Francis Ojok, a teacher and concerned catholic from Gulu Archdiocese has written to Archbishop Paul Ssemogerere of Kampala Archdiocese wondering why the catholic church has been quiet over Mathias Mpuuga’s Shs 500 million service award which some critics have described as graft.
In a letter asking Ssemogerere to stop catholic priests from celebrating mass at Mpuuga’s thanksgiving ceremony, Ojok wonders: “Does the Catholic church in Uganda only find corruption wrong when the persons involved are from other tribes?”
Ojok says there have 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.
“Is it because the person at the centre of this scandal is a Muganda just like the Archbishop?”
He asks: “If this scandal involved someone from Northern Uganda, would the Church be this silent?”
Ojok writes that Archbishop Ssemogerere has always been outspoken against corruption and injustice, he should use his apostolic authority over the priests who are preparing to celebrate mass at Mpuuga’s function which is scheduled for Friday, June 21 at Masaka.
“Recently while addressing the media regarding the forth coming ‘thanksgiving mass’ for Hon. Mathias Mpuuga (an event aimed at sanitizing the corruption scandal), the chairperson of the organizing committee, ‘Pastor’ Abed Bwanika 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,” Ojok writes.
Ojok says the Catholic church risks losing its credibility as a voice of morality if it is seen to condone corruption and give cover to persons seeking to sanitise themselves after stealing from the poor.
