ADDRESS ON NATIONAL

STATE OF AFFAIRS
(UGANDA)

H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

STATE HOUSE ENTEBBE

9TH September, 2018

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Fellow Countrymen and Countrywomen, in particular, the
Bazzukulu.

I greet you all and I start my address by saying that the

population of Uganda, on the 26thof January, 1986, when the
NRM took over Kampala, was about 14million People. I say
about 14million because the exact number was not known. What
was known was that the census of 1969 was 9,535,051 million,
the one of 1980 was 12,636,179 million and the one of 1991 was
16,671,705 million. Therefore, the population of Uganda in 1986
was somewhere between 13 million and 16.5 million. That is why
I estimate it at 14million. The population of Uganda is now
40million. It has been growing at the rate of 3% per annum.
Why has this population grown at the rate of 3.2%since 1986, yet
between 1969 and 1986, it was growing at around the rate of
2.5%? Two reasons: Security of life and property and better
healthcare for the population, especially immunization. Yes,
there are still problems of shortage of drugs in hospitals etc., but
the immunization, which is easier to administer and monitor, has
done the miracle. In spite of the AIDs epidemic, which killed a
total of 2million young Ugandans and left a lot of orphans, the
population of Uganda has grown from 14million in 1986 to
40million today. This population will be 102 million by 2050, i.e.
32 years from today.

Although our economy, by 1986, had shrank to only US$ 3.4

billion, the NRM has been able not only to immunize against all
those 13 killer diseases, but we have been able to guard them
against terrorism (ADF, Kony, UPA, FOBA) and cattle rustlers as
well as providing education to most of the young
People. Defending the Ugandans, relying on our own means, was
achieved by the NRA imbuing the young soldiers with a high
spirit of patriotism that enables them to fight in the grasslands of
Northern Uganda, the Cold Mountains of the Rwenzori (in
Alphine conditions), in the forests of Congo and in the semi-arid
conditions of Somalia without even a murmur or hesitation, at
very low pay. They are never fighting for money but for
patriotism. With the UPDF, we fight in spite of low pay; with the
NRA (the fore runner of the UPDF), we fought long and hard in
spite of no pay at all. That is why Uganda has no refugees
outside our borders and doesn’t need the UN to defend her. It is
defended by the UPDF fighters, imbued with the spirit of

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patriotism. On the contrary, Uganda that is maligned by some
elements, is a safe – haven for 1.4 million refugees from the
neigbouring countries of Congo, South Sudan, Somalia, Burundi,
etc.

On the side of health, as already pointed out, we have relied on

immunization –just immunization plus security. If only the
District Medical Officers could sensitize our People on hygiene,
nutrition, malaria control, behavior change to avoid AIDs and the
use of safe water, these measures would eliminate 80% of all the
sicknesses. The limited efforts notwithstanding, the population
of Uganda has not only increased from 14million in 1986 to
40million today, but life expectancy has gone from 43 years of
age to 63 years.
On the side of how we educated these expanding numbers, as we
caused recovery of the collapsed economy, a disloyal and corrupt
Civil Service notwithstanding, I would like to remind the Country
that we have built new classrooms, expanding the number of
classrooms in permanent materials from 40,440 in 1986 to
160,381 in 2018. This is for Government Primary Schools. It
does not include the figure of Private Schools which are 6,841 in
number. The Government Schools are 12,048.The Government
Primary Schools and the Private Primary Schools have a total
enrolment of 8,655,924million. The Government Secondary
Schools are 1,086 and Private secondary schools are 2,862. They
have a total enrolment of 1,457,280. More schools –Government
and Private – that is how we educated our population so much
that the literacy rate rose from 43% to 75%.
We have, therefore, protected, immunized and educated the
Ugandan population as it was growing in numbers. How did we
do it when the economy between 1971 and 1986 had shrank by
40% to US$3.4 when the population had grown by 2.5% from the
1969 figure of 9,535,051 to the 14million of 1986? As I always
tell you in my numerous speeches, the economy of Uganda, as
indeed is the case with many countries wanting to modernize
from the pre-capitalist state, has got four sectors
(obubondo). These four are: Commercial agriculture; Industries
(factories) big and small; services (obuwereza)that includes
hotels, transport, banking, insurance, professional services such
as medical, accounting, etc., etc.; and ICT, which involves using
Computers (ebyuma bya kalimagezi–intelligent machines) such

