Police were forced to use teargas canisters to disperse a huge crowd that had turned up to attend the burial of Ugandan legend Jimmy Kirunda.
Kirunda, who captained Uganda in the 1978 Africa Cup of Nations final, collapsed in Kampala on Monday and was later pronounced dead.
On Wednesday, during his burial held at Nature, Bulesa in Kyadondo, police had a difficult time to control the huge crowd which had turned up to bid farewell to the 70-year-old former footballer, who led Uganda to the 1978 Afcon final in Accra.
The surging crowd did not care about the social distancing rules, which were introduced in the country recently owing to the coronavirus pandemic, and the move forced his burial, which was earlier scheduled to take place at 10 am to be pushed to midday.
According to ChimpReports, Uganda Premier League (UPL) side Bright Stars coach Paul Kiwanuka, who was among the attendants, revealed some mourners were blocked from accessing the burial site.
However, Fufa officials led by Ahmed Hussein, Ali Mwebe, Ronnie Kalema, Ali Kalyango, and coaches led by Sam Ssimbwa, managed to pay their last respects to the legend before he was laid to rest.
The legendary player is remembered to have led the Cranes to the 1978 Afcon finals where, the national team settled for the silver medal after losing 2-0 to hosts, the Black Stars, a feat the country has not come close to replicate.
Kirunda ensured they overcame Tunisia, Morocco and Congo in Group B and entered the next phase as the best team of the group.
They won two matches, against Congo and Morocco, drew none and lost just one - to Tunisia - before edging Nigeria 2-1 in the semi-finals and booked the finals ticket against the hosts.
At club level, he will be remembered for his career at Express FC and KCC FC, where he notably won three league titles and two Uganda Cups, with SC Villa, where he added one league title and one Uganda Cup to his trophy room, as well as the Abu Dhabi Sports Club in the UAE.
Apart from the 1978 achievement, which is seen as the pinnacle of Kirunda's international career, he also won the Cecafa Cup with Uganda a record five times. He achieved the feat in 1969, 1970, 1973, 1976 and 1977.
