KAMPALA, UGANDA: The Church of Uganda House of Bishops has suspended the consecration event of Rev Canon Godfrey Kasana Ssemakula as the 4th Bishop of Luweero Diocese after nullifying his election over adultery claims, DailyExpress understands.
The consecration ceremony was supposed to take place next month on July 16 and has now been halted indefinitely following the decision by the House of Bishop at their meeting held in Hoima District on Thursday.
“The consecration of the Rev Can Godfrey Kasana as 4th Bishop of Luweero Diocese slated for July 16 was revoked by the House of Bishops that met in Hoima on June 29. The Provincial Secretary will avail us with an official communication,” reads a Friday statement by the CoU Head of Laity, Rev Can Elidard Nsubuga.
Addressing the diocesan secretary, Rev Nsubuga said that while the Church of Uganda Provincial Secretariat was yet to give the official communication about the nullification, he had taken the initiative to communicate the outcome of the House of Bishop’s decision to quell the media reports making contradicting reports.
“Let us join in prayer to pray for the Rev Can Godfrey Kasana and his family at this time. We need to remain calm,” he added.
Christians speak out
A section of the Christians that had turned up for the consecration preparatory meeting at the Diocesan Headquarter offices in Luweero Town Council blamed the Church of Uganda’s top administration for failing to clear the air and possibly handle matters regarding the 4th bishop of Luweero with urgency.
“We are reading stories from the media about the nullification of the bishop-elect but we have no official communication from the Church of Uganda Provincial Secretariat. We have no answers to the many questions asked by the Christians regarding the news that has spread like wildfire,” Mr Geoffrey Sseremba, a Christian said in an interview with local newspaper DailyMonitor on Friday.
“We demand that the Provincial Secretariat comes out with an official statement. The Christians have a stake in the Church matters and have the right to get the information regarding their next bishop since they are already involved in raising the funds for the consecration,” another congregant at St Stephen’s Church of Uganda in Wobulenzi said.
Background
Rev Kasana was elected the fourth bishop of Luweero during a special meeting in Kisoro on April 3rd and is meant to be installed on July 16th.
However, a section of Christians from the Luweero diocese led by one Kenneth Kikabi petitioned the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda Kazimba Mugalu, seeking to nullify Kasana’s election over a number of issues.
In a May 5th petition, Kikabi among other issues alleges adultery, irregular nomination, and eventual election as the main grounds for seeking the nullification.
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