MUSEVENI: RDCs, LCs should be at the frontline against corruption

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  President Yoweri Museveni has said the corrupt are parasites that delay and undermine the country’s transformation efforts, and has hailed religious leaders for speaking out against the vice.

” I was very happy to hear the religious leaders’ message of condemning corruption. Keep it up. The corrupt are parasites that delay and undermine our transformation efforts,” Museveni said in his Easter message to the country.

He however stressed that government created  Local Councils as a key anti-corruption structure that is not being fully used.

“Part of the problem is that this anti-corruption weapon is not used. If the elected people have become corrupt, why don’t the voters hold them accountable? The religious leaders could take an interest in this,” he said.

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EXCEPTS OF PRESIDENT’S EASTER MESSAGE

I was very happy to hear the religious leaders’ message of condemning corruption. Keep it up. The corrupt are parasites that delay and undermine our transformation efforts. However, I would like to inform the religious leaders that from the very beginning, the NRM was conscious of this problem. Indeed, in the 1960s, I was involved in fighting the corruption of the chiefs, the teachers misusing (defiling) school girls, vets and medical staff stealing government drugs, etc.

That is why, in addition to the administrative government structures of District Commissioner (DC), County chief, Gombolola chief, Muruka chief, etc., we empowered the People, the victims of the corruption most of the time because the money and resources stolen are meant for them, or they are forced to pay bribes, by giving them power to elect their own leaders to be the Nyamparas (overseers) of what the Government People (the administrators) are doing in their area- good or bad.

Why did we create the positions of LC V, Councillors, LC-3, LC-2 and LC-1s when we already had the DC, the Saza chief, the Gombolola chiefs and the Muruka Chief? Part of the problem is that this anti-corruption weapon is not used. If the elected people have become corrupt, why don’t the voters hold them accountable? The religious leaders could take an interest in this age.

The anti-corruption weapon is available in each locality. Use it. The RDCs that are selected by the President, should be the activists in checking what the CAOs, the Vets, the medical staff, the extension workers, etc., are doing. If they are not, it is the responsibility for the Ministry of the Presidency to inform me and I remove them. I do not have to talk about the MPs. That is part of their mandate.

Land grabbing is part of the corruption. The land grabbing is not happening on the moon. It is happening in a village, a parish, a sub-county, a constituency, a district, etc. There are structures – administrative, popular (elected), political (RDCs), security (DISOs, GISOs, etc.), and religious. All these have information that could help with these problems.

The religious leaders could also look at the issue of wealth creation and talk about it. It is not godly to have People who do not work and remain poor. The NRM formula for wealth creation is very well elaborated. Some of the religious leaders are actively involved in wealth creation. Bishop Ahimbisiibwe of South Ankole has set a good example with coffee. Bishop Rubaramira of Kabaale has set a good example with tea, although the prices of tea have come down recently. Arch-Bishop Odama has done a good job with cassava. The religious leaders could join us in passing out a harmonized message.

Then there is the danger of property fragmentation by the children following the death of the parents. This mistake in many parts of Uganda, has now created an LWD (land with disability) situation. In some areas they can no longer produce food, the fact that some of those areas are the most fertile on Earth, notwithstanding. The NRM always carries the burden of rescuing the families of Ugandans from poverty. That is why we are always talking about home income and Education for all. We are auditing our wealth creation activities in Rwakyitura and Kisozi. We shall join you in Kampala later. We shall report in detail about the audit.