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as using the internet to do business like BPOs (Business
Procedures Outsourcing) etc.
Agriculture should be easy for Ugandans because God had given
us very easy life which some do not appreciate, take for granted
and carelessly mishandle. Around the Equator and to the South,
we get two rainy seasons in a year: the small rainy season
(katuumba –March to May) and the big wet season (Ituumba –
August to December). Therefore, without irrigation, since time
immemorial, the Ugandans indigenous to this area, know that we
always have two harvests: obwijegashe (the small harvest of end
of May) and Omwaaka (the big harvest of end of December and
early January). Indeed, the month of January is
called kahiingo orbiruuru. Biruuru because the bird chasers in
the millet gardens are making alarms (enduuru) to chase away
the birds from eating the crop and kahiingobecause the cattle
keepers are not bothered to remove the mihiingo(miyingo), the log
barriers that stop the cattle from getting out of the enclosure
(orugo),early, because there is plenty of grass for the cattle. The
cattle do not have to get out early. Whatever time of day they get
out, say 9 a.m., there will be plenty of grass and it will still be
soft enough for them to graze on.
One degree North (Kyenkwaanzi) up to the Sudan border (4 0North
to the North West of our Country), we get rain, almost
continuously, from the middle of March to December. I had
noticed this in the War of Resistance to my surprise. When we
attacked Luwero Town on the 16thof July, it was a wet season in
that area; yet around the Equator and to the South, it would
have been a dry season (ekyaanda –since June). Indeed,
recently, my daughter, Kokundeka Museveni Rwabwoogo, a
farmer and preacher of the gospel, was surprised to go to Gulu
and find a lot of rain while it had been very dry in the Rwakitura
area where she had come from. I told her that that is the Uganda
God gave us but “you, the Dot.Com group”, do not bother to
understand and appreciate – some of you flying to Dubai etc. I
never go anywhere unless I am forced by the business of the
Country. Uganda is simply too good. When we attacked Masindi
on the 20thof February, 1984, we timed it because that was one of
the few windows of opportunity when it would be dry and the
grass would be burnt and the ground would be hard to allow for
fast movement cross country.
However, this very environment has also bred an attitude of
complacency by the population. When you see people invading

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the wetlands and cutting the forests, apart from telling them to
get out, we should also pray to God that “Father, forgive them for
they know not what they do” (the Bible says in the Book of Luke
23:34).

As I have been telling you repeatedly, many of our people do not

only not know how to take care of the Environment, this good gift
from God, but also do not know how to take care of themselves
and their families. That is how you get 68% of the population
still being stuck in subsistence farming (farming only for food for
the home but not for money) even by the time of this last census
(2014); or if they engage in commercial farming, they do so
without ekibaro(proper family economics, aimar, cura, otita).
This phenomenon of 68% of the population being in subsistence
economy (okukorera enda yoonka, okulimira olubuto kyokka, tic
pi iya)is, of course, not new. By 1970 or by 1962, indeed, the
economy of Uganda was being described as an “enclave”
economy –an economy being comprised of an island (enclave) of
modernity of 3 Cs and 3 Ts, surrounded by a sea of
backwardness. The 3Cs were: Coffee, Cotton and Copper from
Kilembe and the 3Ts were: Tobacco, Tea and Tourism. At that
time, by 1970, a very small percentage of homesteads were in
this island (enclave) of modernity. By 1986, this island had
disappeared. Only 1 C, Coffee, was limping on. Copper was at
zero production, Cotton was at almost zero, Tourism was zero,
Tobacco was very much reduced and Tea had gone from 23
million kilograms in 1970 to 3 million kilograms by 1986. This
phenomenon of enclave economies is, of course, characteristic of
many African economies, the former colonies.
According to our bubondo(sectors), you see that the three sectors
of that time had collapsed: commercial agriculture (coffee,
cotton, tobacco, tea); Industry (tea, copper and tobacco –
cigarettes) and services (tourism). ICT, at that time, had not come
on the scene as a separate sector.
Meanwhile, everybody needs to be reminded that the 4 sectors
cannot be revived or expanded if you do not have infrastructure,
those neutral but crucial elements. These are: electricity, roads,
the railway, water works, telecommunications, ICT backbone
etc. Without these, no modern sector can operate. How can you
transport farm produce if you do not have roads? How will you
manufacture or run hotels if you do not have electricity? There is
also linkage with the three elements I have already talked about:

