President Museveni used the occasion to call for peace and unity among the African people
President Museveni used the occasion to call for peace and unity among the African people
President Yoweri Museveni has urged the people of South Sudan to unite and work together for the benefit of all and for the nation to be able to attain national development, warning that tribalism and sectarianism are wrong ideologies that lead to suffering.
“South Sudan and Africa in general have suffered unnecessarily on account of wrong ideologies, this has caused a lot of damage to the people of Africa,” he said, adding that the ideology of tribalism and sectarianism is a wrong idea.
The President who was accompanied by the First Lady Janet Museveni was today speaking at the 4th independence anniversary celebration of the Republic of South Sudan at a colorful ceremony that took place at Dr. John Garanga memorial ground in Juba.
The ceremony was held under the theme, “Peace and Unity for the better South Sudan”.
While congratulating the people of South Sudan on their 4th anniversary on what he described as deliverance from slavery, President Museveni pointed at outsiders such as imperialists who had wrong ideas adding that when they came to Africa, they caused the continent a lot of problems. He said that Africans should know that imperialists also used internal weaknesses to divide Africa.
Addressing thousands of people who turned up for the celebrations, President Museveni used the occasion to call for peace and unity among the African people and reaffirmed his solidarity with the people of South Sudan saying that “as it was in the past, it is now and it shall be in future” attracting ululation from the crowd.
On his part president Salva Kiir Mayardit commended President Museveni and the Ugandan government for the solidarity and standing with the people of South Sudan.
He retaliated the need for peace and reconciliation for the benefit of all the people of South Sudan
The National Resistance Movement (NRM) party aspirants for various positions will begin picking nomination forms between July 14 and 31.
The National Resistance Movement (NRM) party aspirants for various positions will begin picking nomination forms between July 14 and 31.
The National Resistance Movement (NRM) party aspirants for various positions will begin picking nomination forms between July 14 and 31.
Tanga Odoi, the NRM Electoral Commission chairman made the disclosure yesterday, while addressing a press conference at the party headquarters on Plot 10 Kyadondo Road.
According to Mr Odoi, the NRM has introduced fees for all candidates who wish to hold office in the party, with those vying for chairmanship parting with Shs10 million. Similarly, those vying for party flag bearer for President of Uganda will also have to pay Shs10 million, while anyone who wishes to become the NRM Vice Chairperson will pay 5 million shillings, irrespective of their gender.
The National Vice Chairpersons for regions and five eminent persons nominated by the party chairman to the Central Executive Committee (CEC) will each pay 2.5 million shillings.
Any NRM member who wishes to contest for Lord Mayorship will pay 1.5 million shillings, while City division mayoral candidates under NRM will pay 1 million shillings.
Candidates for the LC 5 positions will pay 1 million shillings; those vying for Lord Councillorship will pay 200, 000 shillings each while the NRM District Chairpersons will pay 200, 000 shillings.
According to Odoi, the money will help instill a sense of responsibility and commitment to authority.
On twitter the NRM Deputy Spokesperson Ofwono Opondo disclosed that the party had opened an account with Centenary Bank A/C no.2910500001 under National Resistance Movement Electoral Commission, where aspirants are required to deposit their fees.
CALLED FOR EFFECTIVE CHECKS ON MONEY LAUNDERING IN EAC: BoU Governor Prof Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile.
However, the bank distanced itself from controls that can determine the exchange rate.
Following the unabated fall of value by the shilling against the dollar, the Bank of Uganda has come in to intervene and save the shilling.
In a statement signed by the BOU Director of Communications, Ms.Christine Alupo, the central bank intervened on the sale side of the interbank foreign exchange market.
Accordin to Ms Alupo, the Bank sold US dollars to the market in order to smoothen out excessive volatility in the movement of the exchange rate.
‘The intervention is intended to remove the spikes in the movement of the shilling against the dollar that have been observed lately in order to complement the intervention, the BOU has tightened shilling liquidity in the interbank market,’ the statement reads in part.
However, the bank distanced itself from controls that can determine the exchange rate.
‘The Uganda shilling exchange rate remains market determined and the bank does not target the level or direction of the exchange rate,’ the statement indicates.
Recently, the dollar hit the 3500 mark for the first time, disrupting business in the city as most traders yesterday locked their shops in protest; many claim that they pay rent in dollars which becomes inconveniening when the dollar fluctuates.
Many opposition members are being held in prisons on grounds of ‘wrongfully assembly
Many opposition members are being held in prisons on grounds of ‘wrongfully assembly
Peoples Development Party president Dr Abed Bwanika has called upon Ugandans to voice concern against the ill treatment of opposition politicians.
