The organizing committee of the Uganda Martyrs’ day celebrations at the Catholic shrines has announced changes in the requirements for officials and all guests that need accreditation.
Rev Fr Charles Oyo, the chairperson of the organizing committee, says that all pilgrims in the categories of Very Important People-VIP and Very Very Important People-VVIP will be required to carry out a COVID-19 PRC test a day or two before turning up for the event.
Rev. Fr Oyo says that the pilgrims in the said categories will be offered free tests, which will be carried out at Namugongo Martyrs’ shrines and the Catholic secretariat in Nsambya. He however emphasized that those who wish to carry out private tests must ensure that the tests are done within the required time before the event.
Although he refused to divulge details, it is said that there is a possibility for the president to attend the function. In previous events, where the president has been a guest, all invitees would be required to undergo COVID-19 testing to ensure the safety of the head of state and his staff.
At mass functions where the general public is invited, those who are expected to be close to the president are always subjected to COVID-19 testing. However, to avoid this inconvenience and expenditure on tests, the president has been avoiding mass events.
At Namugongo, the president and other dignitaries including government officials, members of the diplomatic corps, cultural leaders, and priests among others usually sit in the pavilion, which was built during the visit of Pope Francis in 2015.
This year’s martyrs’ day celebrations will be the first in three years since two previous events were canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, since the restrictions were lifted, the church noted that all people were free to attend with pilgrims already arriving in huge numbers from all walks of life ahead of the D-Day on June 3. Fr Oyo adds that apart from the said categories, the rest of the pilgrims will not be subjected to the test.
However, Rt. Rev. Dr. Robert Muhiirwa, the Bishop of Fort portal diocese, notes that the remaining pilgrims ought to take precautions since Uganda is not yet COVID-19 free. Bishop Muhiirwa, who also doubles as the vice-chairperson of the Uganda Episcopal Conference, adds to limit the likelihood of spreading COVID-19 at this event, the church intends to enforce the wearing of masks and increase health and sanitation facilities to ensure that people have access to water to wash their hands.
Besides critically observing the Standard Operating Procedures-SOPs, Muhiirwa says that pilgrims will not be allowed to carry polythene bags into the shrines given the fact the place was in the previous years declared as a “Kaveera free zone” in a bid to protect the environment. Meanwhile, the bishop adds although the days to the event are closing in, the organizing committee is still facing challenges as many people who made pledges including the president are yet to honor their promises.
The catholic church has a budget of Shillings 1 billion. Out of this, the president promised to offer Shillings 500 million shillings and the rest was expected to come from faithful and other well-wishers.
Fort Portal Diocese last animated the martyr’s day celebration 25 years ago. At that time, the event had not attracted a multitude of pilgrims. The organizing committee says they have already embarked on the preparations starting with setting and training a choir of 200 members and hymns that will make this year’s event stand out and memorable.
According to the program, the choir and a group of foot pilgrims from the fort portal are expected to reach the shrines on Tuesday afternoon ahead of the June 3 events. The Uganda Martyrs Day is an annual event in honor of 45 young men who converted to Christianity between 1885 and 1887 to the annoyance of Kabaka Mwanga II of Buganda, who ordered that they be burnt to death.
Thousands of pilgrims from within and outside Uganda descend on Namugongo, the site where the majority of the converts were martyred in celebration of their bravery. In 2020, the celebrations were canceled while in 2021 the church organized a low-key event with a limited number of Christians invited due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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