kabaka's palace in Buganda
Bulange was built in late fifties after Sir Edward Muteesa had come back from exile on October 17th 1955. He had been turned into a titular head and he wanted to separate Government from the Kabakaship. So Bulange which was in Lubiri, was taken out. As for Kabaka Mwanga ll, he built Mmengo palace. He also constructed Kabaka’s lake which is a tourist attraction. As for national voluntary service be during pre colonial or colonial periods like building the railway, it was good for patriotism. Even those underground tunnels you enjoy in The West were built by students on national service. China is still doing it. There was nothing bad Buganda was doing and Uganda should do so. When Henry Kajura, proposed for compulsory farming in homesteads as a way of fighting food insecurity and poverty, his idea was dismissed as colonial. Let’s not be populists for votes, where some homesteads have no pit latrines because Village chairpersons fear to loose votes. Pat chiefs could arrest them.
Bulange was built on tax payers’ money and voluntary contributions, as a seat of Buganda’s Parliament. After 1966/7 crisis, Obote sold it to Uganda Government and that was the money that built Masaka Municipal Council which was destroyed by Tanzanians in 1979, Mpigi District Administration block and some others. In 1993, Government gave it to the Kabaka of Buganda as a cultural property. Personally, that was a mistake. Bulange is a political property that should be restored to Buganda Government as a seat of Buganda Regional Assembly.Bulange is a Buganda Government property not a property of Uganda Government/Army or the Kabaka.
Buganda Land Board should also account for the money it collects. When Muliika asked for accountability, he was sacked! l disagree with Muliika politically but l think on that one, he had a point. As for federalism,Uganda ceased to be a unitary state in 1967 with decentralization entrenched in the constitution. Uganda was a unitary state from 1967 to 1995. Prior to that it was a quazi federal. It is now a quazi unitary. Uganda has never been a federal state
As far as Uganda house is concerned, there is no doubt that Milton Obote Foundation used tax payers’ money to build Uganda House, although there were some donations from Friedrick Ebert Foundation and voluntary contributions. Idi Amin used tax payers’ money to complete it. UPC won the case in 1995 but Baganda say “ekibi tekyogerwako enkolo mmere?”
Ahmed Katerega
Journalist/UAH forumist
Ekitibwa Kya Buganda 
I was the Resident Architect for the Bulange and left Uganda after my marriage there in Dec 1956
It was designed by Roger Freeman Architect of Cobb Powell & Freeman and to the Kabaka’s wish that it reminded him of his days at University and probably Sandhurst.
So the description given above is not correct as I was there with the Kabaka shortly after his return from exile by which time the main construction was complete, so it was started well before he went into exile.
During the time he was away I had close liason with the Buganda Ministers, especially Paulio Kavumo to ensure that their wishes were taken into account.
The Main contractor was Dilbagh Singh Bros of Nairobi.
The green roof tiles were imported from Belgium.
I worked up the detail design for the Spire with its copper cladding and climed the unsafe scaffolding to make sure it was properly bolted down.
I designed a lot of the interior fittings including the Kabaka’s and Speakers Chairs.
Also I arranged the opening ceremony and the Kabaka was given a special key in a wooden box, but it was only a token and when he placed it in the door I was inside to open it and let them all inside.
After the opening some locals got up into the roof space and fell through the ceiling and others walked over the carpet in the Lukiko Chamber leaving tar foot prints.
One main change made during the exile of the Kabaka was to have a gardem in front in place of a parade ground – and we had to explain that to His Highness !!