Who is Lillian Aber? Flash Uganda Media looks at her biography, age, husband, family, tribe, achievements, and relationship with Bosmic Otim, Hon. Ojara Martin Mapenduzi, Uganda National Student’s Association, Posta Uganda Limited Board of Directors and the NIISP Select Committee, Laber Foundation, the early life and education of the current Woman MP of the Kitgum District in Uganda.
Lillian Aber is a Ugandan politician, youth leader and activist.
Dr Lillian Aber is the women’s representative for Kitgum District in Uganda’s 11th Parliament.
She was Makerere University’s Vice Guild President for 2014/15 and Uganda National Students Association (UNSA)’s President for 2015/16.
Early Life and Education
Lillian Aber was born in Kitgum and raised by a single mother. She is a sister to Loum Janani and a mother of two children.
She went to Holy Rosary Primary School and later joined Peace Primary School after her mother got involved in an accident and could not afford her school fees.
Due to the long distance between the school and home, her mother took her and her brother to Kasubi Army Primary School where she completed her primary education.
Her grandmother then took her to the Late Rev Oketayot who offered her a scholarship to join Issoke Memorial College in Kitgum.
She met the late Mr. Lazarus Ocira whom she later got married to at a young age.
Aber dropped out of school in senior three due to a teenage pregnancy and she gave birth to her first child at the age of seventeen.
Mr. Lazarus Ocira took her back to school at Old Kampala Secondary School after she had delivered and she was able to complete her secondary education here.
Meanwhile, Lillian had all along been interested in leadership roles. She was appointed as the class prefect in Primary three, and she competed for the position of head girl in Primary six and Senior three.
In 2012, she enrolled at Makerere University to pursue a bachelor’s degree in English Language and Communication at the School of Humanities and Literature.
She then got a Master of Public Administration and Management from Makerere University and a Master of Business Administration in Oil and Gas from Uganda Christian University.
Education background summary
| Years | Institution | Status /Award |
| Kasubi Army Primary School | PLE | |
| Old Kampala Secondary School | UCE & UACE | |
| 2012 – 2015 | Makerere University | Bachelor’s degree in English Language and Communication |
| Makerere University | Master of Public Administration and Management | |
| Uganda Christian University | Master of Business Administration in Oil and Gas |
Other academic accomplishments
She was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humanities by Zeo Life Theological College in the United States in 2019.
Career and Professional Work Experience
In her first year at Makerere University, Lillian Aber ran for GRC and was appointed Information Minister in the government of HE Adeke Anna Ebaju.
She mustered the courage to run for Guild president in 2014, but given the dynamic, a male leader was more desired than replacing a lady with a lady.
HE Bowwe Ivan, the elected guild president then, appointed her as his Vice Guild President. This led to the beginning of her involvement in national politics.
Lillian Aber successfully ran for President of the Uganda National Student’s Association in 2015 making her the first female President.
During this time, she was appointed by the President to work as the State House’s Private Secretary for Youth.
Later, when Aber ran for the National Youth Council chairpersonship, she switched parties from the Forum for Democratic Change to the National Resistance Movement.
In November 2015, she garnered 119 votes, more than George Abudul’s 105, to win this seat.
In 2016, the youth made history again by electing her as the first female president of the National Youth Council of Uganda.
She ran for the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) in 2016 but was unsuccessful.
Aber was elected to the Kitgum District women’s representative seat in January 2021. She won with 41,192 votes against Roselyn Alanyo Olobo of the Uganda People’s Congress and Norah Odokorach, an independent candidate.
She took over for Margaret Lamwaka Odwar, who moved to Chua East Constituency.
Work experience background summary
| Years | Institution | Position |
| 2015 | Uganda National Student’s Association | President |
| 2016 | National Youth Council of Uganda | President |
| 2021 | Parliament of Uganda | Kitgum District women’s representative |
Other Career accomplishments
Lillian Aber is a UN youth delegate and a top presidential advisor on youth. She formerly served as the partnerships and advocacy representative for the Commonwealth Students Association.
In 2018, she became a member of the Ugandan constitutional review team.
Hon. Lillian Aber donated medical supplies to the Kitgum Health Department in June 2021.
Three oxygen cylinders, 2,100 litres of sanitiser, 5,000 disposable face masks, and 60 temperature guns are among the equipment that she gave.
The medical supplies were intended to aid the district’s health department in its efforts to combat the second wave of COVID-19.
Achievements and Awards
Lillian Aber was the first female president of the Uganda National Youth Council and Uganda National Student’s Association.
She is a member of the Posta Uganda Limited Board of Directors and the NIISP Select Committee.
Aber is also the founder and director of the Laber Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Kitgum.
Controversies
Northern Uganda’s legendary musician and politician, Bosmic Otim accused Hon. Ojara Martin Mapenduzi, Hon. Aber Lillian, Nabinson Kidega Nok, and Hon. Opiyo of betraying and facilitating the sale of Acholi property (land, houses and charcoal burning in the sub-region).
Bosmic Otim released a video in which he described how Hon Aber Lillian was being used by a Rwandese soldier named David to bring Balalo to Acholi land.
