Uganda envoy to UK, Nimisha Madhvani, pays tribute to Queen

UGANDA'S high commissioner to the UK, Nimisha Madhvani, has paid tribute to the Queen following her death last Thursday (8).

Guests who gathered last weekend in Denham to mark the 50th anniversary of the expulsion of Asians from Uganda also paid tribute to the late Queen who Madhvani described as "a role model to so many of us".

She also thanked Ugandan president Yoweri Kaguta Museveni for sending a condolence message to King Charles III, the new monarch, and the Royal Family.

Museveni was scheduled to visit the UK for the anniversary event in London, and other appointments, but it was cancelled because of the Queen's death.

Madhvani recalled an editorial where Museveni recently paid tribute to the Queen, saying he had been following her leadership since 1952, when she became the monarch, initially through the media and later through direct interactions at Commonwealth heads of government meetings (CHOGMs).

Ugandan foreign minister Jeje Odongo, who spoke on behalf of the president last weekend, will represent Museveni at the Queen's funeral on Monday (19).

The gathering last weekend at the Anoopam Mission saw prominent Asians including Lord Dolar Popat, the UK's trade envoy to Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda; businessmen Harshad Modha and Sanjay Rughani; entrepreneur Satish Chatwani, among others, who have connections with Uganda.

Former Ugandan envoy to the UK, Joyce Kikafunda; Asian peer and business leader Lord Rami Ranger; Madhvani's uncle Mayur and brother Amit; and an Ugandan delegation including Cecilia Ogwal; ambassador Ocwet; and Odrek Rwabogo, presidential advisor for exports promotion, also attended the event. It was organised by Modha, Rughani, Harish Joshi, Satish Chatwani and Lord Popat.

Madhvani, who was a teenager when Amin ordered thousands of Asians to leave Uganda, said she was deeply humbled to represent the east African nation, called the 'Pearl of Africa', in the UK.

Ugandan foreign minister Jeje Odongo (third from left) with dignitaries such as Sanjay Rughani (extreme left) and Harshad Modha (second from left) in Denham on September 11 to commemorate 50 years of the expulsion of Ugandan Asians by former dictator Idi Amin.   (Picture: Karma PR)

"Yesterday’s refugee, an ambassador today. I feel intensely proud and privileged of my ancestral roots and the legacy left behind by my parents and ancestors. Together we can make a real and lasting difference to the lives and livelihoods of all people, not just those who happen to be from Uganda," she said.