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peace, education and health – which also need social
infrastructure already talked about (schools, health centres, etc.).

However, before we link the four sectors with the infrastructure,

we must ask one question: What caused the collapse of 1971? We
say the island of the 3Cs and 3 Ts collapsed following the coup of
Idi Amin in 1971. In fact, the coup of 1971 was the last scene in
the collapse that started in 1964 when the unprincipled marriage
between the UPC and KY collapsed on the nonsensical and sick
quarrel over the “lost counties” – Buyaga and Bugangaizi (present
day Kibaale District). You, then, had the 1966 crisis etc.,
etc. What was behind all this? Ideological bankruptcy. I do not
want to go back to the pre-colonial times when our area was
tormented by wars of the tribal Kings and how those fratricidal
conflicts enabled the colonialists to take over the whole of Africa,
with the horrors that went with it. I covered that in my Mzee
Mandela speech at Makerere University last year and in other
documents. The copies of that speech are here.

By confining ourselves to the events that followed the

Independence, we find that on account of the ideological
bankruptcy, of the unprincipled exploitation of identity (religion
and tribes), the more useful issues, such as the interest
(okugasirwa, okuganyirwa), were forgotten. Emphasis was laid on
identity of religion or tribe (enzikiriza z’ediini or
amawanga). Since all the religious sects and all the tribes in
Uganda are minorities, one could not, therefore, get a party that
could marshal enough support to form a Government. Hence,
the alliance of KY and UPC. KY, a party for Baganda Protestants
and some Moslems, UPC, a party for Protestants outside
Buganda and DP, a party for Catholics. UPC had got 37 seats
outside Buganda, with quite abit of manipulation and DP had got
24 seats outside Buganda. KY, which had blocked direct elections
in Buganda, had the monopoly of the 21 seats in Buganda. I was
a member of DP while my colleagues, the Kintu Musokes,
Bidandi Ssalis, Kirunda Kivejinjas, Nabuderes, Chango Machyos,
Kategayas, Rugundas etc. were in UPC. This sectarian and
sterile politics of identity did not only block the emergence of
viable national parties but also sabotaged the building of a
national Army. Karugaba, the first Ugandan graduate from
Sandhurst, could not be allowed to even remain in the Army
because he was Catholic.

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Starting with 1965, some of the youth from DP, like myself, as
well as some of the youth from UPC, like the Kategayas and the
Rugundas, partly on account of being exposed to global political
movements, started seeing the danger of this sectarian
politics. We started seeing it as bogus, false, sterile and
dangerous. I have exposed that sectarianism elsewhere. Suffice
it here to say that we evolved and held fast to the four principles:
Patriotism, Pan Africanism, Social-Economic transformation and
Democracy. It is around these four principles that we built the
NRA (the National Resistance Army), the NRM and prosecuted the
Resistance war until victory. After the victory in 1986, the mass
movement around the RCs (Resistance Councils) has ensured the
unity of the People. This unity, translated into repeated electoral
victories ever since 1994 for the CA, has given us time to
resurrect the island of modernity and expand it even when our
population was growing. You remember that I rejected,
repeatedly, the shrill cries of NGOs about population control
etc. The problem of Africa has been, actually, under-population
and not over population. Africa is 12 times the size of India in
land area. Yet, even today when the population of Africa has
somewhat gone up, the 1.25billion of Africans are still fewer than
the 1.3billion of Indians.