Mr. Bwanika, who was addressing the press in Kampala, urged politicians, religious leaders and other stakeholders to push for measures aimed at having a better country.
“Come and discuss the political situation in the country. Dialogue should be used, don’t keep quiet,’ he said.
Bwanika’s remarks come at a time when many opposition members are being held in prisons on grounds of ‘wrongfully assembly’ and he warned that if the habit of arresting those opposed to government continues, then the country will slide back into the 1985 chaos. “When doors of dialogue are closed, the doors of violence are opened,” he said adding: “We paid a huge price to liberate this country; we don’t want to go back to those bad days.”
He cautioned police not to misinterpret the phrase ‘regulation’ arguing that the Public Order Management Act, does not bar meetings. Bwanika further condemned the way in which former Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) president Dr. Kizza Besigye and former Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi were held today saying that every political leader must have access to the electorate.
“ The people of Uganda are not owned by anyone, they are not Museveni’s property,” Dr. Bwanika stressed.
He called upon the diplomatic circles to come out and rescue the country by condemning the way government treats those in opposition. “You need to engage the president; this is not the time for you to support him (Museveni),” he added.
The PDP will host its Delegates Conference in Masaka on 23 July. Dr. Abed Bwanika will also unveil his manifesto for next year’s elections.
BET Award-winning superstar Eddie Kenzo has been unveiled as the new Airtel ambassador.
Airtel Uganda Managing Director Mr Tom Gutjahr unveiled Kenzo at a press briefing held in Kampala saying the company chose latest Ugandan sensation because of what he stands for and the journey he has taken.
“He’s an example that anyone can be what he/she wants in this world,” he said.
In his address Kenzo, thanked his fans and Airtel for the support rendered to him and promised to help in changing lives in partnership with Airtel. “I want people to realize they can make their dreams come true, the time is now,” urged Kenzo.
Eddie Kenzo beat five candidates to the BET Award and since his return on Tuesday; many corporate companies have been in talks with him for his signature.
Mutebile was appointed the central bank governor because of his expertise in handling financial problems.
The Governor Bank of Uganda (BOU) has been criticized by Peoples Development Party (PDP) President Dr. Abed Bwanika for comments he recently made that he wouldn’t rescue the falling shilling.
Mr. Bwanika, who made these remarks while meeting with journalists in Kampala, said Mutebile was appointed the central bank governor because of his expertise in handling financial problems. “If he (Mutebile) is not willing to save the shilling then he must give the responsibility to someone who can,” Bwanika said.
He noted that the government has 4bn shillings in reserves and advised BOU to use some of that money to save the economy.
“This is time for reserves to help, if they can’t be used then they have no use,” he said, before attacking Parliament for failure to regulate the economy and to compel the BOU boss to execute his duties diligently. “It’s is your mandate to make sure that Mutebile performs,” noted Bwanika said and added: “Investors come here with nothing and leave our country carrying loads of money, that’s is not good.”
He warned that if the current situation goes on for the next three to four months, the country’s economy would be like that of Mobutu’s Zaire and Mugabe’s Zimbabwe.
Bwanika also warned Ugandans to cut on their expenses, saying the economy was collapsing. “Don’t spend like the economy is okay, wages are not increasing but inflation is up,” he warned adding: “ don’t spend so much because these are bad times.”
The Democratic Alliance, a loose coalition of opposition parties, politicians and civil society organizations has condemned the arrest of former Forum for Democratic Change president Dr Kizza Besigye, erstwhile Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi and other opposition members.
Mbabazi was arrested at the Jinja Bridge while on his way to Mbale, where he was to hold consultative meetings with his supporters about his presidential aspirations. He was whisked off to Kiira Police Station where he is being held. Dr. Kizza Besigye was arrested in Kasansgati as he attempted to leave his home and is being held at Nagalama Police Station in Mukono District. Also being held are FDC’s Secretary for Mobilization Ingrid Turinawe, Amama Mbabazi’s daughter Rachel, who is at Lugazi Police Station and Ahmed Washaki, a supporter of Mbabazi from Bungokho, Mbale District among others.
In a statement read by the TDA chairman for campaign strategy and coordination Mr Asuman Basalirwa, the group condemned the arrests, saying the police had acted unprofessionally.
Mr Basalairwa said both Mbabazi and Besigye had not committed any crime by aspiring for the presidency.
Quoting from the Presidential Elections Act, he noted that a presidential aspirant is not supposed to ask for permission from the Electoral Commission but rather is only required to write to inform the Commission about his or her aspirations. “The Electoral Commission can only write back in receipt of the letter but not asking a candidate to harmonize with his or her party,” Basalirwa, a lawyer, said while addressing journalists at the Eureka Place, in the Ntinda suburb, on the outskirts of Kampala.
