SPEECH BY PRESIDENT YOWERI KAGUTA MUSEVENI

ON THE OCCASION TO MARK UGANDA`S 55th

INDEPENDENCE ANNIVERSARY

Monday 9th October 2017

PRESIDENT MUSEVENI

HH the Aga Khan;

H.E. the Vice President;

The Right Hon. Speaker of Parliament;

Hon. Chief Justice;

The Rt. Hon. Prime Minister;

Cabinet Ministers;

Members of Parliament;

Your Excellencies, the Ambassadors and High Commissioners;

Ladies and Gentlemen.

I would like to take this opportunity to salute and congratulate

all Ugandans on the occasion of marking Ugandas 55th
Independence Anniversary.

I wish to welcome all our foreign friends and guests to this

Independence Day Celebrations in Bushenyi.

In particular, I would like to welcome our Guest of Honour, HH

Aga Khan. His community, the Ismailis, have for a long time
contributed to the Economy of Uganda.

In my village of Ntungamo from the time of my grandfathers,

there were four Indian families, all of them apparently Ismaili,
that provided us with all the shop goods textiles (emyeenda),
cattle salt (omwoonyo), parafffin (amashita getaala),
bicycles (amaagari), some cattle drugs (gamatox, etc), scholastic
materials (exercise books, pens, pencils, etc), some non-
prescription human drugs (aspro, de-wormers, etc), suitcase
(eshanduuko, etc), etc., etc.

This gave us time to concentrate on our cattle, goats and

crops. The Ismaili families in Ntungamo were: Budala (Abdallah);
Haali (Ali) and his mother, Nyina-Haali (the mother of Ali); and
Hadi (Hadji). In 1956, they were joined by two Yemeni Arabs
(Abasiiri Washihiri). These were: Bumbakare (Abubakar) and
another one.

The colonization and domination of Africa by the imperialist

forces remains one of the most significant historical disruptions
of Africas progress.

Apart from undermining the right of the Africans to self-

determination, the period of colonial rule was characterized by
deliberate efforts to destroy indigenous skills, knowledge and
technology. Yet all civilization, the world over, has always been
built around knowledge, science and technology.

At the time of colonization, Africa had made significant strides in

the development of knowledge, science and technology. For
example, we already had Geologists capable of discerning rocks
with iron or copper. We also had skilled craftsmen who were able
to make useful implements from these metals.

However, by the time Africa freed herself from the yoke of

colonialism, crucial indigenous knowledge had been lost.
Achieving independence from foreign domination was, therefore,
a significant opportunity towards self-determination and socio-
economic transformation of Africa.

Todays occasion should, therefore, not be merely a

celebration for regaining our freedom but also an opportunity for
us as Ugandans and Africans to reflect on the internal
contradictions that led to the final domination of Africa by
imperial forces for several decades. Failure to do so may lead to
the second colonization of Africa.

Some of these weaknesses included: divisions, disunity and

selfishness among Africas traditional leaders and chiefs.

Unfortunately, after independence, few post-cost colonial leaders

in Africa dedicated time to understanding and addressing the
reasons why Africa was colonized in the first place. On the
contrary, many promoted bankrupt politics such as sectarianism
based on religion and ethnicity.

We must also use this occasion to remind ourselves that gaining

freedom from the colonialists was not an end in itself but a
means of returning Africa to the path of progress and
transformation that is internally determined and
driven. However, we must also be reminded that the pursuit of
social-economic transformation of Africa is not a simple matter. It
calls for visionary leadership as well as a dedicated citizenry.
Therefore, the Theme of this years Independence Day
celebrations which is: Ugandas Freedom must be anchored in
the spirit of hard work, resilience and commitment, is
relevant not only to our efforts towards consolidating and
defending our national independence but also the realization of
our vision of transforming the Ugandan society from a peasant to
a modern and prosperous country.
The socio-economic transformation of Uganda and Africa is
intertwined with the transformation of the individual and the
households. We are also aware that transformation of the
households is impossible without hard work. Consequently, the
NRM government has spared no effort in creating an environment
that both facilitates and also rewards hard work. Some of the
measures undertaken to facilitate and reward hard work and
entrepreneurship include:

(i) Ensuring security of persons and property across the

breadth and width of the country;

(ii) Reducing the cost of doing business by expanding the road

network. For example, in 1986, the total national trunk road
network was 7,900 Kms. Of the 1900 Kms that had been
tarmacked only 114 Kms or 6 percent was in a fair condition.
Today, the national trunk road network stands at 21,000 Kms
and about 4000 Kms of this is paved and the rest is motorable.
Furthermore, in the next five years, 2,000 Kms of new roads will
be constructed. This will increase the tarmac roads network from
4,000 Km to 6,000 Km.

(iii) We have also expanded electricity generation from 60

megawatts in 1986 to about 900 megawatts today. Upon the
completion of Isimba, Karuma, Ayago and Achwa our annual
generation of electricity will be about 2600 megawatts.

