Widespread discontent with this action forced the British government to backtrack, resulting in the restoration of Mutesa as specified in the Buganda Agreement of 1955, which ultimately shaped the nature of Ugandan independence.
[2] This resulted, among other things, in the creation of the East Africa High Commission and Central Legislative Assembly in 1948, with competence in certain areas (such as integration of the various railway networks).
[4] The incident served to crystallise animosity and apparent slights dating back to the 1900 Agreement, and prompted widespread calls among the Baganda for Bugandan independence as the only protection against British overreach.
[4][6] A reply from the Secretary of State attempting to reassure Mutesa and his Ministers that "the inclusion of the Uganda Protectorate in any such federation is outside the realm of practical politics at the present time" served only to fan the flames.
[7] Frustrated, Cohen told Mutesa that continuing to agitate against the British vision of a single Ugandan state constituted a breach of the 1900 Agreement,[7] as well as a repudiation of the joint declaration of March 1953,[5] and that he had five weeks to reconsider.
[5] This intransigence prompted Cohen to hand him a letter at a final meeting on 30 November 1953 confirming that, under the provisions of Article 6 of the 1900 Agreement, the British Government was withdrawing its recognition of him as the legitimate ruler of Buganda.
[10] This emotional response, rooted in the centrality of the Kabaka to Bugandan life rather than the personal popularity of Mutesa, took Cohen by surprise and the British struggled to find a way to counter-act it.