A vigil for the late South Africa-based Ugandan businessman, Ivan Ssemwanga is to take place today at his South African home in WaterKloof, 211 Crown Avenue.
Thereafter, the body will be flown to Uganda where it is expected to arrive on Sunday. A Vigil will be held at his home in Muyenga and on Monday there will be a church service at Namirembe Cathedral.
Thereafter the body will be taken to his ancestral home in Nakaliro, Kayunga District for burial. He will be buried on Tuesday.
Ssemwanga passed on today at Steve Biiko hospital, South Africa where he spent two weeks in a coma.
According to his cousin, King Lawrence, the late suffered a stroke that left him in a critical state until his death today.
WINNERS: Jinja SS players celebrate after winning the Copa Coca-Cola 2017 Edition at Masaka Recreation Grounds
Over the weekend, residents of Masaka and surrounding areas were treated to a thrilling show of talent as Jinja S.S fought tirelessly to win their first Copa Coca-Cola trophy at Masaka Recreation Grounds.
The game which saw a Jinja S.S goal disallowed and a missed penalty from Kitende’s Pius Wangi all in the first half, ended with the former defeating the latter in a penalty shoot-out 4-3.
Jinja SS players, officials pose for a photo with their trophy of the Copa Coca-Cola 2017.
Jinja S.S scored the opening goal of the game in the second half through Joel Madondo in the 83rdminute, later followed by a goal from Kitende’s Kennedy Kasozi scored with only two minutes remaining. This equalizer took the game into the Spot-Kicks.
St Mary’s Kitende missed two of the spot-kicks and Jinja SS converted all four, emerging champions of the 25th edition of Copa Coca-Cola.
A Jinja SS player dribbles past St Mary’s Kitende players in the Finals of Copa Coca-Cola finals 2017
Commenting about the Victory, Jinja SS goal scorer Joel Madondo, said: “I would like to thank my teammates for the effort they put in during the tournament. It is a blessing that on our first time to reach the finals, we have emerged winners. Now we have set our sights on the East African trophy come August.”
Speaking after the thrilling final game, Mr. Rodney Nzioka, the Coca-Cola Uganda Brand Manager thanked Masaka S.S, the hosts, all the participating teams as well as the residents of Masaka and neighboring areas for an exciting two weeks.
“At Coca-Cola Uganda, we remain dedicated to the continued development of sports in Uganda right from the grassroots. We believe that with the right amount of motivation and dedication, we can turn the youth footballers from the COPA tournament to national and international football stars,” he concluded.
Jinja SS reached the finals after defeating Nakaseke in the semifinals and St Mary’s Kitende defeated the 2016 champions Kibuli SS in a game which was characterized by talent, pedigree and action.
St Julian’s Abdullah Ssenyonga was awarded an accolade for top scorer with 17 goals while the tournament MVP was Pius Wani from Jinja SS.
Following the death of the father of her sons, hundreds of people across the continent have joined Zari Hassan in the mourning Ivan Ssemwanga.
Ssemwanga was neither an artiste, athlete, magician, politician, social media activist nor Pastor but his death has been recognised all over the continent.
Of the thousands of tributes and condolence messages, we bring you a few from public figures ranging from TV presenters to musicians.
“R.I.P. my friend. Those of us that knew the real you know how loving you were to everybody even when you didn’t know them. Hope and pray your kids will be loved back the way you did in this world. Hope Heaven receives you wth warm hands…Will forever miss bro,” MC Kats, a presenter with NBS, wrote. Sheilah C Gashumba(NTV presenter) Sorry about your loss. May God strengthen your heart. Ivan might be gone in our lives but he still lives in our hearts as a great man. Be strong. I am at a loss for words. I know there is nothing for me to say that will make your loss easier.
Humphrey Mayanja (elder brother of Jose Chameleone) Mukama eyo gyamutute amulamuze Kisa. Era namwe abagumye. Bebecool My deepest condolences to you and your family. May Allah see u through this moment. RIP brother IVAN.
Isaac McBanange Ivan waffe recall yo words at Blankets and Wine Isaac u one of d best and u gna be d best soon. Not knowing Almighty God was ready to call u. Gna miss u Boss.
Ronnie Kavuma(musician) R.I. P but Zari tulaba movies bulijjo, tuyiga, Kirungi wori and you are a brave woman, NO body must fuck with your children’s property.
Hady Ssengo Halliwell (actress with The Ebonies) My dear may Allah give you strength for yo kids sake to over come everything in their Dads absence. If i feel this sad and yet we weren’t friends i can imagine how you and yo kids feels. RIP IVAN, GONE TOO SOON.