(iv) We have also improved access to credit through both the

public and the private sector. For example in 1986, there was
only one Commercial Bank. Today, there are 24 commercial
banks and several microfinance institutions spread across the
country.

Furthermore, records from the Ministry of Gender, Labour and

Social Development show that as at July 2017, over 84.5 billion
had been disbursed to 11,503 youth groups with 144,235
beneficiaries under the Youth Livelihood Programme. In addition,
as at June 2017, the Government had, under the Uganda Women
Entrepreneurship Programme, disbursed over 12.5 billion to
2,412 women groups with a total of 30,766 beneficiaries.
Through the Uganda Development Bank (UDB), the Government
will use the tax-payers money to inject low-interest finance for
manufacturing. With enough electricity, for the first time, since
1969, Uganda is now set to take off as far as manufacturing is
concerned.

In fact, already factories are springing already in many places:

Tororo, Mukono, Wakiso, Luwero, Lira, Namanve, etc.

The only remaining hurdle is to lower the price of electricity to 5

American cents per unit for manufacturing. The only distortion
for the price of electricity is Bujagaali whose electricity is 11
American cents per unit even when we exempt the enterprise
from Government tax.

This was caused by the mistake of our negotiators who opted for
expensive money. We are working for the restructuring of the
financing for Bujagaali with cheaper money to be paid for
longer period. Otherwise, the electricity by Nalubaale is 4
American cents per unit, Kiira is 4 American cents, Agago will be
6 American cents, Karuma will be 5 American cents, Isimba will
be 6 American cents. It is Bujagaali which is the distorter.

Many people who have taken advantage of this environment have

transformed their households. Indeed, a number of welfare
indicators show that we are on a steady and an unstoppable path
to socio-economic transformation.

For example:

(i) The households with houses roofed with iron sheets has
increased from 61 percent in 2006 to 75 percent in 2017;

(ii) The proportion of the households using tadooba (Canister

Wick Lamp) has declined from 71% in 2006 to 28 percent in
2017;

(iii) About 21 percent of households use dry cells for lighting

while 18 percent use solar energy.
However, this transformation would have even been faster if all
our people, in both the public service and private sector, were
more serious. Everyone knows that the only way out of poverty
for any individual or society is through hard work. Unfortunately,
many people do not take their jobs and businesses very
seriously. Many people in Uganda behave like a foolish hired
shepherd who does not pay attention to livestock under their care
yet looking after these livestock well is their source of a livelihood
and actually survival.

During my tours around the country, I have often seen young

men seated in trading centres early in the morning
playing omweso and karata /matatu. The Swahili say
that burudika baadha ya kazi, meaning that leisure should
come after work.

Unfortunately, the leaders and politicians have, in pursuit of

cheap popularity, abandoned the responsibility of guiding the
populations.

Leadership is about knowing the way, showing the way and

going the way. A leader who cannot tell the people the bitter
truth and also guide them to prosperity is not worthy the
privilege of being a leader.

In fact, one need not be an elected leader to cause community

transformation. I have told you severally how, as a young student
in the 1960s, I took the personal initiative to campaign against
nomadic pastoralism and other backward practices like taking
raw milk in Ankole.

I, therefore, would like to call upon all the MPs, LC 5

Chairpersons, RDCs, CAOs and other civic and community
leaders to shun the pursuit of cheap popularity and instead
ceaselessly promote the ethic of hard work. Without doing so, the
peasants will remain in subsistence agriculture, where 68% of
the homesteads still were by the time of the last census.

In addition to promoting the ethics of hard work, there is need to

raise the ideological consciousness of our people. Failure to do so
renders them vulnerable to manipulation by primitive and
reactionary political forces. Without heightened ideological
consciousness, it is easy for backward forces to mobilize people
against their own interests. For example, I have recently seen
people mobilizing the people to oppose a land reform proposal
that is in the best interest of the country.

I, therefore, would like to direct the Minister responsible for

National Guidance to undertake campaigns of raising the
ideological consciousness of our people.

Programmes for ideological reorientation should also target the

public officers. The struggle for independence was for promotion
of the public interest or common good. However, after 55 years of
independence, there is no public spirit in the public service. I
have said, many times, that the cardinal function of the public
service is to give utmost and dedicated service in the development
of Uganda.

Unfortunately, many of our public officers do not understand

that the development of the country is linked with their
individual success.

It is very surprising that a public servant who is eager to see an

improvement in his or her wages or the public health services is
the same civil servant who frustrates industrialists and exporters
who pay his salary through taxes. This indiscipline and lack of
patriotism has gone on for so long yet the Permanent Secretaries
have the public service disciplinary mechanism at their disposal.
This disorder must stop. From now on, Permanent Secretaries
will be held accountable for their inaction against undisciplined
officers.

You must have heard of the measures I took against a number of

public servants. A few are in the Courts of Law and some have
been dismissed. This is just endozo (taste for things to
come). Anybody who sees somebody asking for a bribe, should
ring certain telephone numbers that will be advertized by my
office on the Radios and TVs.

