The National Economic Empowerment Dialogue (NEED) leader Joseph Kabuleta has rallied the people of West Nile to unite and work together if they are to overcome the economic challenges they face in the sub region.
Kabuleta made the call last Friday while traversing the West Nile sub region. The former presidential candidate is currently on nationwide sensitization campaign premised on protecting Uganda’s national deposits that could be used by citizens to elleviate themselves from poverty.
He said all the problems West Nile and other sub regions are facing are due to bad leadership.
“I have discovered that the problems facing all the sub regions we have been to and probably those we are going to are the same, only spoken in different languages. Like in other sub regions, West Nile is also faced with poverty, unemployment, poor quality education among other problems and its all caused by bad leadership,” Kabuleta affirmed.
“If you’re to develop, you should first know that all our problems are the same and we are all affected the same way.You should unite if we are to overcome the problems we face as ordinary Ugandans. That’s how you will survive poverty.”
He also suggested that before resources are taken to the national cake level, the indigenous people where they come from should first have a fair share. According to Kabuleta, this would help the locality to empower and enrich itself economically.
The politician further cautioned the people of West Nile against asking for a Minister in charge of their sub region because they will gain nothing from such an establishment apart from creating more avenues that could be used by the government to steal their resources.
“You should look at the kind of leadership that transforms your economic lives because you see some of you say we need a minister in charge of West Nile Affairs; that has not helped Bunyoro, Karamoja or Luwero and all other places that had Ministers. Actually they just use ministers to steal resources more,” Kabuleta warned.
“There are more important things like how do you stake a claim to your resources and the most important thing, don’t think that these resources belong to someone else, these resources belong to you and you should demand for them. There’s the difference between asking and demanding. As NEED, we are here to teach you how to demand not to ask because asking does not yield anything. In life you do not get what you deserve, you get what you bargain for and bargaining sometimes involves creating scenarios where somebody has to sit at a table and listen to you and I hope that after this, you will unite as people and get to understand that you have a big say in your well-being.”
NEED, a political movement under the stewardship of Kabuleta has so far managed to spread the economic empowerment message to Buganda, Bugisu, Bukedi, Teso, Sebei, Lango, Acholi and West Nile sub-regions.
