A dying civil servant instructed his wife to bury him
with $55,000, which he intended to appease God to
forgive his earthly sins. The civil servant, a Ugandan was 52-year-old, when
he died. His metallic coffin cost $5,500. Identified as
Charles Obong, he was a senior personnel officer at
the Ministry of Public Service for a decade (2006 –
2016). His son-in-law confirmed that his will stated that his
wife should deposit a huge amount of money in his
coffin, which in Ugandan money was 200 million
shillings. The money was to be given to God on the Day of
Judgment as an offertory so that his sins could be
forgiven. Even though the exact sin was not stated,
he asked his brother and sister to ensure that his
wife does as he instructed. Uganda’s Daily Monitor said that Obong died on
December 17, 2016 after a protracted illness and
was buried in his ancestral home in the northern
Lira district of the country. His will was however ‘violated’ even before his
burial. Part of the money he saved for the bribery to God,
was stolen from the safe where he kept it and only
$5,700 was found in his coffin when it was
exhumed. The Monitor quoting a source close to Margaret,
Obong’s wife said the huge sum of money
disappeared from the safe. The deceased’s brother Justin Ngole said the theft
was reported to police. Meanwhile, $5,700 recovered from the coffin after
the exhumation of Obong’s body, has been
handed to the deceased’s family. Burial is a lavish ceremony in Uganda and it has an
official seal.