Aisha Alibhai(former KFM presenter) Condolences to you Zari and the children. May Ssemwanga’s soul rest in eternal peace and may the Almighty comfort you during this trying moment. Nga Kitalo.
Boyo Boyo(musician with Swangz Avenue) Condolences to you, The Boys and all family. Mungu abagumye.
Gen Mega Dee (Musician) Nga kitalo inhooo bambi Kibumba abagumye ! It’s such a trying time for the family.
Michael Ross Kakooza (Musician) Ma heartfelt condolences to you Zari and your family. R.I.P Ivan.
Tinah Teise(NTV presenter) Pole sana Zari. May God deeply comfort you and your family. Praying for strength through it all. Sleep well mukwano gw’abangi Ivan!
Aziz Azion(musician) may his soul rest intanal peace.
Fada Pest (Musician) Kitalo nnyo Ekya Ivan. Praying For The Family, Especially The Children Shall Miss You. Most High Strengthen Dem.
A member of the Democratic Party youth wing Moses Bigirwa has implored the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Gen. Kale Kayihura to resign, saying the police boss had failed to supervise his subordinates.
Citing the torture of suspects in police custody, Bigirwa said Gen. Kayihura had failed to enforce law and order in the country.
“Great diabolical harm that is inflicted on suspect’s bodies shows that police lacks professional skills in that specific department,” Bigirwa said, adding that the Parliament is to blame for Gen. Kayihura’s continued presence at the helm of the police force.
“Parliament neglected our pleas not to approve his contract as the head of police; there are a lot of people gunned down by his officers including the two year baby Julian Nalwanga who was killed in her home in Masaka,” he said.
Meanwhile, the DP youth have launched a campaign against the torture of suspects by security officials in Uganda.
The campaign was sparked off following the recent torture of the Mayor of Kamwenge town council who was arrested in connection with the gunned down of the assistant inspector of police Andrew Felix Kaweesi, his body guard and the driver.
‘’Being candidates of torture, we cannot let others to be tortured’’ the deputy chairperson of youth Paul Ssembajjwe told the media at Bativa Hotel Makerere adding that they have a list of over 100 victims whose files are being working on by the Lwakafuzi and company advocates for prosecution to start.
He implored government to improve the welfare of security personnel, lamenting that it could be cause of the massive torture of suspects.
They later displayed a chat with images of people who have been killed or tortured ‘at the hands of Gen. Kale Kayihura’ from way back in 2012.
On the chart are pictures of AIGP Kaweesi, Prosecutor Joan Kagezi, Major Muhammad Kiggundu, MP Betty Nambooze Bakireke, some Muslim clerics and the two-year old Nalwanga.
RIP: The late Ivan Semwanga with the Rich Gang friends. This year was not a good one for them as they failed to hold the Rich Gang party because of Semwanga's death.
Ugandans have Thursday woken up to the sad news of the passing away of South Africa-based businessman, Ivan Semwanga, who has been battling hypertension.
Ssemwanga, the philanthropist
To many, Semwanga, the chairman of Ugandans in South Africa, has been known as a socialite while others knew him for his big heart. He has helped several needy people in both South Africa and Uganda. The last people to benefit from his generosity were the under-privileged kids of Nsambya whom he visited three weeks back.
Ivan Semwanga during a visit to an orphanage
On his visit to the M-Lisa orphanage, he donated several household items including bags of rice, sugar, soap, cooking oil and many other basic needs to the orphans. He thereafter gave each orphan Shs20, 000 before returning to South Africa.
But less than a week after returning to South Africa, news came in that he had suffered a stroke and had been rushed to a hospital in South Africa while in critical condition. According to his cousin, King Lawrence, Ssemwanga suffered a stroke and had a heavy fall that left him paralyzed and with a blood clot on his brain. He was then rushed to Steve Biko hospital.
For the two weeks that he has been hospitalized, his ex-wife, Zari has been by his sick bed looking after him until when he breathed his last Thursday morning.
Ivan Sewmanga and his ex Zari Hassan
The news of Ivan’s death was announced by Zari herself, attracting tributes and condolence messages from all walks of life.
“God loves those that are special and that’s exactly who you were and I guess that’s why he wanted you to himself. You have touched and helped thousands, you did wonders…… You will be missed and remembered in so many ways. You were IVAN THE GREAT!” she wrote in the morning.
Ivan, in the company of friends, gives out money
Why they lived a social life
When not doing charity work or running his businesses, Ivan has been enjoying his sweat and this is what many know him for; living a luxurious life – throwing lavish parties and ‘open bars’ at several hangout joints in Kampala.
