The names given to the Luo/Acholi community has in hallmark in our cultural norms citations, for example, Okuttu, which means the parents cried that although God give us a bouncing baby, the baby will pass on.
Emeritus Chief Justice Owiny Dollo Chigamoi warns the disgruntled 11th Parliamentary groups hailing from the Acholi Sub Region to stop bickering, and the elected MPs to work for unity instead of divisionism.
NWOYA DISTRICT-MARCH SATURDAY, 14, 2026.
By Okumu Livingstone Langl, Our Correspondent
Saturday March, 14, 2026. The road leading to Wii Anaka village, Purongo Sub County, in Nwoya District was colorful awash and blessed with high profile dignitary that included emeritus Chief Justice Owiny Dollo Chigamoi and Wilson Badi, the former CDF of Uganda People’s Defence Forces, during the burial of Nicolas Okuttu Awany, 97 years old.
At 3:00 PM local East African time, Emeritus Chief Justice Owiny Dollo made his way to the parked burial grave; he arrived early to witness the lowering of the casket of Okuttu Niclas, the fallen ground son of Obura Lutka of the Bolo clan, who was buried at his ancestral home.
Emeritus Chief Justice Owiny Dollo is not new to the Awany family; he called the Awany family that they are his in-law. Owiny Dollo Chigamoi is deep-rooted in Acholi culture, no wonder; he did not abandon his daughter, who they are in trouble of losing an icon.
Emeritus Chief Justice Owiny Dollo implored mourners who turned up in multitude to pay their last respect to the former Uganda Police (RIT of Inspector of police the late Okuttu, sunrise 15th March 1929, sunset 7 March 2026. H
“The late Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany, I have fought the good fight, finished the race, I have kept the faith… (2 Tim 4:7-8)”
The Co-founder of Acholi Pongdwongo Acholi Cultural revival Rocco Paco, the elegant, towering son of Patongo Kal clan, argued to the mourners that the Luo people give names to their children depend on the situation, and all names have its meaning. All the names, such as Okuttu, Orang, Abur, Obur, Oboke, Oyugi, are the names that are given to the children whose siblings all died before they celebrated their five years of birth.
“The parents who named their children Okuttu, Orang, Obur, Abur, Oyugi and Oboke, Otto, Ongom are lamenting that even if God gave us this bouncing baby, the kid is going to die. Such parents who have witnessed calamity have developed a remedy for nursing their kid by what is called Ajula. There is a special herbal remedy that the child is treated with, and the new baby is kept. Ajula need older woman to nurture the children whose mothers lose young children the moment they give birth.” Emeritus Chief Justice Owiny Doll Chigamoi revealed.
He explains that he loves to come back at the time of the last sendoff of Nicholas Okuttu Awany, the last funeral rite. He further informs the Luo community who turned up for the burial of Mzee Okuttu, mocking them. You see Lt. Gen. Charles Otema Awany sitting here, Richard Todwong, and the National Resistance Movement Secretary General of the NRM ruling party, they read books, if not, they would be commanding their sibling marching and parading the Muzee Nicholas Okuttu, diving with Kwot ki tong shield and spears.
“I warn you, the Acholi young generation, you must embrace education, and without education, we shall remain backward.
I want the Telephone number of Amos Okello, the area Local Council I of Wii Anaka. In his speech, he challenged Richard Todwong, the son of the late Muzee Nicholas Okuttu and Lt. Gen Otema Awany, who accused them of neglecting and abandoning Wii Anaka Primary school. The duo never showed concern for the poor academic performance results of the Primary Leaving Examination PLE. And the poor condition of the road network in Nwoya District, I want leaders who can talk on behalf of their community.
Amos Okello, the LC I Golla Cell Wii Anaka village, when given time to welcome mourners, outlined a number of challenges facing Puranga Sub-County.
I welcome you to this village, Wii Anaka, stay well, and whoever comes with a hidden agenda must not do it here. Last Saturday, March 7, we buried my father, who passed on, and today we are burying Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany.
“I want to take this opportunity to appeal to Richard Todwong and Gen. Otema Awany, we have the shortest teachers in Wii Anaka primary school, although the government had sent teachers before, but some of them have passed on, no replacement has been made. Therefore, we have gaps in teaching. If possible, Todwong makes sure that we replace the gaps by sending more qualified teachers.”
