Traditional Leaders Profiles
His Majesty Victor Oduho Lomiluk Lohide, King of
the Latuka, Torit, Eastern Equatoria
‘Some fighting motivated
by traditions, some fighting motivated by idle people.’
King Victor Oduho Lomiluk Lohide is proud of his people,
the Latuka, and the 30 villages of his kingdom. ‘The
Latukas are people who can understand. They are friends of
people who can be encouraged.’ On the positive side,
he says, ‘the biggest problem of the Latuka is not so
big!’ More negatively, ‘[it has encouraged] different
tribes to invade, for divisions in the kingdom to occur during
my great-grandfather’s reign.’
Like the story of his kingdom, the life of the 12th Latuka
king has been similarly bifurcated. His mother, an Acholi
princess, died in his early childhood. His father, King Omiluk
Lohide, was an iconic leader who opposed the proposed independence
plans for Sudan, walked out of the Juba Round Table Conference
in 1947, and groomed future leaders like Joseph Odiego. ‘He
[my father] was concerned, because there were very few educated
people in the South. In 1952, the chiefs were taken to Khartoum,
where it was said that a federal government was needed. Most
chiefs accepted this but he did not.’
King Omiluk was imprisoned in Torit in 1954, and in 1955
the nine year old heir and his other brothers and sisters
went into exile in Uganda, where Victor began to attend school,
reaching the 2nd year of senior secondary school in Gulu.
‘In 1959, my father died, and my uncle became king
because I was too young. My older brother brought me back
to Sudan in 1962, but when the war intensified I returned
to Uganda.’
The court of King Solomon Oliha was eventually forced to
hide in the hills of Eastern Equatoria, and in 1969, Victor,
by now a young man, left for Khartoum, intent on studying
business and economics. ‘People saw my name and blocked
my path to education, so I went to work as a storekeeper,
in Wau, Renk, Aweil, with the ministry of agriculture.’
Resigning from government service and returning to Juba in
1984, Victor was aware of the suffering of his people. ‘Villages
near Torit were a target. But people stayed to support the
SPLA.’ Soon, this would be his immediate concern: his
uncle, King Solomon, died in 1985, and Victor was inaugurated
as king. ‘I am still taking care of my father’s
wives, in addition to my 4 wives and 20 children. For me,
education is the most important thing. When we have an educated
class, everything will become normal and people will live
in harmony. Even before peace, I encouraged people to build
schools, even in the bushes.’
‘With courage, with knowledge, people will adhere to
the leadership. Some fighting motivated by traditions, some
fighting motivated by idle people. It is only the politicians
that bring chaos. [While in the three countries there are]
so many similarities, [I am concerned that the] judiciaries
have all been taken to government.’
As king, Victor has placed a high priority on befriending
the other tribes, especially the Lano and the Lopit, with
whom the Latuka share the same language. ‘The most dangerous
thing now is tribalism. We need self-reliance, but your prayers
will [only] be heard when you are together,’ he says.
