Nalongo Kaweesi laid to rest
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I The burial of Nalongo Maggie Salha Kaweesi on Saturday was overshadowed by a bitter clash between the Mayanja family and TikTok users, with the family accusing some social media personalities of exploiting the grief of her orphaned children instead of allowing them to mourn in peace.
Kaweesi, the widow of late dancehall musician Emmanuel Mayanja, popularly known as AK47, was laid to rest at her ancestral home in Kibbugga Village, Butambala District, six days after she died at Mengo Hospital following health complications.
The funeral brought together relatives, friends, political leaders and some of Uganda’s biggest music stars, but the emotional farewell was punctuated by a strong rebuke from AK47’s mother, Proscovia Musoke, commonly known as Mama Mayanja, who condemned what she described as cyberbullying of her grandchildren.
Kaweesi leaves behind three children, including twins she had with AK47. The children had already lost their father in March 2015 after he collapsed at a bar in Kansanga, and her death has now left them completely orphaned.
Orphans narrate ordeal
The emotional atmosphere deepened when the children addressed mourners, recalling the pain of losing both parents within 11 years.
Many mourners were moved to tears as the children struggled to speak during the final farewell to their mother.
However, it was Mama Mayanja’s emotional address that turned attention to the growing influence of social media during moments of personal tragedy.
She accused some TikTok users of harassing the children after videos of them mourning their mother circulated online.
According to Mama Mayanja, several content creators and social media commentators criticized the children for not displaying enough emotion in public, questioning why they were not seen crying openly.
“To you the TikTokers, I repeat, you need to style up. How can you harass a young child like this? What do you expect him to say? If he’s not crying publicly about the death of his mother, is it a crime? Some people grieve at heart, not wailing dramatically like some of you do,” she said.
Her remarks were met with applause from mourners, many of whom agreed that children should not be subjected to public scrutiny while dealing with such devastating loss.
Social media inconsiderate
Mama Mayanja urged social media users to respect the privacy of grieving families instead of creating content aimed at attracting online attention.
She appealed to the public to allow the children to process their grief without pressure to demonstrate their emotions for cameras or satisfy the expectations of strangers on the internet.
The confrontation reflects growing concerns about the role of social media during funerals and other sensitive family occasions, where live streams, short videos and online commentary have increasingly become part of public mourning.
For the Mayanja family, Saturday’s burial became an opportunity to speak out against what they described as the commercialization of grief through social media platforms.
Despite the controversy, the funeral attracted hundreds of mourners, including several prominent figures from Uganda’s entertainment industry who came to comfort the family.
Among those in attendance were musicians Sheebah Karungi, Lydia Jazmine and Weasel Manizo of the Radio and Weasel duo, all of whom joined relatives in paying tribute to Kaweesi.
Members of the larger Mayanja family were also present throughout the burial ceremony, standing in solidarity with the orphaned children during one of the family’s most difficult moments.
Minister Nameere stand with mourners
Minister Justine Nameere, who is related to the deceased, attended the funeral and offered support to the bereaved family. Earlier in the week, she had announced Kaweesi’s death and contributed Shs 1.8 million towards transport arrangements for mourners travelling to Butambala.
Kaweesi had remained in the public eye following the death of AK47, raising their children while navigating life as a single mother. She later entered a relationship with fellow musician Rabadaba, although the two eventually separated.
Following news of her death on July 20, tributes poured in from musicians, media personalities and fans, many praising her resilience and dedication to raising her children after the death of AK47.
As the casket was finally lowered into the ground in Kibbugga Village, mourners struggled to hold back tears, bringing to a close another painful chapter for the Mayanja family.
Yet beyond the sorrow and heartfelt tributes, the funeral also highlighted an increasingly contentious issue in Uganda’s digital age—how grief is consumed and judged on social media. For the Mayanja family, the final send-off for Nalongo Maggie Kaweesi became not only a farewell to a beloved mother but also a public appeal for compassion, dignity and respect for bereaved families navigating loss away from the glare of online criticism.
