Museveni raps UN, DRC over ADF rebels

President Yoweri Museveni has accused the United Nations peacekeeping forces and the Democratic Republic of Congo of providing sanctuary to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels.

In his State of the Nation Address at the Kampala Serena Hotel on Wednesday, 6 June 2018, Museveni blamed rising criminality, inundated with kidnaps and murders of mainly women, on ‘urban terrorism’, which he vowed to defeat.

“Rural based terrorism and banditry was totally defeated and we built rural military intelligence capacity…the ADF rebellion in Congo [is] preserved by the United Nations and the Congo government, but if they [ADF] came here, they would not go back in a standing position,” said Museveni.

The President said recent high profile murders including that of Assistant Inspector General of Police Andrew Felix Kaweesi, several Muslim clerics and prosecutor Joan Kagezi “have been linked to the ADF.”

Museveni’s address comes at the backdrop of rising cases of insecurity and women kidnaps. Museveni said most of the alleged murderers have been arrested and are due to appear in court.

The President said he rejected a proposal by a section of the security services to install roadblocks in Kampala, saying the solution lies in building “urban military intelligence capacity.”

Corruption

A new Anti-Corruption Unit has been formed in the President’s Office, to be comprised of three members.

These are Mr Tweheyo James, Ms Martha Asiimwe and a one Sister Akiror.

The President lashed out at the Inspectorate of Government, which he said long lost public confidence.

“What happened to the IGG? Why don’t the victims of corruption report to the IGG? If it [IGG’s Office] is not working, why do we keep it in place?” said Museveni.

The Inspectorate of Government is created under Chapter 13 of the 1995 Constitution, with Article 223 establishing the office and the mandate of its bearers.

Article 225(1) (b) states, among others, the role of the IGG as “to eliminate and foster the elimination of corruption, abuse of authority and of public office.”

Museveni, however, said they have failed in the fight against corruption, necessitating the creation of a new body.

He said upon vanquishing corrupt officials in government, his next target will be the Resident District Commissioners (RDCs) and Chief Administrative Officers, who he said will face arrest for incompetence.

Infrastructure

The President elaborated government’s efforts in infrastructural growth, which he said gained traction following the rejection of advice from development partners who had asked government to centre resources in expenditure.

“That argument was already leading us into problems…it plunged us into the crisis of load shedding in 2005,” he said.

Government, said Museveni, has not looked back since 2006 when a decision was made to prioritse infrastructure from the then shs350 billion to now shs4.7 trillion.

He says electricity distribution has improved, with all district headquarters now connected to the national grid.

Museveni projected economic growth to be at 5.8 per cent in the financial year 2018/2019, and that it will be growing at 7 per cent in 2019/2020.

“Industry grew at 6.2 per cent this year, services at 7.3, ICT at 7.9 per cent, construction at 12 per cent but agriculture at 3.2 per cent,” said Museveni.

Investment in the Sukuru phosphates industry and attraction of investors to “blend the phosphate into NPK [a farm fertilizer]”, are the President’s interventions to spur agricultural productivity.

The State of the Nation Address is a constitutional requirement under Article 101(1), which mandates the President to address the nation and open the subsequent session of Parliament.

This is also a precursor to the National Budget Day, which will be held on Thursday June 14, 2018.