Going back to the resurrection and expansion of the island of

modernity (the former 3Cs and 3Ts), what are the figures like

Here below are the figures:

1986 2017
No. Items Quantity Quantity
1 Tea 3m bags 60m bags

2 Coffee 17,000m.t 5m bags

Sugar (metric
3 tonnes) 500 480,000

460m
litres
2.5bn
4 Milk litres

5 Maize 2.6m.t
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 Cotton (metric
6 tonnes) 4,400 92,500

Beer (million
7 litres) 21.5 350

Beef (metric
8 tonnes) 100,550 225,000

Soft Drinks 403

(Sodas-million
9 litres)

10 Cattle 4.2million 14.4million

11 Sheep 12million 48million

12 Goats 4.8million 16million

13 Chicken 16million 50million

14 Bananas 4,017,98610,660,567

15 Gold (2016/17) 8,160kgs

16 Tourists 1,402,000

17 Telephones 23 million

Fertilizers
18 (metric tonnes) 55,000

Hence, in the last 32 years, the NRM, all other problems

notwithstanding, has not only resurrected the island of
modernity but has greatly expanded it. That is why the GDP of
Uganda which was US$ 3.4 billion in 1986 by the PPP method, is
now US$88.6billion. Only the other day, the Permanent
Secretary of the Ministry of Trade of Kenya told me that for some
years now, Uganda has been exporting more to Kenya, month by

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month, than Kenya has been exporting to Uganda. Here below
are the figures by months:

Uganda’s bi-lateral trade with Kenya:

Uganda Trade Balance

2017 2018 2017 2018
Month Exports Imports Exports Imports
(3,423.5
January 4,504.3 2,179.9 3,522.4 6,945.9 2,324.4 )

Februar (1,055.7
y 4,934.6 2,325.3 4,490.0 5,545.7 2,609.3 )

March 4,842.1 2,310.0 4,908.8 4,306.7 2,532.1 602.1

(1,445.4
April 3,620.0 1,551.4 3,441.7 4,887.1 2,068.6 )

(3,584.6
May 4,009.3 3,620.2 4,942.7 8,527.3 389.1 )

(8,907.1
21,910.3 11,986.9 21,305.6 30,212.7 9,923.4 )
Total
%
increase (10.99) 66.07 40.32 22.77 (83.26) 4.71
Source: Kenya National Bureau of
Statistics
I never waste time finding out which pygmy is taller than the
other one, which is a permanent occupation of some other actors;
however, in terms of gauging Uganda’s recovery, it is not a
useless yardstick

