(Apollo) Milton Obote - Early life and first presidency, Second term, Death in exile

Ugandan statesman, prime minister (1962–71), and president (1967–71, 1981–5), born in Lango, Uganda. He studied at Makerere College, Kampala, was elected to the Legislative Council (1957), founded the Uganda People's Congress (1960), and became leader of the opposition (1961–2). At independence in 1962 he became the new nation's first prime minister. In 1966 he mounted a coup, deposed King Mutesa II, declared a republic, and made himself executive president. In 1971 he was, in turn, deposed by Idi Amin, and took refuge in Tanzania. After Amin's removal in 1979, he was re-elected president in 1981. Ousted by Brigadier Basilio Okello in 1985, he was granted political asylum in Zambia where he remained until his death. His body was returned to Uganda for burial.

Apollo Milton Opeto Obote (December 28, 1924 – October 10, 2005), Prime Minister of Uganda 1962-1966 and President of Uganda 1966-1971/1980-1985, was a Ugandan political leader who led Uganda to independence from the British colonial administration in 1962. Obote was mentor to all the presidents that succeded him, including Idi Amin and Yoweri Museveni, and is considered to be the founding father of independent Uganda.

Early life and first presidency

Milton Obote was born at Akokoro village in Apac district in northern Uganda. At Makerere Obote honed his natural oratorial skills, but was expelled for participating in a student strike (Obote claimed he left Makerere voluntarily). Upon returning to Uganda, he joined the political party Uganda National Congress (UNC) in 1955, and was elected to the colonial Legislative Council in 1958. In 1959, the UNC split into two factions, with one faction under the leadershiop of Obote merging with Uganda People's Union to form the Uganda People's Congress (UPC).

After several years as head of the opposition, Obote formed a coalition with the Buganda royalist party, Kabaka Yekka, and was elected prime minister in 1961. The following year, he deposed Queen Elizabeth II as Ugandan head of state, and Edward Mutesa II, the kabaka (king) of Buganda, became the ceremonial president, with Obote as executive prime Minister.

As prime minister, Obote was implicated in a gold smuggling plot, together with Idi Amin, then deputy commander of the Ugandan armed forces. When the Parliament demanded an investigation of Obote and the ousting of Amin, he suspended the constitution, abolishing the roles of leaders of Uganda's five tribal kingdoms and giving himself almost unlimited power under state-of-emergency rulings; Obote's judiciary cleared him of the gold-smuggling charges, but the episode created tensions between him and Mutesa, who was critical of Obote for suspending the constitution.

Second term

After Idi Amin was ousted in 1979 by Tanzanian forces aided by Ugandan exiles, Uganda was governed by an interim Presidential Commission before elections.

It has been estimated that 100,000 to 300,000 people died as a result of fighting between Obote's Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA) and the guerrillas.

Obote was deposed again, on 27 July 1985, by his own army commanders Brigadier Bazilio Olara-Okello and General Tito Okello in a military coup.

Death in exile

After his second downfall, Obote fled to Tanzania and later to Zambia. In September 2005, it was reported that Obote would return to Uganda before the end of 2005.

On 10 October, Obote died of kidney failure in a hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Milton Obote was given a state funeral, attended by president Museveni in the Ugandan capital Kampala in October 2005, to the surprise and appreciation of many Ugandans, since he and Museveni were bitter rivals.

On November 28, his wife Miria Obote was elected UPC party president.