“It is not the first time that Dr. Kizza Besigye is being arrested for no crime committed and if the regime in power pushes us to the walls we will be left with no solution but to call upon Ugandans to rise and fight against injustices that the regime is inflicting on us,” he said.
Basalirwa also explained that the activities of the The Democratic Alliance are concomitant with the agitation for electoral reforms.
“TDA is to give impetus for electoral reforms and as we prepare for the elections (even future ones) we must be on the path of electoral reforms,” he noted.
He also wondered why police was accusing Mr Mbabazi for not ‘harmonizing’ with his party but went ahead and arrested Dr Besigye who has harmonized his position with his party, the FDC.
Also in attendance were TDA stalwarts: former UPC President Olara Otunnu, Conservative Party chairman John Ken Lukyamuzi, former Vice President Gilbert Bukenya, civil society activist Godbar Tumushabe, and former Buganda Katikiro Joseph Mulwanyamuli Ssemogerere among others.
In his speech former vice president Gilbert Bukenya said that President Museveni’s government is in a state of collapse and that why they are panicking.
Giving an example of the events in Mbale yesterday, Prof Bukenya wondered why President Museveni and other NRM politicians go around campaigning but turn around and block opposition politicians from holding peaceful assemblies and demonsrations.
“If they think we are not politically strong then why are we not allowed to talk to the people and why do they beat our supporters like the police and army did when I went to Masaka recently?” He asked.
John Ken Lukyamauzi, said government had dilly-dallied with the issue of electoral reforms, adding that government was hell bent on holding unfair elections.
“I will raise a motion on the floor of Parliament to have the issue of electoral reforms resolved once and for all,” he promised, adding that there were several colleagues who shared the idea of having electoral reforms in the country.
Teen Challenge is the brainchild of American Rev. David Ray Wilkerson, an Evangelist who believed in the use of ministry to reach out to drug abusers and gang members
Teen Challenge is the brainchild of American Rev. David Ray Wilkerson, an Evangelist who believed in the use of ministry to reach out to drug abusers and gang members
There is something unique about the two rehabilitation centres run by Teen Challenge Uganda: Kigoowa in Ntinda, Kampala and the other centre in Gulu use spiritual intervention to treat individuals with addiction problems.
Teen Challenge, which has been operating in Uganda for five years now, also looks out for particular needy individuals in different communities or neighborhoods in Uganda. Of course there are a number of organizations that carry out almost similar activities like Teen Challenge such as Serenity Center or even the more well-known Butabika Hospital, but the difference lies in the fact that Teen Challenge does not believe in the administration of drugs or medication to support the recuperation of individuals with illnesses or addictions, instead they believe in the use of spirituality, particularly Christianity, in the treatment of individuals.
Teen Challenge is the brainchild of American Rev. David Ray Wilkerson, an Evangelist who believed in the use of ministry to reach out to drug abusers and gang members, leading to the formation of a unique bible-based recovery program for addicts and delinquents.
Wilkerson, who passed on 1n 2011 aged 80, was the founder of the ‘non-denominational’ Times Square Church in New York and was also known for his bestselling book ‘The Cross and the Switchblade’.
Mr. Ivan Mpiira, the Men’s Director at Teen Challenge Uganda is responsible for the welfare of all male in-patients at the rehabilitation center and sheds a little more light on the process of recovery of individuals who are in need of rehabilitation. He emphasises the need for the patient to accept that they have a problem and are in need of help or assistance; it is at this point that the rehabilitation process begins, with those taken on paying a minimum fee of shs350, 000 a month for the rehabilitation period that runs for one year.
According to Mr Mpiira, a number of activities are involved in the rehabilitation process among them equipping the patients with life skills like computer use, tailoring and how to make liquid soap.
“These activities help to keep them busy; they help re-develop their mind of thinking…alternative to being idle which will without a doubt make the patient relapse since these drugs were a pastime before they became addicts,” explains Mr Mpiira.
Mr Mpiira, himself no stranger to addiction says: “I too reached a point in my life where I was devastated, heartbroken, frustrated this led me to addiction…I was labeled worthless, this was because of my actions; however when I came to Teen Challenge they changed my life because they saw my value and showed me love.”
Asked why at Teen Challenge the use of medication is not encouraged, he said Christianity and spirituality allow and individuals to think differently and thus act accordingly.
At Teen Challenge, he said, they believe that Christian-oriented transformation begins with rejuvenation of the mind, with love as the pivot aspect. “A mistake does not eliminate potential but just merely covers it. We focus on showing these patients their true value and thus giving them self-worth through love” says Mr Mpiira.