Therefore, fellow Ugandans, the NRM has protected the health of

Ugandans by, mainly immunizing them; has protected them from
war and terrorism; has educated them and has revived and
expanded the island of modernity. The big four: peace, health,
education and the minimum economic recovery and
development. The NRM has, however, done something
else. Together with the African compatriots, it has worked on the
integration of Africa: East Africa Community (EAC), Common
market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the
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 Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA). While some other actors are
always busy trying to revive the sectarianism of religion and
tribes, the NRM is always working for patriotism (unity within
Uganda) and Pan-Africanism. The biggest enemies of Africa (in
the past, today and tomorrow) are the chauvinists of tribe and
religion. We insist on the Patriotism and Pan-Africanism not only
as a correct principle of brotherhood among similar or linked
people, but also as an unavoidable strategy for ensuring the
prosperity of our people. Some years ago, we had a glut
(ekyengera, omweru) of milk because the production was higher
than the consumption inside Uganda. Some people left the Dairy
Sector altogether. Who rescued us? East Africa. The surplus
1.7billion litres is being taken by East Africa and also the
World. Recently, we had a glut of maize. The price
collapsed. East Africa is the only one that can rescue
us. Patriotism and Pan Africanism are a matter of survival for
our people. We shall always resist these misleaders and for good
reason.
It is not enough to quote the figures of production of industry,
agriculture, services or ICT without highlighting the role of
infrastructure in all this. Infrastructure is the neutral but
indispensable base of production. If you do not have electricity
which is cheap, how will you produce factory goods that are able
to compete in price and quality with other goods of other
producers? If the transport costs are very high, how will our
goods compete with the goods of other countries? If the costs of
transport, electricity, etc., etc. are high, how will the companies
make profit? The NRM had, therefore, to solve the problem of
infrastructure even when we did not have enough money. Do
you remember when we used Soya beans to construct Mityana –
Mubende road with the Yugoslavs? Do you remember when we
had to use the East African compensation fund to construct
Mbale – Kapchorwa Road with Mzee Moi? In 2006, I put my foot
down and persuaded the NRM leaders, in the Cabinet and in the
caucus, to suppress the other expenditures and concentrate on
the roads and electricity. That is how you now have the new
roads of:
1. Kampala–Masaka;
2. Mbarara–Kikagate;
3. Ishaka–Kagaamba;
4. Mbarara–Ishaka –Katunguru (on going);
5. Mpigi–Kanoni –Maddu –Ssembabule –Nyendo;

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6. Jinja–Kamuli;
7. Iganga–Kaliro;
8. Musita–Namayingo –Busia;
9. Mukono–Katosi –Nyenga
10. Bwaise –Luwero–Kafu –Gulu;
11. Olwiyo –Koch –Goma –Gulu –Kitgum –Musiingo;
12. Moroto –Nakapiripirit;
13. Moroto –Kangole –Katakwi –Soroti;
14. Matugga –Semuto –Kapeeka;
15. Hoima –Kaiso-Tonya;
16. Tororo –Mbale –Soroti;
17. Mbale –Tirinyi–Nakalama;
18. Ibaanda –Kamwengye –Fort Portal;
19. Mubende –Kakumiro –Kagadi –Ndaiga;
20. Mukono –Kayunga –Kangulumira –Njeru
All these roads with a total length of 6,027 kms have been built
or reconstructed solely depending on the Uganda Government
Money. Then, there are other roads worked on using either
grants from outside or soft loans. Of course, this is also our
money because we pay back the loans, with interest,
moreover. Each year we pay US$264 million in order to return
the money we borrowed in the past known as debt
servicing. Anyway, using loans and grants (the latter are only 1%
of the two), we have done or are planning to do the following
roads:

1. Karuma–Pakwach –Arua - Koboko Road;

2. Gulu –Atiak –Nimule;
3. Soroti–Dokolo –Lira;
4. Kasangati–Zirobwe;
5. Masaka–Mbarara –Kabale –Katuna;
6. Kabale–Kisoro –Bunagana –Cyanika;
7. Fort-Portal–Bundibugyo –Busunga;
8. Kigumba–Masindi –Hoima –Kagadi –Kyenjojo;
9. Nansana–Busunju –Kiboga –Hoima;
10. Nyakahita –Kazo –Ibaanda;
11. Mbale –Magale –Buumbo –Lwakhakha;
12. Kapchorwa –Bukwo –Suam;
13. Rwenkunyu –Apach –Lira–Acholibur; etc., etc.
By the same strategy of belt tightening, we have increased
electricity generation in the country (the amount of electricity and
the transmission of the electricity). In 1986, the electricity being