Zari has since opened up on the kind of lifestyle they were living, saying “I remember you telling me ‘life is too short Zee let me live it to the fullest’, this very dark hour it makes sense why you always said those words to me.”
It isn’t surprising that the first people to send in condolence messages were socialites. Sheilah C Gashumba Sorry about your loss. May God strengthen your heart. Ivan might be gone in our lives but he still lives in our hearts as a great man. Be strong. I am at a loss for words. I know there is nothing for me to say that will make your loss easier.
Prince Ford Jesus🤧🤧 May the good Lord reward you with a warm seat in heaven IVO our motivator. For us who have been overseas know how much we have been working hard to achieve what u did. Comfort goes to your family and friends. For sure you will be missed blood. RIP BRO.
Hady Ssengo HalliwellZarinah Tlale my dear may Allah give you strength for yo kids sake to over come everything in their Dads absence. If i feel this sad and yet we weren’t friends i can imagine how you and yo kids feels. RIP IVAN, GONE TOO SOON.
David William Rukanshonga I won’t remember you for the swag and fast life. I’ll remember you for your kindness, hard work and most of all the one people always ran too in difficult times and you surely didn’t hesitate to help. The good one’s leave early. Rest in peace Ivan.
At the time of his death, Ivan was just 40 years old and a father to three sons he had with Zari before the couple separated in 2014. Family and education
“To your sons, you were a hero-some kind of superman. Anyone who has ever been in your presence knows what a charming person you were.”
Ssemwanga was born in Kayunga to George Semwanga Pinto Lutaaya and Liize Semwanga, both deceased. His dad, too, succumbed to a stroke. According to the deceased’s uncle, Samuel Muwanga Pinto Omutuuze, their family has lost several family members to stroke with himself having narrowly survived after having spent 15 years bedridden when part of his body was paralyzed.
Ivan grew up in Nakaliro, Kayunga Town Council, in Kayunga district before relocating to Kampala at his grandfather’s place in Mengo Kalitunsi.
He attended Bishop Brown Primary School before joining Kanjuki S.S. for senior one. He however moved to Central Academy, where he studied for his ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels in the 90’s.
PATRIOTISM: The Commissioner for Patriotism Colonel Patrick Mwesigye
Over 750 senior six leavers from all over the country are to undergo a two-week youth patriotism course conducted at the Bulindo play grounds in Wakiso district.
According to the Commissioner of Patriotism Colonel Patrick Mwesigye, the training will impart hard work values, leadership and development skills, discipline, self-esteem and control, patriotism for nation building, love and sacrifice.
“Patriotism is the love for our country, therefore it has nothing to do with party politics,” Col. Mwesigye said during a media briefing at Uganda Media Centre
He said over 300, 000 out of 15,000,000 targeted students have been trained by the National Secretariat for Patriotic Corps (NSPC) and more than 4000 patriotic clubs established in the country since inception of the programme in 2009.
State Minister for Gender and Culture, Peace Mutuuzo
Over fifty Bugisu ‘elders’ from Uganda and Kenya have petitioned President Yoweri Museveni, asking him to redeploy the State Minister for Gender and Culture Peace Mutuuzo, who recently called for the scraping of male circumcision in the Elgon area that is commonly known as Imbalu.
The Umukuuka w’Inzu Ya’Bamasaaba Bob Mushikori
According to the 59 men and women who signed a petition titled: ‘In defence of Imbalu – Inzu Yamasaaba’ on May 21, the Minister has failed in her duties among which is the promotion of culture and cultural institutions.
‘The President deployed her at the particular docket to nurture and develop cultural formations (Institutions) but since she was sent to deliver an antelope and instead she is delivering a Rabbit (abusing owners of culture), she should be moved elsewhere by the President since she has passed a vote-of-no-confidence in herself,’ they wrote, arguing that an apology from the Minister now is, in their opinion, an option to be considered or not.
‘Ms Peace Mutuzo must be put to notice that Bamasaba spread over Ugandan across Mount Elgon to western Kenya whose representatives’ list of delegates we have been compiling and is here attached warn the Minister that no amount of personal apology now makes sense at the moment; she has invaded an arena where only Bamasaaba control the oxygen, a situation that would suffocate her into oblivion unless she is willing to undergo character transplant.
If the people of Toro do not call the Minister to discipline by humbly asking her to go to Mbale and address the above delegates from both Kenya and Uganda the youth shall be unleashed in the coming year to circumcise every Mutoro male working, living, studying and trading in Bugisu,’ they added.
The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has today successfully conducted a Business Continuity Management (BCM) assessment aimed at testing the Fund’s ability to effectively continue operation in event that a major disaster cripples its systems at the head office at Workers House in Kampala.
