About the Inaugural Kabalega Memorial Lecture (2023)
100s gathered to pay homage to Omukama Cwa II Kabalega at the Inaugural Kabalega Memorial, held on the 18th of December, 2023 at Kampala Serena Conference Center. The event organized by Kabalega Foundation in partnership with Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom was attended by participants from all walks of life including the people from the Academia, Government, Civil Society, Cultural Institutions, Opinion Leaders, students and members of the general public was hosted at Kampala Serena Hotel – Victoria Hall under the theme: “The Role of Culture in Promotion of Development – the Case of Africa”.
The Inaugural KML 2023 as it happened.
The Keynote Address Speech was delivered by the renown and charismatic Pan-African Activist Prof. PLO. Lumumba who described Omukama Cwa II Kabalega as a great African stalwart, a leader, a personification of courage and bravery whose leadership was characterised by a profound sense of duty towards the preservation of the cultural identity and the right to self-determination for his people, and one whose impact reached far beyond his kingdom and inspired many African societies to stand up and demand for their independence.
“Empower cultural institutions to play a more active role in the governance of society” - The key message for the Inaugural Kabalega Memorial Lecture.
Citing a kiswahili proverb, ‘mwacha mila ni mtumwa’ (he who abandons culture is a slave), Prof. Lumumba noted that the place of culture in human development in Africa cannot be over-emphasized, and called on participants and Africans at large to be proud Africans, to leverage the best practices of each culture in the richness of diversity found in Africa for universal applicability, and as it is that culture is dynamic, to drop that which is not good for the present-day society.
