By: Ismael Kasooha

KIRUHURA

President Yoweri Museveni has challenged religious leaders to encourage believers to aspire and work towards achieving decent and improved standards of living.

“A relevant Christian Ministry is one that encourages the believers to aspire and work towards achieving decent and improved standards of living. This is a crucial point which some believers fail to understand and put in practice. In the process of working for heaven, some of the faithful become negligent about their earthly responsibilities and thereby end up perpetuating and entrenching socio-economic backwardness and poverty in their respective families and societies,” Museveni noted.

The president appealed to believers to emulate Jesus Christ who worked with his father Joseph in carpentry to earn a living.

“The Bible shows that besides fasting and prayer, Jesus also healed the physical ailments of the blind, lame, lepers, deaf, etc. He fed the hungry. Additionally, he earned his bread by working alongside his father Joseph as a carpenter. He worked for both the spiritual and socio-economic uplift of his family and society. This is what all Christians must emulate,” the president explained.

Engineer Samuel Muhozi, who represented Allen Kagina the ED UNRA, introducing guests to the Prime Minister during the commissioning of roads in Rushere, Kiruhura District

This was contained in the president’s message delivered for him by the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister of Uganda Nabbanja Robinah during a thanksgiving ceremony characterized by the commissioning of roads and laying of a foundation stone at the North Ankole Mission hospital at Emmanuel cathedral Rushere in Kiruhura district.

Museveni says that there are also physical needs that must be satisfied in order to achieve a happy, fulfilling and productive life.

“These include: food, water, shelter, medicine, hospitals, schools, clothes, transport, a job etc. In a modern economy, you cannot obtain the goods and services, which are necessary to sustain life without money. Therefore, the first step that must be taken by an individual or household is to eliminate moneylessness or subsistence living, which satisfies only one need i.e. food,” said the president.

He said that Moneylessness can be eliminated by undertaking a profitable enterprise in one of the four sectors of: commercial agriculture, industries, services and ICT. These are the four sectors where you can create jobs and wealth.

Museveni said that the NRM’s strategy for triggering the socio-economic transformation of Uganda is premised on developing infrastructure, modernising agriculture, industrialization and cultivating Patriotism and Pan-Africanism.

The Bishop of the Diocese of North Ankole interacting with the Prime Minister after service at Emmanuel Cathedral Rushere in Kiruhura District

“Within Uganda, we promote patriotism to consolidate unity and peaceful co-existence among our people. Outside Uganda, we advocate for East African and African cooperation and integration, as a strategy for guaranteeing greater prosperity and security. We cannot be satisfied with Uganda’s small market of only 45 million people. This cannot guarantee our prosperity. This is why we support the integration of the East African and African market of 1.2 billion people. A bigger market is good news for Uganda’s surplus commodities, i.e. sugar, maize, milk, cement, steel bars, etc,” he said.

Museveni noted that NRM has established the necessary economic base for Uganda’s development and socio-economic transformation.

He explained that development alone is not enough; though it must come first. Development is a collective good; but wealth and jobs belong to individuals, families, groups or companies. We should not have spectators in the drive towards increasing the household incomes.

“38% of the Ugandan households are still trapped in subsistence farming, i.e. working only for the stomach. They should be helped to become wealth producers and job creators through commercial and modernized agriculture,” Museveni said.

The president commended the Diocese of North Ankole for partnering with government to advance the socio-economic transformation of Uganda.

“I want to commend the leadership of the Diocese of North Ankole, for its efforts in fostering unity, peace and development among the believers. Government recognizes the Diocesan Projects aimed towards job creation and poverty eradication. Human beings have both spiritual and physical needs. The spiritual needs are satisfied through praying to God, studying the scriptures, listening to religious and moral instruction, fasting, praise and worship, etc. These enable a believer to draw closer to God and impart good morals and discipline in relating with other people,” the statement read in part.

He commended the Diocese of North Ankole for partnering with government to advance the socio-economic transformation of Uganda. The Church projects have played a crucial role to transform individuals, families and communities.

The bishop of the diocese of North Ankole Rt. Rev. Steven Namanya, who led the service, hailed president Yoweri Museveni for his tireless efforts in the socio-economic transformation of the country.

“I request you deliver our appreciation to the president for his tireless efforts to transform the country. This clearly shows the visionary we have in him,” said Namanya.

Wilson Kajwengye the member of parliament for Nyabushozi constituency appealed to government to quickly avail the foot and mouth disease dozes to save the cattle keepers that are counting losses because of the quarantine.

“We appeal to government to compel the ministry of finance to release money to buy the 10 million dozes as promised,” said Kajwengye.

Jovanice Rwenduru the Kiruhura district woman member of parliament expressed concern on the early marriages that continues to affect girl child education in the area.

“We still have the challenge of early marriages which is condoned by some people in society due to culture. This must stop to allow the girl child complete education,” said Rwenduru.

The president contributed 30m shillings towards the thanksgiving ceremony.

The commissioned roads were donated by the President and constructed by the government of Uganda through UNRA.

The North Ankole Mission hospital is a 50 bed capacity hospital that is intended to provide specialized services in Maternity and pediatrics, TB and HIV treatment, dental and intensive care among others.

The construction is valued at 4.2b Uganda shillings.

End