One example of the carelessness of the public servants is the

present crisis we have of Acaricide Resistance by ticks
the engoha (Rhipicephalus), encuju (Boophilus)
and embarabara (Amblyomma). There are four families of
acaricides: the Pyrethroids (e.g. Decatix, Renegade, Vectocid,
Supertix, Alphapor, Bayticol, Tse tse tick, etc.),
the Organophosphates (e.g. Supona Extra), the Amidines (e.g.
Norotraz, Milibitraz, Tacktic, Amitix, Bovitraz and Paratraz) and
the Co-formulations (e.g. Duodip, Protaid) that are a
combination of two or more families of acaricides. The concerned
public servants, without consulting anybody, allowed the
unregulated use of these families of acaricides across the whole
country.

Apparently, the correct thing to do should have been to zone the

country so that the respective families of Acaricides are used in
the different parts of the country for some years and, then,
swapped as the ticks in the respective zones were developing
resistance to the respective Acaricides. Nobody ever whispered to
me on this issue. It was only in 2013 when, after using a very
good Acaricide going by the trade name of Decatex for about 23
years, I was told that these drugs are supposed to be swapped
after about 3 or four years. By this time, Decatex was no longer
killing any ticks in Kisozi.

That is when Dr. Kashaija Imelda of NARO told me that I should

not have used Decatex continuously for 23 years and that there
are other clans of acaricides!! I had to go all the way to Northern
Ireland where the Late Lord Ballyedmond manufactures the class
of the Amidines. I told all and sundry about this
phenomenon. The ticks at Kisozi were suppressed for some time.

In other areas, however, the problem of tick resistance was

reported. Hon. Kabatsi brought Vectorclor and we tried it at
Kiruhuura on 91 farms starting in July, 2017. The results were
promising according to the District Veterinary Officer (DVO) of
Kiruhura district. The NDA (Dr. Kusemererwa, Dr. Muhindo,
etc.) are saying that Eprinomectin used in the form of pour-on, if
it is done for 2 years continuously, will suppress the ticks. I have
called a meeting of all these scientists so that we decide on the
way forward for these acaricides.
However, one other problem in relation to the acaricides, are
yourselves the farmers. Some of the farmers were misusing the
acaricides. They would not make proper crushes. They would
make emitegyerero (piling thorny trees) in the form
of Otugo (small fenced areas) and kumisiila (sprinkling) the
cattle. That misuse of drugs brings forward the phenomenon of
tick resistance to acaricides. I was able to use decatex for 23
years because my staff were properly mixing the acaricide in my
dips in Kisozi and Rwakitura. The Local Governments and the
Vets should have enforced the construction of proper
crushes. Nantabulirwa ya sabala na bwa bbumba (the one who
does not listen to advice, foolishly used a clay boat, in spite of
contrary advice, to try and cross the lake but he, of course, sank
in the lake because clay is not strong enough to be used in boat-
making).

Apart from the struggle with the acaricides, we are taking the
more fundamental steps in dealing with the ticks. There is the
anti-mashuyo (anti-ECF) vaccine developed at Mugugga in
Kenya. We are also developing our own. More fundamentally, we
are developing the anti-tick vaccine. We want the cow to be so
fortified, that it kills any tick that dares to bite it. One way or the
other, we shall overcome the ticks.

On the issue of HIV/AIDS, we were able to bring down the levels

of HIV infection from a peak of 18 percent in the mid-1990s to 6
percent at beginning of this century. We did not have all the
funding for AIDS programs that I hear about today. We just
mobilized our population for behavior change based on our model
of ABC- Abstinence, Be faithful and Condom use

After these big successes, there was some complacency in the

population, which resulted in the epidemic rising again from 6.4
percent in 2004 to 7.3 percent in 2011. However, following
concerted efforts from the Government and partners, that
situation has now been reversed. In the last 5 years, the HIV
Prevalence is now 6% and the number of new HIV infections in
the population has steadily declined. Our data indicates that the
annual number of new HIV infections has declined from 135,000,
in 2010, to approximately 60,000 in 2016. We are also making
good progress in programs for the elimination of the Mother to
Child Transmission.

In June this year, I launched the Presidential Fast Track

Initiative to end AIDS as a public Health Threat by 2030.

I call upon all leaders of all categories and parents to emphasize

the message of prevention against HIV through testing and
seeking treatment for those who are HIV positive.

Finally, democracy is about the harmonious coexistence of

contending views. A democrat is, therefore, a person who
disagrees with a view but at the same time defends the right of
someone to express the view he or she does not agree with.

However, in the recent past, I have seen people who, for a long
time, have claimed to be democrats attempt to violate the right of
freedom of expression of the people they dont agree with. This
intolerance is not what we fought for and it will, therefore, be
resisted in the strongest terms possible.

I would like to conclude by saying that Ugandas independence

and democracy was bought with blood of our patriots. Therefore,
nobody will be allowed to undermine it. I also wish to assure all
Ugandans that the NRM Government will continue to maintain
peace and stability in Uganda.

I wish all Ugandans peaceful Celebrations.