By Simon Naulele
Kanuti Akorimo, the Ugandan who lowered the Union Jack and hoisted the Uganda National Flag on October 9, 1962 when the country got independence from Britain, has died.
A retired army major, Akorimo succumbed to pneumonia occasioned by a stroke at 7:30am yesterday at Atutur Hospital in Kumi District. He was 89.
According to the family doctor, Dr Isaac Omare, the deceased had been battling with the illness for a long time and had been in and out of hospital until late last year when he suffered a stroke.
“Mr Akorimo had been ill for a long time. He was suffering from a stroke for almost nine months,” said Dr Omare in a telephone interview with Daily Monitor.
He said the deceased suffered from Aspiration Pneumonia, a lung infection that develops after you aspirate (inhale) food, liquid, or vomit into your lungs. Dr Omare explained that if you are not able to cough up the aspirated material, bacteria can grow in your lungs and cause an infection.
“Because one side of the body was not working as a result of the stroke, there was no way he could clean up his lungs through cough because even the lungs themselves were paralysed,” said Dr Omare.
He said before passing on yesterday morning, they had contacted State House to have Mr Akorimo transferred to Kampala for further medical treatment.
“We have been treating him and then let him go home. But on Friday, his condition worsened and we admitted him. Two days later we put him on oxygen,” he said, adding: “Yesterday (Tuesday) we alerted State House. He was to be transferred to Mulago hospital, but he passed away today [yesterday morning].”
The Kumi District chairperson, Ms Christine Apolot, said Maj Kanuti deserves a befitting sendoff by the state and also have him honoured in Parliament since he contributed a lot to the independence of the country.
“We communicated to State House, through the Constituency MPs, so we cannot communicate to the family of what Government plans to do until we get the feedback,” said Ms Apolot.
Ms Apolot said Kanuti has been the pride of Teso because he contributed to the independence of the nation.
“Mr Akorimo has been a father not only to his family but to the nation at large,” she said.
Kumi District Woman MP Monica Amoding had earlier asked government to explain on the selective criteria it uses to accord distinguished persons the state or official burial and the need for an eligibility criterion for state and official burials.
Mr Kanuti served the British government for more than 20 years and retired as a major in 1968.
At the time of his death he was living in Omatenga, his home village in Kumi.
This story was first published by Daily Monitor