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produced in Uganda was a mere 60 mgws. When Karuma,
Isimba and Agago (all nearing completion) plus the numerous
mini-hydros are completed, our total production will be 2,216
mgws. We are aiming at 17,000 mgws in the next 10 years. We
shall develop all the sites on the Nile (such as Ayago, Uhuru,
Kiba, Oryang, Murchison etc.), all the geo-thermal potential
(ebitagata - hot springs), all the solar potential, some thermal (oil)
stations and nuclear stations using our vast uranium
deposits. As of today, electricity has been extended to all the
districts except for Kotido and Kaabong. Nevertheless, the
implementation plan for connecting these districts is underway.
By these five measures (peace, health through immunization,
education, regional integration and infrastructure development),
we have been able to not only resurrect the small island of
modernity of the 3Cs and 3Ts but have greatly expanded it as
already outlined above. Here, I will not talk about the other
strategic bottlenecks that are also being solved. This is to limit
the area of scope for today.

Right now, with the phenomenon of having abundant electricity,

which will be cheaper and cheaper as we solve the distortions
caused by our corrupt officials, Uganda has reached the take-off
point. When I started the Uganda Manufacturers Association
with the Late Mulwana, our membership used to be around 80
companies. The factories that we have in Uganda are now
standing at 4,725. Only last week, before I left for China, I
opened four new factories in one week: one for cement, one for
electronic products and 2 for tea. Many factories are in the
pipeline for opening. You will be hearing about them. Namanve
Industrial Park already has 31 completed, 197 being constructed
and 74 in plan for construction. New Industrial Parks are
springing up: Kapeeka, Mbale, Tororo, Mbalala, Kaweweeta,
Luzira, Jinja etc., etc. This is apart from so many individual
factories – like the ones one sees along Gulu road.

With the five points – peace, health, education, regional

integration and infrastructure, Uganda is beginning to
gallop. We shall soon add on the issue of a modern train that will
make the transport of goods cheaper. Transport of a tonne of
goods from Mombasa to Kampala is currently US$150. With the
Standard Gauge Railway, it will come down to US$74 - a drop of
more than 50%. I am not sure that this is all the savings we can

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achieve. We shall continue to study this. With the Uganda
Development Bank, we are addressing the question of the cost of
money for factories and agriculture. With low electricity costs,
low transport costs, low cost of money and with the 10 years tax
holidays, Uganda is unstoppable, given what we have already
done with education, health, other elements of infrastructure
already mentioned and regional integration. I have, therefore,
taken the trouble to remind you about all this so as to help you
reject and treat with contempt it deserves, the present campaign
against Uganda by some indisciplined elements or those working
with or on the behalf of some external groups that we have
detected. Those elements, separately or jointly, cannot stop the
galloping forward of Uganda’s economy. Their malice may
temporarily affect sectors like tourism but that will be
compensated for by customers from other sources. This take off
point could have been achieved earlier if partners like the World
Bank had been serious. Unfortunately, they never bother with
the basics of the pre-capitalist economies, items like the railway,
electricity etc. Instead, they spend so much time on social
issues: women rights, homo sexual rights, education, etc. How
will you handle social issues if the economy is not growing? How
will the economy grow if you do not lower the costs of production
and how will the costs of production go down if you do not work
on electricity, railway, etc.? Anyway, we had to tighten our belts
and build the roads and the electricity by ourselves. We are
going to build the railway either by ourselves or with the Chinese
support. The Chinese friends also helped us with the electricity
and the ICT backbone.

Uganda has never had such a good chance in the last 500
years. The agents of foreign interests and some internal
reactionary groups may not see this. However, the people of
Uganda see this clearly. That is why, recently, the NRM scored
90% victory in both the LCI elections and the Women Council
elections if you include the NRM Independents. Big shock for the
mendacious Opposition and its foreign backers.

Nevertheless, there are six areas of weakness that we must

address. The first is corruption by Government officials who take
bribes. These are easy to uproot. Just get information on them
and pass it on to the toll-free number 0800-100770 belonging to
my office. This is in addition to a unit I announced during the

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June 2018 State of the Nation address. You will see what we
shall do with them. You heard what I did with the officials in the
Ministry of Finance, Immigration and Uganda Revenue
Authority. This is a problem that persists because the crooks are
not exposed.
Secondly, the indisciplined Opposition politicians that are
accused of terrorism against the population, conspiracy to
commit arson or treason should be handled firmly by all
concerned – the Police, the Prosecution and the Courts. We
should not allow these wrong doers to intimidate our
people. Telling lies to foreigners will not help them because the
facts are on the ground.

