Former Democratic Party president Paul Kawanga Ssemogerere passes away
The deceased's granddaughter, Agnes Namakula, said her grandfather passed on this morning at his home in Rubaga.
Ugandans go into the weekend in a sombre mood after learning of the passing away of former President-General of the Democratic Party (DP) Dr Paul Kawanga Ssemogerere.
The deceased’s granddaughter, Agnes Namakula, said her grandfather passed on this morning at his home in Rubaga.
Ssemogerere was born on 11th February 1932 in Kalangala district.
He attended St Henry’s College Kitovu before receiving a diploma in education from Makerere University. He studied the politics and government program at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania.
In 1979, he was awarded a Doctor’s of Philosophy degree in public administration from Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York.
He replaced Benedicto Kiwanuka as the leader of the Democratic Party in 1972 after serving as his Parliamentary Secretary.
He would steer Democratic Party through the murky days of President Idi Amin who had banned all political parties activities in the country.
He would return to political activism when Amin was ousted in 1979 and general elections were held in 1980.
He vied against eventual controversial winner Dr Milton Obote of UPC and Yoweri Museveni of UPM.
Museveni would wage a military rebellion against the Obote government toppling him in 1986. When Museveni the government, he appointed Ssemogerere as a minister before the two fell apart.
Ssemogerere would again contest Museveni in the 1996 elections and lost. He remained a strong opposer of the Museveni regime until he retired from active politics in 2005
In his retirement, he has occasionally offered critiquing political commentary castigating the regime.
