By Eriah Lule
So much likens him to William Wilberforce, the great English legislator whose Christian
convictions made to fight to his last breath for social justice causes. Reverend Liberty Muhereza,
38, an alumnus of UCU is the Country Director of African Leadership and Reconciliation
Ministries (ALARM) Organization based in Ntinda, a suburb of Kampala. It is a Not-for-profit
that deals “Conflict resolution, Servant leadership development, social Justice and Reconciliation
and Community transformation.
“Since childhood as a young man, all I ever dreamt was people getting equity and Justice,” was
the statement, in an un-minced words, from the cleric, whose anthems are the Gospel of Jesus
Christ and Social Justice.
A graduate of UCU Law School, besides Faculty of Theology, Muhereza, would perhaps be
actively working in an Advocacy firm, had he not grown a bias toward legal firms where he has
been witness to unfair treatment and exploitation of junior by their seniors. Hence he opted just
early enough (after undergrad school) to work for Not-for-profits. He believes serving at the
latter is enabling him make more meaningful impact on his community
ALARM is a Christian organization that was birthed in 1996 by Rev. Dr. Celestine Musekura,
after the Rwandese Genocide, which left 800,000 “brutally slaughtered in 100 days”, according
to World Vision statistics. It operates in six countries of the Great Lake’s region namely,
Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, South Sudan and Uganda where it
started in 2002.
The father of two started working with ALARM upon completion of his Diploma from the
Uganda Law Development Center. Then, he was head of the Peace and Justice Department.
While heading that department, Liberty registered a significant achievement; he designed a
module on social justice that was fixed in the curriculum of the Uganda Police Force. All new
entrants in the forces are subjected to the curriculum, till-date, while in Police academies.
Police being a major enforcer of social justice in most States, ALARM found it necessary to and
does train junior and senior command staff of the Uganda Police in servant leadership
Development, Peace Justice and Reconciliation. Furthermore, the not-for-profit mentors a
fraternity of Uganda Christian Lawyers.
As a Country Director, he has successfully created partnerships with Civil Society Organizations,
Government agencies and several churches around Uganda to train Pastors or Church leaders
from all Christian dominations including Church of Uganda, the Roman Catholic Church, and
Pentecostal Churches.
In their community restoration scheme, ALARM has not forgotten war-ravaged Northern
Uganda. They have established a vocational school called ALARM Technical Institute in Pader
District, in Northern Uganda, to equip former child soldiers, wives of soldiers, illiterate teenagers
with self-sustenance skills.
“Youth are empowered with skills like carpentry, computer skills, building and concrete practice,
electrical installation and many more in order to establish a job creating generation than a
seeking generation,” says Rev. Muhereza who is also the Board Chairman of the institute.
He resigned from his job as head of the Peace and Justice Department in 2015, to embark on a
scholarship to pursue his Masters in Divinity at UCU. Now a clergy at All Saints Nakasero in the
Diocese of Kampala. However, it was due to his exceptional service in the department he had
previously headed at ALARM that Muhereza was called back on duty as Country Director, a
positions he holds till date.
This position has helped Liberty Network, get Exposure and minister as priest to his subordinates
and people met in field. Since he is full time at ALARM and partly at the Cathedral, he decided
that he render a non-stipendiary service to the Cathedral, something which he delights in doing.
“Attending UCU empowered my Christian values and leadership skills through the various
experiences I had with shared with friends and staff at the faculties to which I belonged,” says
Muhereza, who was a fellowship leader, choir master and also involved in various ministries on
campus during his undergraduate days.
Currently Liberty is a board member of Hope Children’s home, a not-for-profit that looks after
underprivileged children. He is the General Secretary of Uganda Christian Lawyers Fraternity, a
not-for-profit, of Legal Board and also is serving Board chairman of Fashion and Compassion,
an organization that empowers women with skills for economic development.
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