KAMPALA: Footballers wear black armbands and observe moments of silence before the kickoff of all games organised by the Federation of Uganda Football Association-FUFA that will be played between April 6th and April 10th, 2022 to honour the fallen Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Oulanyah.
Florence Nakiwala Kiyingi, FUFA’s third Vice President, says this is one of the key decisions reached by the FUFA Executive Committee Meeting held last Saturday. Nakiwala explains that they agreed that all Uganda Premier League-UPL and FUFA women’s teams should continue as planned, but the teams should join the country to pay tribute to the fallen speaker.
Ahmed Hussein, FUFA’s Communications Director, says that the decision will be implemented in all competitions, including matches at the district level, the FUFA Big League and regional tournaments.
The directive will be implemented during the premier league fixtures between Bright Stars against Busoga United, Arua Hill vs Gaddafi, Police FC against Onduparaka, and the SC Villa Derby against Express, among other games.
Oulanya died on March 20th, 2022 in Seattle, United States of America. He will be buried at his ancestral home in Omoro district on April 9th, 2022. In his last appearance at a FUFA-sanctioned event, Oulanyah was the Chief Guest of the FUFA Airtel awards ceremony and was crowned the FUFA Airtel male player of the year.
During this, Oulanyah pledged to support the development of football in his capacity as the speaker of parliament. He will also be remembered for his role as the goalkeeper of Parliament’s football team and patron of the Acholi Province Drum team.