In addition, we have a problem with the road network in Nwoya District, although you see this road has been open, the construction has not been done; when it rains, all vehicles you see parked here would not have passed; the vehicles would have been stark in the mud.
Thirdly, the elephant has been a problem here in Purongo Sub-County, although the Uganda Wildlife Authority WUA have constructed an electric fence, pacers still jumped over the electric wire. To hunt for the animals, we don’t want our people to die in the hands of Uganda Game Rangers.
We need a technical Institute here to take care of our young community, who go poaching as an alternative for their livelihood, Amos Okello informed.
Hon. Tony Awany, the MP for Nwoya County in the 11th Parliament, who is the grandson of the late Muzee Okuttu Nicholas Awany, who spoke on behalf of the late Okuttu, revealed that his great-grandfather, Luke Awany, when he heard that he was born at Anaka Hospital 50 years ago, he walked to see and witness his grandchild who was born. And I was the baby boy.
After my great grandfather Luke Awany who is father to my ground father Nicholas Okuttu Awany, later on when he left, he taught himself to sit and rest at the Mugnai tree at Anaka Hospital. But he was never weak; he passed on.
Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany was my shield; today, he is gone. Gen. Otema Awany is now my shield.
Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany, he was the one in charge of all the Areophane tickets for the fight that travel in Northern Uganda, especially for Negri Primary school Boys who travel to Gulu District during the Northern Uganda Lord Resistance Army insurgency, his beneficiary was one of the student now sitting here called Odonga Otto, the children of the riches Acholi who live in Kampala.
“Today I standing here before you mourners with great pride, today I stand here with great pride because I have been the Director of Foreign services at United Arab Emirate UAE, the ground son of police officer who used to booked for the northern Uganda Areophane fight t come to Gulu, I was the Ambassador, the ground song of the placeman is now the MP for Nwoya County.
Hon. Odonga Otto, the former MP for Aruu South, Pader District, when he took to the pulpit, cautioned the Acholi community and asked them to apologies to the Awany family.
“The Awany family they were fore cited to support the NRM Museveni’s government when the majority f Acholi sub region had shunted the Museveni’s NRM regime of being murdered, instead of embracing them for development, Acholi waged the war to defend themselves in 1986, when the National Resistance Army (NRA), was causing a lot of atrocity in Acholi Sub Region.” Hon. Odonga Otto advised.
He acknowledged that both of them, the Old Boys of the Negri primary school, had been defeated in the January 15, 2026, parliamentary election. I would like to advise Gen. Otema Awany to lobby for Hon. Tony Awany to be posted as one of the Ambassadors, since the Acholi Sub Region has only one Foreign mission person.
Hon. Christine Lanyero Awany, the elected MP for Nwoya District, the daughter of Savion Ojok Awany, the younger sibling of Nicholas Okuttu, had no kind words.
She criticizes, “Hon. Tony Awany would not have lost the election of a Parliamentary seat, if there were no foul play by some of his brothers who work in the NRM ruling party.
“I really applauded Hon. Tony Awany for his stand, when the result was announced that he lost the election by 20 votes. In fact, when he was the winner, he won by a 20-vote count margin. He decided to walk away and quit, not even to challenge the result.”
Eulogy of the late Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany.
Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany was born on 15th March 3, 1929, in Obyela in Awach, and passed on March 7, 2026, at Anaka Hospital, Nwoya District. His father was Luke Awany of Bolo, and his mother was called the late Cecilia Lawino Awany of the Lamogi Palema Putoo clan.
Family home: Tutu Odokorwot, Wii Anaka parish, Purongo Sub-County, Nwoya District. He traditionally married Anna Abanya (late), of Bwobo Paibwo (Ot ker), in Nwoya in the year 1953, leaving behind 19 children (10 boys and 9 girls), 148 great-grandchildren, great grandchildren 163 great-grandchildren.
Sacramental life
He was a Catholic, baptized and had his first Holy Communion at Mary of Christina Anaka Parish in 1945. He married the late Anna Abanya in 1953 at Anaka Parish in a ceremony presided over by Rev. Fr. Spriafiko Muzee Nicholas Okuttu Awany brought other wives later, but at the time of his death, he had only two wives.
He received the sacrament of anointing on 12th 12, 2025, by Fr. Romano Ouma at St. Mary Hospital, Lacor.