Thirdly, rescuing our youth from those indisciplined

politicians. The allegations go that foreign money through NGOs,
is given to some of our youth to burn tyres on the roads, to throw
stones, to commit arson, to rig elections and to beat
women. Sometimes, our youth go into these criminal projects
because they want money. They do not enjoy doing this. I have
this information on good authority. Many of the young people
have some education or even good education but they have no
jobs, no property and no capital. I addressed this issue during
my State of the Nation address in June, 2018.

The effort that we have already deployed of empowering the youth

to take part in producing products for import-substitution and
export promotion will be expanded to include these youth. These
youth are not a problem but an asset. The purchasing power of
Uganda is growing. If our youth are helped to produce goods, the
Ugandans will buy them; or they will be bought in the region; or,
if the quality is assured, those goods will go to external markets.

The NRM MPs, working with me, will ensure that funds are
available to expand what we have already started with the
Kampala Girl Child, in Najeera, in Rukungiri, in Luwero, etc. All
these products the traders are importing from Dubai, China etc.
can be made here by our youth. Products like shoes, sweaters,
leather bags, garments, processed foods such as maize flour
(akahuunga), animal feeds, furniture, carpets, scholastic
materials etc., etc. All they need is support and training. How
many unemployed graduates do we have? Can’t these run a
maize milling operation if they are helped? The ones we

14
supported in Nansana are doing very well. How about leather
tanning? How about shoe-making? How about knitting? How
about weaving? The more educated ones are engaged in making
the Kiira and Kayoola, the solar electric cars and mini-buses, as
well as food processing using the Government provided
Innovation Fund.
Fourthly, the urban crime that saw the death of the Sheikhs, of
Joan Kagezi, Kiggundu, Kawesi, Magara, Abiriga had scared
people. Some of the criminals in these murders have been
identified, arrested and they are in Courts. We have built up
capacity to defeat rural terrorism decisively and rapidly. This is
because in the bush, if the enemy is walking through the grass
and leaves a track (ekisinde, ekirari), you can easily trace him; in
the mountain, he has to pass through certain choke points
(obufuunda) where you can block and make it impossible for the
terrorists to move. There are also other technical means that
help to track the enemies in the rural areas. The criminals in the
urban areas are not strong at all. Their main weapon is
concealment. In the rural areas, we acquired all the means to
nullify the concealment of the terrorists.
In the towns where the criminal does not create a
physical kisinde, there are only three methods of shattering the
terrorist concealment. First method is prior intelligence when
you know who is planning a crime, you gather enough evidence,
apprehend the criminal at the conspiratorial stage and bring him
to the Courts of Law. It is clear that the intelligence has been
weak in the cases where the murders have been committed, like
in the cases of Kagezi and the others. This weak area is being
strengthened. The second method is to rely on the human beings
at the scene of the crime that was being committed – the eye
witnesses and the other clues that the criminal may be leaving
behind. The third method is to deploy more technical means in
detecting and witnessing possible crimes. By the last, we mean
cameras, drones and other means. All those areas are being
strengthened in the towns as they were in the countryside. When
we say strengthening, we mean strengthening. The proof of this
is the fact that we have been having huge pre-announced events
like the Commonwealth Meeting in 2007, the visit of the Pope
twice, the annual Namugongo Martyrs Day when 3 million people
gather there etc., without even a single incident of terrorism. It is
only when we are relaxed that you get those gaps that the
criminals and terrorists use. Another source of terrorist

