Summary:
- During a recent seven-day prayer session, Elwelu shared that Elohim Church received a prophecy revealing the shrine’s location as a source of hardship in Teso, symbolized by poverty, division, and violence.
KATAKWI: The Ongima initiation site, also known as Airiget Ongima, has long served as one of the largest initiation sites for cultural rites by the Iteso Cultural Union (ICU). Many politicians and individuals seeking leadership positions are known to partake in rituals at this site, which include the traditional spearing of a live bull and the symbolic consumption of its blood.
General Peter Elwelu, an overseer of Elohim Church, described the site—referred to as the “Alter Convent”—as a place consecrated for “dark powers” that influence the ICU’s leadership selection and ceremonial practices. He claimed that despite being a “chosen tribe,” the Iteso are held back by witchcraft rooted in cultural shrines like Ongima.
During a recent seven-day prayer session, Elwelu shared that Elohim Church received a prophecy revealing the shrine’s location as a source of hardship in Teso, symbolized by poverty, division, and violence. He denounced practices like the use of local grass called Emuria and urged politicians to avoid shrine rituals, advocating instead for spiritual guidance through prayer.
Elwelu emphasized that prayer would bring the Iteso people peace, good leadership, and prosperity. Bishop Israel Tukei of Light Resurrection Ministries urged Pentecostal churches and other denominations to continue praying for Teso, especially focusing on the Usuk Ongimakol and Okolimo initiation sites.
Apostle James Adupa of Christ Disciple Church, Ngora, encouraged unity within the Iteso tribe, stressing that they should work together and follow biblical guidance from scriptures such as Genesis 11:1-5, Judges 20:1-8,11, and 1 Corinthians 1:10, which all advocate for unity.
Reverend Father Patrick Acedu Opio, Dean of Katakwi Denary and parish priest of St. Ann Usuk, expressed appreciation for the prayer initiative. He noted that many initiation sites, like Okolimo in Usuk, had been dismantled through month-long prayer camps. He also called on Teso’s political leaders to seek blessings from the church rather than rely on shrine rituals for their roles.
Moses Odongo, archbishop and overseer of Ugandan Pentecostal churches, commended the effort to dismantle the “evil altar,” seeing it as a step toward building “God’s strong altars.”
He encouraged churches to continue replacing these sites with places of worship, as stated in 1 Samuel 15:21, and emphasized that removing dark altars supports the Iteso people without inhibiting genuine cultural traditions.
In a dramatic turn, residents reported the killing of a 20-meter-long snake with vibrant colors and two heads at the shrine, which some locals took as an ominous sign.
Community members acknowledged that the initiation site, where rituals had previously been performed by elders, politicians, and cultural leaders including former LC5 Katakwi Walter Elakas Okiring and the late Augustin Olemukol Osuban Emorimor Paul Sande Emolot, the Iteso Cultural Highness—had been a source of unease in the area.