In fact Teen Challenge also carries out ‘aftercare’, where the organization stays in touch with the transformed patient since they believe that they are family. And in some instances the organization also retains some individuals like Mr Mpiira, in the hope that they can impact others facing addiction problems. “Here we aim at reforming a person as well as creating a generation that will impact others” he says.
Ben Paul Mugyereza, a parent of one of the patients at Teen Challenge says his son has started changing his way of thinking and has begun managing his life.
“He’s started seeing a life of thinking; he is now looking at the future and wants to also impact someone’s life and help someone overcome a problem,” Mr Mungyereza says of his son Rodney Aijuka.
And Aijuka is positive, admitting that since he joined Teen Challenge in February his life has changed.
“I used to be a drunk and also got involved in drugs, but ever since I came to this place my life has changed; I can say now I have experienced real life, unlike before where I was intoxicated and my mind elsewhere,” says Aijuka, who completes his rehabilitation course next year in February and plans to join Ministry right after.
Teen Challenge also recently started up a similar centre for women in Kulambiro, Ntinda of Nakawa Division that has been running for one year.
Teen Challenge, an organization that also opens its doors for the destitute after assessing their moral aptitude, depends on donations from several organizations, selling clothes and the fees paid by the in-patients.
Meanwhile, the organization is currently organizing a charity walk in Gulu to bring attention to their activities in northern Uganda and also to raise funds to open up another home in the area.
There will also be a fundraising dinner dubbed ‘Dine For Gulu” on October 24, with a ticket selling at shs100, 000, and the proceeds channeled into building a men’s home in Gulu. For more information about Teen Challenge and what they are all about you can visit their website at teenchallenge-uganda.org.
The Anti-Corruption Coalition of Uganda has come out and openly advocated for our Members of Parliament to be paid according to their output. This demand is long overdue! The cardinal responsibilities of any parliamentarian are to legislate, make laws and play an oversight role over the Executive. Instead, it is said our legislators spend most of their time attending funerals, weddings, church fundraisers and some other local functions, in a bid to ‘please’ their constituents, with the hope of being re-elected in the future.
Those activities are neither illegal nor immoral but are a betrayal of the same people who entrusted the MPs with the responsibility of ensuring a fair and just society in which constitutionalism flourishes.
The issue of absenteeism from the House has attracted several people’s attention, among Speaker Rebecca Kadaga and her Deputy Jacob Oulanyah, the deputy Leader of Government Business General Moses Ali, and the Inspector General of Government Lady Justice Irene Mulygonja, both of who have described the MPs’ actions as ‘corrupt’.
Some time back Speaker Kadaga was berating then Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi for paralyzing work in the august house by failing to bring Government bills on the floor of Parliament for debate. She seemed honest in her submission.
But today, about a year since Mbabazi was relieved of his station as leader of government business, the situation in Parliament still seems bleak, with most of the MPs turning villain by absenting themselves and only turning up in the Banks to get their full pay. So recalcitrant have they become that it is not surprising anymore for one to see several empty benches, a situation that has at times prompted the Speaker to adjourn proceedings, causing a logjam that affects government programmes and service delivery. Moreover, in the worst case scenario, there have also been complaints about Parliament reportedly passing laws without quorum, a serious breach of parliamentary procedure and etiquette!
So, since most MPs seem to have abdicated their responsibilities, it is time they are paid by the hour earned, only then will we be able to instill that moral fibre of responsibility that seems to be absent in our parliamentarians.
Thanks ACCU for raising this serious matter of national importance.
The migration of health workers from East Africa presents a critical challenge to the provision of healthcare and is a growing concern that urgently needs to be addressed.
Dr James Mwanzia, Chief of Party Funzo Kenya, IntraHealth (USAID), said East African countries need to address the issue of migration of health workers.
“In order to achieve Universal Health Coverage, we must ensure an adequate workforce in terms of their availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality. We must, therefore, seriously address the issue of migration of health workers,” Dr Mwanzia noted.
He revealed that the current retention rate of healthcare workers in East Africa is less than the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations and that remedial measures need to be adopted.
“Certain retention strategies can be put in place to address the loss of medical talent such as scaling up the training of nurses and clinical officers, continually investing in staff recognition and motivation, improving human resources management policies, practices, governance, using salary survey results and recommendations to review their structures, staff motivation, retention, and teamwork, and institutionalizing staff exit feedback and acting on issues,” says Dr Mwanzia, ahead of the Healthcare Management Conference at Medic East Africa, slated forSeptember 1-3.
