President Yoweri kaguta Museveni who is also the commander-in-Chief of the UPDF called on leaders to focus on identifying & solving people’s practical needs, saying this has been the guiding philosophy of the NRM since the 1960s.
Museveni made the remarks yesterday while presiding over the election of UPDF representatives to Parliament at the Land Forces Headquarters in Bombo.
During the Defence Council Delegates Conference, UPDF officers elected 10 representatives to serve in the 12th Parliament. The elected representatives include; Lt. Gen. Sam Okiding, Lt. Gen. James Mugira, Lt. Gen. Sam Kavuma, Brig. Gen. Gonyi David, Maj. Gen. Henry Masiko, Maj. Gen. James Kinalwa, Brig. Gen. Joseph Ssemwanga, Col. Ikiriza Knight, Col. Meeme Sylvia, and Col. Nekesa Christine Situma.
In his address, President Museveni thanked the UPDF High Command for nominating the officers and reiterated the importance of leaders who are able to identify & work on citizens’ solvable needs. He referenced the Runyankore concept of “okukyenura”, which he described as the deliberate identification and resolution of people’s practical challenges.
Museveni reflected on the NRM’s early achievements, noting that by 1996 the Movement had restored discipline within the army, firmly rejected sectarian politics, eliminated shortages of essential commodities, rebuilt infrastructure, and rolled out immunisation against the six killer diseases. He said these interventions earned the NRM massive public support at the time.
Museveni further highlighted the government efforts aimed at uplifting the poor through initiatives such as Entandikwa, UPE, army schools, NAADS, OWC and PDM which he said is currently delivering positive results at the grassroots.
Museveni added that the renewed enthusiasm witnessed around the NRM in the recent elections is a reflection of these efforts and the peace the movement has maintained.
Museveni further explained that UPDF representatives in Parliament act as observation posts to identify national issues early and report them to the army leadership, thereby helping to prevent policy mistakes.
Museveni cited the decision by Members of Parliament to increase their salaries as an example of an issue that could have been addressed earlier if such mechanisms were effectively utilised. On the other hand, President
Museveni tasked the newly elected UPDF representatives to closely monitor government programmes. On electoral governance, the President reiterated that the long-standing objective of the NRM has been to place Ugandans in charge of their country through one person, one vote by secret ballot.
Museveni revealed that irregularities were detected in the 2021 general elections, including the infiltration of an estimated 2.7m votes, which informed his insistence on the use of biometric verification systems, although he noted that these had not been fully utilised.
President emphasised that for the country to remain stable, people in power must allow citizens to freely choose their leaders. He also commended the UPDF and other security agencies for providing security during the recently concluded elections.
During the same ceremony, President Museveni commissioned three officer cadets presented by Maj. Gen. James Kinalwa, Joint Staff Human Resource Management. The commissioned officers are Bazalaki Timothy, who trained at General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University in Sri Lanka, Akoi Moses, and Piloya Vivian, both of whom completed their training in Tanzania.
