Catholic Petition Archbishop Ssemwogerere Asking Church Not To Grace Mpuuga Thanksgiving Function

One of the Christian believer in Gulu City has bravely written to the Kampala Archbishop Paul Ssemwogerere expressing concerns over the fight against corruption in the country  and asked the Roman Catholic Church not to preside over former leader of Opposition Hon Mathias Mpuuga's thanks giving accasion saying that he one of the implicated legislators in corruption scandals at Parliament.

 Francis Ojok a faithful Catholic and a teacher by profession, from Gulu Archdiocese, in his 10th June 2024 letter addressed to Archbishop Paul Ssemogerere, said that the Catholic Church should not involve itself in a thanksgiving prayer for the former Leader of the Opposition Mathias Mpuuga, citing recent reports of corruption scandals strapped to his laces.

“Every day, we wake up to a new corruption scandal involving billions of shillings which should be helping Ugandans.The voice of the Catholic Church must become louder in condemning this vice that has crippled our nation in many sectors,” Ojok’s letter reads in part.

Ojok said involvement of the Catholic Church in the thanksgiving ceremony for the former leader of position would amount to ‘sanitizing corruption scandal,’ compromising the moral principles of the Catholic Church. 

He quoted the statement of the chairperson of the thanksgiving organizing committee, Pastor  Abed Bwanika who informed the nation that the Catholic Church would preside over that mass.

 As a Catholic, I am concerned that such an act would drag the church into the centre of this scandal and compromise its position as a moral voice in our society,” says Ojok.

”One of the persons at the centre of this scandal is the former Leader of Opposition, Hon. Mathias Mpuuga, who allocated himself half a billion shillings (Shs500 million) in that bonanza.”Adds Ojok.

He argues that the money could have been used for improving the quality of service delivery, citing refurbishment of Masaka Regional Referral Hospital and other health facilities in the country. “Even at Gulu Regional Referral Hospital, finding services like X-rays and CT-Scans is a problem. Instead of the Leader of the Opposition raising such issues in Parliament, Mpuuga decided to enrich himself at the expense of poor taxpayers,” says Ojok.

 The letter, received by the Kampala Archdiocese Chancery – Lubaga, also questioned the silence of the Catholic Church in the recent reports of corruption within the government agencies.

 “There have also been questions as to why the Catholic Church, which has always been vocal on matters of morality, has this time been conspicuously silent on this one. While the church has a duty to shepherd all the flock, it also has a duty to stand up for morality and uprightness. For the church to provide leadership on these fronts, it must not be used as a hiding place for the corrupt,” reads Ojok's letter.

However Ojok says that if the priests are to attend Mpuuga's function, they should go there to have Mpuuga repent and asking for forgiveness to Ugandans.

The thanksgiving service is slated 21 June 2024 at Kitovu sports Arena Masaka