NSSF Managing Director, Richard Byarugaba said that this is part of the Fund’s Business Continuity Management programme.
“The Fund carries out comprehensive BCM test exercises to assess our capacity to effectively respond to disastrous events,’’ he said, adding: “One of our key strategic objectives is to ensure the safety of our member funds. We believe this objective can be jeopardized by disastrous events, which could lead to destruction of the Fund’s assets, systems, and cause injury or death to our staff and/or our customers.”
He noted that the Fund can withstand any kind of disaster and continue serving its members with minimal or no hindrance. “Although we have put in place mechanisms to ensure business continuity, we can never be sure of their effectiveness unless we put them to a test, as we have done today”, Byarugaba added.
“I am glad to report that the test was largely successful; we evacuated Workers House in record time, we safely relocated to alternate centres, and we were able to recover the systems and resume business operations within our target time lines,” Byarugaba said.
“I therefore, take this opportunity to assure our members and other stakeholders that we have adequate and effective capacity to ensure continuity of business in the event a disaster occurs that requires us to evacuate our head office”, he added.
The Fund routinely carries out stimulation exercises to prepare for possible disasters. In addition to the BCM simulations, the Fund routinely carries out fire drills in conjunction with Uganda Police at least once a year to prepare for possible fire outbreak.
The success of today’s exercise will be confirmed by an independent BCM consultant.
NSSF has a membership of over 1.6 million registered contributors and over 13,000 employers. In April, Byarugaba told the media that the Fund’s total assets will hit 7.5 trillion by end of that month.
The Fund’s members balance is Shs7.3 trillion, while it collects UGX77 billion per month in contributions and pays about Shs25billion per month as benefits to its members.
BACKTRACKING ON ELECTIONS? DRC President Joseph Kabila
The European Union is poised to impose sanctions against more Congolese officials, sources in Brussels said, amid worsening violence in the resource-rich country since President Joseph Kabila overstayed his mandate and pushed back elections.
One source said the EU will add nine names to its Congo blacklist of people subjected to asset freezes and travel bans. They join seven others, including members of the Congolese army and police, the bloc put on its list in December citing ‘serious violations of human rights’.
The bloc’s 28 member states are expected to approve the enlarged sanctions list at a meeting in Brussels later on Wednesday, the source said.
Kabila, in power since 2001, struck a deal in December with Congo’s main opposition bloc to stay on after his mandate expired provided he held elections by the end of 2017. But talks to implement the deal broke down in March when Kabila refused to commit to the bloc’s choice of prime minister.
Political tensions are high after security forces killed dozens during protests over election delays last year. Worsening militia violence in recent months has also raised fears of a backslide toward the civil wars of the turn of the century that killed millions.
The Congo government has repeatedly denounced earlier sanctions imposed by the EU and United States as unjustified and illegal, and has threatened diplomatic retaliation.
Congo mines significant amounts of cobalt, gold, diamonds, copper and tin but remains one of Sub-Saharan Africa’s poorest countries.
Recently, the EU said separately it would help transport aid workers and medical supplies to a remote north-eastern region of Congo, which is fighting an Ebola outbreak.
NTV has spoken out on the departure of Anita Fabiola from the soap opera, ‘Second Chance’.
According to NTV, Fabiola, who has been acting as Angella, has a very busy schedule, leaving little time for the shooting of the ‘Second Chance’ episodes.
“Original Angela had a busy schedule, travelling the world with other projects and you will see her work,” reads a statement by NTV.
Though, her departure doesn’t mean she has completely left the franchise, having previously worked with NTV Be My Date and also as part of drama series that used to air on the same station. “She is still part of history, of this series.”
Meanwhile, Fabiola is now signed to Ali Alibhai’s Talent Africa and she has started shooting episodes of a yet-to-be launched show on Africa Magic.
She has been replaced by songstress Julian Kanyomoozi’s kid sister, Laura Kahunde, who has been welcomed with mixed reactions.
Harriet Nabaggala Though I miss Fabiola I am going to give u a chance since I have no choice. Welkm
Camilla Miracle Mirembe Those doubting the new Angella, please just go and watch “Where we belong “,Hearts in pieces and Dera mum” all full movies by Mariam Ndagire u will know what u were going to miss without Laura.
Ssebuliba Alex GoodlyfeHave u noticed she’s more beautiful than the first one? Black is beautiful indeed….
Speaking out on the reactions, this is what Laura Kahunde had to say; “Thank you all for the warm welcome and overwhelming love; and for those that are not happy with the change, I understand you and am still here to entertain you, all you gotta do is give me a chance before you judge. Peace and love.”
