By Otim Nape
All isn’t well for the members Oyima clan which is one of the strongest and most prestigious in the Lango community. The bad situation relates to the fact that their very wealthy clan head Mzee Akbar Adoko Nekyon had his medical condition worsen and was rushed to Nsambya hospital where he remains confined in the ICU. Reliable family sources have revealed to this news website that the very wealthy Nekyon, also a 1st cousin to Uganda’s founding leader Milton Obote, slipped into coma two weeks ago and was rushed in Nsambya where he has been in ICU unconscious for now 14 days. He has always had a history of heart problems and there are fears that, should the wealthy father of 15 very successful children (living both in Uganda and abroad), regrettably not recover from the coma, the power struggles and wrangling for influence in the Oyima clan could escalate and possibly prompt some disgruntled members to even break away. Knowledgeable sources say that Nekyon has, for the past so many years, been maintaining a strong grip on the clan leadership and the regular elections (every 5 years) that the clan constitution prescribes haven’t been held and thereby fermenting resentment in those who felt he has served for too long. Oyima clan, some years ago, asserted itself rather controversially and shunned the elections by other clans where the leadership of Wonyachi was agreed upon as the traditional cultural ruler of the Langi tribes. There are concerns among some clan members that frail health has over the years been diminishing the efficiency of Nekyon’s excellent leadership over the clan. “The office holder is supposed to be neutral and preside over conflict resolution but Mzee Nekyon no longer commanded that clout because quite often he would take sides in the wrangles yet he is supposed to moderate,” said a sober-minded Oyima clan member based in Kampala. “He has always meant well and has been well intentioned but the problem is he has lately been very draconian and not very consultative in his leadership. Meetings haven’t been regular as they used to be.” Oyima is one of the very many clans comprising Lango tribe and it’s understood there are over 1m clan members spread in Lango, Acholi, Karamoja and Teso areas. The situation relating to Nekyon’s grievous illness is further complicated by the fact that even his equally elderly Gisu wife Florence is not well health-wise.
She has been his wife since the 1970s and being the wealthy actively practicing Muslim he is, Nekyon is a self-professed polygamist. His other wife lives in UK with her daughter and his 4th wife (the last one so far) is a youngish lady from the Langi tribe. Nekyon is famous for tolerating widow inheritance amongst Langi brothers; when a brother dies, the surviving siblings can freely take over the widow if they so wish. It’s something Nekyon has always been very reluctant to condemn throughout his tenure as Oyima clan head; though it’s debatable whether he personally practiced what he preached regarding this subject of widow inheritance. His would-be 2nd wife died many years ago. The 85 year old Nekyon is wealthy-and actually could be the wealthiest man in Lango. He has a palatial home in Nsambya near Quality Cuts and not far from the US Embassy. That is where he lives. He has two huge properties in the Ntinda center near Hon Balyeku’s business headquarters. One is residential (managed by his brother in law; an influential online journalist) and the other is commercial.
He has several properties also in Lango including Kyegere which family sources say might turn out to be his burial ground because it’s the most luxurious of all his upcountry homes. This is in Apac district. As Oyima clan head, Nekyon has over 20 area/county chiefs through whom he reaches the clan members. As the Oyima clan head, Nekyon plays the figure head role besides his advisory role to the younger generation. His wealth status shocked many fellow UPCs in the past few years when it emerged that when he buys daily newspapers, Nekyon only goes to the property pages to see which properties are up for sale. He then rings on the number indicated and ask for the details and once satisfied, he buys instantly. This has been his routine in the past few years since frail health took toll on him and he scaled down on his work-related public engagements. In the Obote family, Nekyon has played a very big role ever helping the widow Miria Kalule Obote and son Jimmy Akena to identify their rights as dependent survivors of a former President and Prime Minister. He has been a very respectable voice by the President on matters regarding compensation for the Obote estate properties that were either occupied, looted or destroyed during the war. It’s understood that the willingness by Museveni to write letters directing the Finance Ministry and the military to pay for the Obote upcountry houses-in Lira and Akokoro-that were ruinously occupied by soldiers during his exile are adequately compensated has largely been a result of the respect the big man from Rwakitura has for Nekyon. Acting on Nekyon’s advice during family meetings, Miria Obote has many times been prompted to claim return and compensation for such Milton Obote properties. She is the administrator of the Obote estate and it’s Nekyon who has regularly been advising and guiding her on how to exercise her rights as an administrator. The family is grateful that, working with Dr. Opiote, Nekyon has done a good job given his deep understanding of the property terrain in Uganda. For comments, call/text/whatsapp us on 0703164755!
