KAMPALA_UGANDA/NEWSDAY: Retired Lt Col Abdallah Nassur, the former governor under former President Idi Amin’s government has died.
His daughter, Zenar Nassur says that her father died last night at Nakasero hospital after battling pneumonia for a long period. According to Zenar, Nassur will be buried at 4.00 pm today at Nakatonya village in Bombo town council, Luwero district.
Osman Kassim the LC III chairperson of Bombo town council says that Nasur will be greatly missed because he worked so hard to uplift the Nubian community where he belonged.
“He was among the few remaining Nubian elders who served in Amin’s community. We have indeed missed a pillar and devoted Muslim,” Kassim said.
Nasur was born in 1946 in Nakatonya village and was a strong military leader during Idi Amin’s rule when he served as governor for Central and Karamoja provinces from January 1975–1979.
He attracted a negative reputation for his strict enforcement of the urban beautification campaign in Kampala city then. It is alleged that he forced urban dwellers to eat rubber sandals/slippers once caught roaming the city streets. However, in a 2021 interview, he denied forcing people to eat slippers and described it as blackmail.
He said both local and international human rights bodies investigated the allegations and found out that they were false. He challenged anyone who was forced to eat their sandals/slippers to come forward and prove their claims.
In 1979 after Amin was overthrown, Nassur fled to Kenya but was arrested, extradited, and charged with the murder of the mayor of Masaka, Francis Walugembe earlier on September 21, 1972.
He was convicted by the High court in Kampala and sentenced to death. In 2001, President Yoweri Museveni pardoned him. Since then he has been living low life at Nakatonya village in Bombo town until his death.