Man who threw rotten eggs at Kabaka Muteesa dies at 104

Many describe the brazen old man as a patriot who had a sophisticated understanding of politics at local and international levels.

Although throwing rotten eggs at Kabaka Mutesa II, when he was 47 years old, was not the best expression of this understanding. However, the old man (Mzee) was a product of his times.

A brief bio of Edward Mutesa Pulse Live Uganda

To best describe his actions and his principles at a go, referencing history helps.

Flavius Belisarius (Greek: Φλάβιος Βελισάριος; c. 500 – 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under the emperor Justinian I. He was instrumental in the reconquest of much of the Mediterranean territory belonging to the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century prior.

One person eulogised Belisarius this way, “His imperfections flowed from the contagion of the times; his virtues were his own.”

This could be said about Kakunta who, by most accounts, dedicated his life to working for the betterment of Uganda's politics.

This could be why, in 1965, Kakunta choose to go rogue and throw rotten eggs at the then-president of Uganda, and King of Buganda, Sir Edward Mutesa II.

He was said to be protesting the constitutional order, which at the time was semi-federal.

According to Wikipedia, the first constitution of Uganda was the product of the Ugandan Constitutional Conference and took effect at the moment of independence (9 October 1962). It provided for a system of Parliamentary democracy underpinned by constitutional supremacy.

It provided for a complex system of devolution within Uganda: the Kingdom of Buganda gained particularly strong powers of self-government; the Kingdoms of Bunyoro, Acoli, Tooro and Ankole, and the Territory of Busoga also gained the status of "federal states" and were permitted to retain their own legislatures; while the remaining districts and the territory of Mbale were controlled directly by the central government.

Milton Obote Pulse Live Uganda

The 1962 constitution provided for most members of Parliament to be elected directly. The sole exception to this rule was Buganda, where MPs were selected by an electoral college made up of members of the Lukiiko (Buganda's own sub-national Parliament).

Mzee Kakunta with president Museveni Pulse Live Uganda

The 1962 constitution was amended three times: first, and most importantly, it was amended in 1963 to replace Queen Elizabeth II (represented by the Governor-General of Uganda, Sir Walter Coutts) as the head of state with the largely ceremonial position of President, elected from among the traditional rulers and constitutional heads of districts; in 1964 it was amended to make minor changes to the date on which the Legislative Assembly of the Kingdom of Tooro should stand dissolved; and in January 1965 it was amended for a third and final time to give effect to the outcome of the lost counties referendum.

It was this final amendment which provoked Mzee Kakunta to raise his rotten eggs and launch them at the Kabaka, since the Kabaka and the prime minister at the time, Milton Obote, were feuding over this last amendment,

Kakunta sided with Obote he was such an Obote die-hard that he reportedly refused to wear shoes from 1985, when then-president Milton Obote was overthrown, until Obote’s death on October 10, 2005.

At the time of Mzee Kakunta’s death, he was a newspaper vendor and a farmer. He is survived by seven children, 40 grandchildren, and several great-grandchildren.