The body of Ugandan-American journalist Shaka Ssali has been cremated (burnt into ashes) according to his will.
Relatives of Shaka Ssali were unhappy with a clause in his will in which he said that he wanted his body cremated.
But they had no option but to respect the will of the former host of Straight Talk Africa, a program that aired on the Voice of America.
Friends and relatives witnessed the cremation ceremony in Alexandria, Virginia in the United States.
Cremation is not a common practice among indigenous Ugandan communities like the Bakiga who prefer to honour and mourn their dead for days by conducting rites according to customs and tradition.
Shaka Ssali, popularly known as the Kabale Kid, was a Mukiga.
He was pronounced on March 25.
Following his cremation on April 09, his ashes will be thrown in River Potomac in Washington DC of the United States.
The remainder of the ashes will be flown to Uganda for burial at his birthplace in Kabale.
The cremation of Shaka Ssali’s body has left many Ugandans debating the pros and cons of cremation.
Some argued that it cuts the costs of expensive burials where in some cases the state comes in to spend hundreds of millions on the funerals of prominent Ugandans.
Funerals sometimes leave families in debts that they take many months to clear.
Perhaps as an indicator of how little Ugandans know about the practice of cremation, some even asked how cremated people will rise from the dead on the day of resurrection, an event that the Bible predicts.
You can read interesting things about the life and times of Shaka Ssali aka Kabale Kid Here.
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