Milton Obote
Apollo Milton Obote (28 December 1925 – 10 October 2005) was a Ugandan politician who served as the second prime minister of Uganda from 1962 to 1966 and the second president of Uganda from 1966 to 1971 and later from 1980 to 1985.
Milton Obote
John Babiiha
Edward Mutesa (non-executive)
Elizabeth II (until 1963)
Benedicto Kiwanuka (non-executive)
Position abolished
Otema Allimadi (1980)
10 October 2005 (aged 79)
Johannesburg, South Africa
5
A Lango, Obote studied at the Busoga College and Makerere University. In 1956, he joined the Uganda National Congress (UNC) and later split away by founding the Uganda People's Congress (UPC) in 1960. After Uganda gained independence from British colonial rule of the United Kingdom in 1962, Obote was sworn in as prime minister in a coalition with the Kabaka Yekka, whose leader Mutesa II was named president. Due to a rift with Mutesa over the 1964 Ugandan lost counties referendum and later getting implicated in a gold smuggling scandal, Obote overthrew him in 1966 and declared himself president, establishing a dictatorial regime with the UPC as the only official party in 1969. As president, Obote implemented ostensibly socialist policies, under which the country suffered from severe corruption and food shortages.
He was overthrown in a military coup d'état by Idi Amin in 1971, settling in exile in Tanzania, but was re-elected in an election reported to be neither free nor fair in 1980, a year after Amin's 1979 overthrow. His second period of rule ended after a long and bloody conflict known as the Ugandan Bush War during which he was overthrown a second time by another coup d'état in 1985 led by Tito Okello, prompting him to live the rest of his life in exile.
Early life[edit]
Apollo Milton Obote was born in the Akokoro village in the Apac district in northern Uganda, on 28 December 1925.[1] He was the third born of nine children[2] of a tribal chief of the Oyima clan Lango ethnic group. He began his education in 1940 at the Protestant Missionary School in Lira, and later attended Gulu Junior Secondary School,[3] Busoga College, Mwiri[4] and eventually university at Makerere University.[5] Having intended to study law, a subject not taught at the university, Obote took a general arts course, including English and geography.[6] At Makerere, Obote honed his natural oratorical skills; he may have been expelled for participating in a student strike, or alternatively left after a place to study law abroad was not funded by the protectorate government.[7] He worked in Buganda in southern Uganda before moving to Kenya, where he worked as a construction worker at an engineering firm.[8]
While in Kenya, Obote became involved in the national independence movement. Upon returning to Uganda in 1956, he joined the political party Uganda National Congress (UNC), and was elected to the colonial Legislative Council in 1957.[9] In 1959, the UNC split into two factions, with one faction under the leadership of Obote merging with the Uganda People's Union to form the Uganda People's Congress (UPC).[10]
Obote represented the UPC at the Ugandan Constitutional Conference, held at Lancaster House in 1961, alongside fellow Ugandan politician A. G. Mehta.[11] The Conference was organised by the British Government to pave the way for Ugandan independence.[11]
First presidency[edit]
On 19 December 1969, there was an assassination attempt against Obote. As he was leaving the UPC annual delegates' conference at Lugogo Indoor Stadium in Kampala, Mohamed Sebaduka fired one shot at the president. The bullet struck Obote in the face, breaking two of his teeth and passing through his cheek. Sebaduka's pistol jammed, and another assassin, Yowana Wamala, threw a grenade at the president, but it failed to explode. Sebaduka was shot by Obote's bodyguards, but both conspirators escaped in the pandemonium following the attempt. Investigators later arrested them and several members of the Democratic Party—the leading opposition party—accusing former prime minister Benedicto Kiwanuka of orchestrating the plot.[18] In the aftermath of the attempt, all opposition political parties were banned, leaving Obote as an effectively absolute ruler. A state of emergency was in force for much of the time and many political opponents were jailed without trial for life. Obote's regime terrorised, harassed, and tortured people. His secret police, the General Service Unit, led by Obote's cousin, was responsible for many cruelties.[12]
In 1969–70, Obote published a series of pamphlets that were supposed to outline his political and economic policy. The Common Man's Charter was a summary of his approach to socialism, which became known as the Move to the Left. The government took over a 60% share in major private corporations and banks in the country in 1970. During Obote's regime, flagrant and widespread corruption emerged in the name of his version of "socialism".[12] Food shortages sent prices through the ceiling. Obote's persecution of Indian traders contributed to this rise in prices.[12]
The Israeli government was training the Ugandan police and military and providing arms to the Anyanya in Southern Sudan who were engaged in a guerilla war with the Sudanese government. The Obote government withdrew support for the rebels and arrested a German mercenary called Steiner and extradited him to Sudan for trial. The Israeli government was unhappy with these events.[19]
In January 1971, Obote was overthrown by the army while on a visit to Singapore to attend a Commonwealth conference, and Amin became President. In the two years before the coup Obote's relations with the West had become strained. Some have suggested that Western Governments were at least aware of, and may have aided, the coup.[20][21] The Israeli government certainly played an active role in planning and implementing the coup. They operated mechanized equipment and maintained a high profile in and around the capital including manning roadblocks. According to one source, "They were to be seen everywhere."[22] The fall of Obote's regime was welcomed and celebrated by many Ugandans.[12]