President Yoweri Museveni and his counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya are among the dignitaries expected to grace the inauguration ceremony scheduled for tomorrow Tuesday at Mutoto cultural site in Bungokho, about 7 Kilometers east of Mbale town.
A joint anti-terrorism squad consisting of the police and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces has been deployed at Mutoto cultural site in Mbale ahead of the inauguration of Imbalu, the Bagisu cultural circumcision ceremony.
The Traditional male circumcision, also known as imbalu, organized by the Bamasaba Cultural institution, Inzu Ya Masaba is an important cultural tradition that has been running for generations among the ethnic group. According to the custom, the procedure represents entry into manhood.
President Yoweri Museveni and his counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya are among the dignitaries expected to grace the inauguration ceremony scheduled for tomorrow Tuesday at Mutoto cultural site in Bungokho, about 7 Kilometers east of Mbale town.
Diana Nandaula, the Elgon Region Police spokesperson says a joint team of the anti-terrorism squad has been deployed in the wake of the terror threats in the great lakes region. She explains that the heightened security is meant to ensure that the region with several porous border points is not destabilized by the terrorists.
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The ceremony held every even year, is the pivotal occasion in Bagisu society where individuals undergo the rite of passage to manhood. Males aged 16-25 are considered acceptable for the ceremony. Its climax is traditionally in August and involves all the initiates from a given clan, a number of young men matched by a whistling, cheering crowd to the circumcision ground.
The initiates have their faces plastered in ash and stripped half naked on the way to the circumcision ground where they line up in front of the crowd of family and friends both male and female. The ritual is done in public.
Simon Peter Wonanzofu, the Bulambuli district chairman who is at the center of organizing this year’s ceremony says all is now set for the ceremony.
He says they have received more than Ugx 120 million out of the budgeted Ugx 225 million. He said they received a donation of Ugx 100 million from president’s office.
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When URN visited the cultural site this morning, beehive activities were a major sight as organizers make final touches ahead of the function tomorrow. Sounds of traditional folk compositions fill the airspace while businessmen set up temporal structures in anticipation of a bumper.
