or
understand governance issues landed him in prison and denied him full participation
in governing the Uganda postcolonial state. Lastly, Mayanja’s life sheds light on
African political thought. It casts a more positive, and perhaps a more controversial
light, on the politics of postcolonial Africa. It shows that it is not only heads of states
who influenced the political direction of postcolonial nations in the period just before
and after independence. There were other actors whose activities shaped the opinions
of the public and influenced how laws were formed and implemented. Mayanja
has a stamp on almost all Ugandan constitutions drafted in the period from 1962 to
1995. He influenced the way elections were organised and held. In parliament, he
participated and guided the formations and implementation of most laws enacted
from 1964 to 1968. He was a powerful orator on the floor of the House. Indeed,
many of my friends compare Mayanja to great parliamentarians like Edmund Burke.

24
This book, Abu Mayanja MP: The intellectual star of Uganda’s “Struggle” for independence and the
search for a liberal democratic state, 1929–2005, is a biography of a brilliant African politician, a history
of a country and a continent told through the lens and activities of an individual politician.

The book breaks new ground in how Uganda and Africa have been viewed by academic and popular
opinion. Mayanja’s life sheds light on the last days of colonialism and the early postcolonial history of
Uganda and other African countries. First, although Africa, particularly Uganda, is viewed by popular
imagination through the images of dictatorial and corrupt African leaders like Amin, Obote, Mubotu,
Bokassa, Bongo and others, there were, and still are, voices of reason who advocated for the advantages
of good governance.

Secondly, it shows that it is not only heads of states who influenced the political direction of postcolonial
states in the period just before and after independence. Other actors shaped the opinions of the
masses and influenced how laws were formed and implemented. Thirdly, Mayanja is one of those public
intellectuals who stood up to autocracy and what he thought should be done through words and actions.
He analysed political and social issues at a higher conceptual level than almost all his contemporaries.
He was indeed the “intellectual star” of Uganda’s “struggle” for self-rule and the nine years that followed
independence. His ridiculing of those in power for their failure to know or understand governance issues
landed him in prison and denied him full participation in governing the Uganda postcolonial state. But
he left deep footprints on Uganda’s and East African political thought. Had his suggestions for managing
postcolonial Uganda been followed, the country would not have suffered as severely as it has since 1966.

Some prominent individuals have commented on his brilliance, including the following:
Writing to A. F. Brockway, (a UK MP) on 9th January 1953, the Chief Secretary of the Uganda Protectorate,
C. H. Thornley, noted that Mayanja was “one of the best brains the Protectorate has produced” (FCO
141/18246/25, National Archives, London).

“Mayanja was undoubtedly by far the best legislator of his generation, as Kasozi demonstrates from
Hansards, newspapers, and pamphlets. He was also a public intellectual along the lines of Kofi Busia of
Ghana, Tom Mboya and Ali Mazrui of Kenya”. Professor Lwanga Lunyiigo.

It is true that,” academically, Abu Mayanja was one of the brightest people of his or any other time,
Uganda has ever produced.” Mayanja consistently, emphasized that what was taught should not only
cultivate the minds of students but should also respond to the needs of the nation”. 28th November 2022.
Professor Frederick Kayanja, founding Vice Chancellor, Mbarara University of Science and Technology.
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A. B. K. Kasozi was, until 2017, a Research Associate at Makerere Institute of Social Research. He was
the founding Executive Director of Uganda’s National Council for Higher Education, 2002 to 2012. From
1995 to 2002, he was the Vice Rector, Islamic University in Uganda. He holds a BA in History and PGD
from Makerere University, Uganda, a master’s, and a PhD from
the University of California at Santa Cruz. He is the author of a
number of books including the Bitter Bread of Exile: the financial
Problems of Sir Edward Muteesa II in his last Exile, 1966-1969,
(2013; Financing Uganda’s Public Universities: An Obstacle to
Serving the Public Good,(2009); Islamic Civilization in Eastern
Africa, eds, (2006); University Education in Uganda: Opportunities
and Challenges for Reform of Higher Education,(2003); The
Social Origins of Violence in Uganda, 1964-85, (1994); The Crisis
of Secondary School Education in Uganda, 1960-70, (1979); The
Spread of Islam in Uganda,(1986); and The Life of Prince Badru
Kakungulu,(1996).