Culture is the glue that binds my people, says the Iteso king

In Mela village of Malaba, Uganda, the heavyset man sits quietly facing the main gate, about 100 metres away. Before him, three men repose on plastic chairs while one of them respectfully addresses the man.

Six other men in matching attires - a floral blend of green, white and black coloured headgear, similar long shirts and a pair of shorts, their feet clad in traditional sandals made from worn car tyres - stand behind the imposing man, as rigid as statues.

They are spaced out at one-metre intervals and each has a long brown stick in his hand. At the gate and elsewhere in the compound, men in green military fatigues keep their stations as they watch the visitors.

The aura of royalty is unmistakable as we get ushered into the presence of a man fondly referred to as Papa Emormor Iteso Paul Sande Emolot, King and supreme leader of the more than seven million Iteso people who live in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania and South Sudan.

Emormor Emolot is also the Chairman of the Kings of Africa Association. In the Iteso language, Emormor means 'king'.

The Emormor is heavily guarded. The men in military fatigues are soldiers from the Uganda Peoples Defence Force assigned to him by the government to guard him, his premises, businesses and the Iteso Cultural Union offices in Soroti Uganda.

The other men in headgear are palace guards trained to protect the King. Both work on 24-hour shifts.

"The government of Uganda does not only recognise and support cultural institutions, it also protects and funds them under the 1995 constitution. President Obote banned cultural institutions in the 1960s but the current government reinstated them. The post of Emormor has been in existence for 23 years and has had two previous occupants," Emormor Emolot says.

Uganda had a rich cultural background until the advent of military coups that upset the country's political order in the late 1960s through to 1986 when Museveni deposed President Milton Obote and brought peace and order.

The Iteso culture is being propagated through clearly defined structures at the clan level and organised leadership under the Emormor.

The Iteso have their own national anthem and a complete government structure with the king at the helm, a prime minister, three deputy prime ministers, a Cabinet and representatives for women and youth.

The Teso Kingdom has its headquarters in Soroti, Uganda, and has four administrative regions - Northern, Southern, Central and Eastern. The first three regions are domiciled in Uganda. The eastern region comprises Kenya and Tanzania and is administered by Deputy Prime Minister Frederick Adungo.

Cultural Youth Ambassador Silas Okatagoro speaks highly of the Iteso culture, its organisation and role.

"My main duty is to motivate the youth to fully embrace our culture and uphold morality. I am able to do this through radio and personal interactions with the youth within the eastern region," says Okatagoro.

There are inviolable tenets that determine who becomes the Emormor. First, it must be someone aged 60 years and above, who must be conversant with the Teso culture and speak fluent Iteso.

The leader must be an Etesot (male) in possession of, at the very least, a secondary school education. He must also have a home, not live in a rental house. The current Emormor rose through the ranks to the apex of the Iteso leadership.

Diplomatic passports

"I joined the Iteso Cultural Union (ICU) in 1998. In 2004 I became a member of the Cabinet. Five years later I became the Prime Minister, a position I held for nine years before becoming Chairman of the Iteso Council and finally the Emormor this year following the demise of Emormor Augustin in February," says the Emormor.

He says cultural institutions in Uganda are answerable to the minister of Culture and Gender.

"The government finds it easy to deal with us because we have the structures. On that basis, the government gives facilitation, transport, medical care and many other benefits to traditional leaders. All traditional leaders in Uganda are given diplomatic passports and are empowered to handle cases of gender-based violence, child marriages and teen pregnancies," Emormor Emolot says.

However, criminal cases like rape are handled by the government.

"As organised people guided by our culture, we intend to eliminate cases of teenage pregnancies and early or forced marriages because our aim is to give girls a chance to become better citizens and good leaders," he says.

"We are also charged with the onus of resolving conflicts. We have, for instance, minimised cases of the Karamajong raiding the Iteso or the Turkana raiding the Nyangatom. Once in a while, we are also called upon to reconcile warring politicians."

Despite his exalted position as the Deputy Prime Minister of the Eastern region (Kenya and Tanzania), Fredrick Adungo is a sociable, easy-going man easily recognisable in the region.

Enroute to Uganda, he briefly joined the Omongoluk dancing group in a scintillating dance at Chakol, Busia. Clad in a leopard-spotted attire reserved for leaders, the love his subjects have for him is evident in their smiles and effusive greetings.

His instruments of power include a specially made walking stick (Ebela), a fly whisk (Eula) and a three-legged stool (Ekisala or Emaruk) on which nobody else is allowed to sit.

"The only person who can sit on this stool without consequences is my grandchild, nobody else is allowed, and our people understand that very well. The fly whisk can be used to bless or curse a subject. The walking stick doubles up as support and weapon depending on the circumstances," says Adungo.

"Before one is elected as the Emormor, he must go through initiation in one of our shrines in Northern Uganda known as Asapan."

Asapan, he explains, is administered by old men who have already undergone the initiation ceremony themselves.

Adungo says the Teso is made up of many sub-clans, offshoots of the six major clans: Ikatikok, Iraruok, Irarak, Igoria, Ikomolo and Ikinom. The Ikatikok are assigned leadership roles, Iraruok are fighters, Irarak hunters, Igoria builders, Ikomolo fortune tellers and the Ikinom are medicinemen.

Despite attachment to their culture, Adungo says the Iteso people are deeply religious and believe in God.

"We put God first in everything that we do. It is the reason that after the election, the Emormor is normally installed by the clergy," he says.

Emormor Emolot and Adungo have urged the government of Kenya to emulate Uganda and not just support but recognise cultural institutions and their value to national cohesion, promotion of societal values and tourism in the region.

The Maasai culture, for instance, is world-renowned and many tourists come to Kenya annually to sample that unique culture while also enjoying life in the Maasai Mara, Amboseli and other game parks.

In pre-colonial times, the Wanga, Abagusii, Ameru, Akamba, Mijikenda and Agikuyu had organised leadership structures.

"The government of Kenya gives us some support but should do more. In Uganda, there's an annual budget allocated for traditional institutions and every financial year, the government provides a car to traditional rulers and kings," Adungo says.