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infiltration is, of course, Congo where the terrorists are preserved
by the UN, just next to our border. Like we defeated rural
terrorism from Congo without anybody’s support, we shall also
defeat the residual urban crime and terrorism whatever the
source.
Fifthly, is to bring discipline and balance in the media (TVs,
radios, newspapers and social-media). These, most of the time,
report in a tendecious and mendacious manner. The Government
and the NRM have been asleep when it comes to media
management. This is, partly, the old practice of the NRA. We
never propagandized but fought and the victories spoke for
themselves. Even when we captured Kampala, very few people
outside Uganda believed we had that capacity. Even today, it is
still largely true that doing does more publicity than just
talking. The massive wins by the NRM in the recent LC1 and
Women Council elections in spite of the massive lying by the
biased press and media, confirms this. Even the win of President
Trump in the USA in 2016 in spite of the papers there and the
CNNs de-campaigning him, picking faults etc., points to the fact
that media lying cannot, in some cases, obscure reality. To shout
on social-media, NBS TV, NTV, Okot Ogong’s radio in Lira or even
CNN that the NRM is useless to the citizens of Atanga, Acholibur
etc. or the ones of Atiak, Pabbo and Bibia or the ones of Katakwi
and Moroto when they are seeing brand new tarmac roads in
their area, will discredit the media rather than the
Government. That is why the people ignored the media and voted
massively for the NRM in the LC1s, Women Council elections and
in all the by-elections and elections since 2016 except for
Kyadondo, Jinja East, Rukungiri and Bugiri Municipality. These
are just four out of a total of 35 Parliamentary seats and LCV
elections or the by-elections since the General elections.

It is actually the killings of the Sheikhs, Kagezi, Kaweesi, Abiriga

and Magara that made many Ugandans worried about
security. The same was true of the beatings of the NRM women
and intimidation with impunity by the Opposition that gets
people in the towns worried. Firm legal action, counter-
mobilization and development efforts quickly stamp out this
lawlessness. That was how walk to work in 2011 and “making
Uganda ungovernable in 2016” were defeated.

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Nevertheless, since Uganda today, given what we have already
put on the ground as the foundation, being a very rich country in
the first place, is on a rapid growth and transformation
trajectory, we should not allow the diversion of any of our people
by the tendecious and mendacious media – local or
foreign. Organizationally and technically, we are going to deploy
means to handle this sabotage. The fight between an Opposition
MP and the Police may be interesting and should be
reported. How, then, about the 600 megawatts Karuma hydro-
power station for a country which had only 60 megawatts in
1986? Why don’t you report that also so that we know that you
are a media person who is professional and informative? If you
do not and instead you do only report the fight between the MP
and Police, but you turn it into a campaign (kuyimbilila) hour
after hour, day after day, don’t you lose your credibility as a
source of information for the public and the world? Isn’t society,
who desire and are entitled to develop their businesses, their
areas, their country, justified in looking for ways of how to resist
your unfairness? Young people have even been telling me that
what matters is not facts but that it is perception. In otherwords,
what matters is not what happens but what people perceive to
have happened? Is it good for the world to only appreciate
appearance rather than facts? Are you not deluding yourself
when you believe like that
I have been watching the contest between these two ideas: “do
not do but appear to do” versus “Do and actions will speak for
themselves” for the last 55 years. In 1963, China had a GDP of
US$. 50.7billion while the UK had a GDP of US$. 85.4billion
France 85.6billion Germany US$44.5billion and the USA a GDP
of US$ 637.5billion. It was number five in the hierarchy of
development. Very few African countries had diplomatic relations
with China because they were listening to the dictates of the
Western countries because they were anti-China for ideology and
political reasons. The Western media, believing in the principle of
appearing and not doing, continually demonized the Chinese and
the communists in general, never mind that the communist
Soviet Union had just saved Europe from the demonic
Hitler. Here, in Africa, only the far-sighted leaders like our elder
Mwalimu Nyerere and some of us the students, saw the
correctness of establishing close relationship with the Chinese
because they had also been victims of colonialism and
aggression. We were not communists, but we rejected the

17
subjectivism of saying that those who do not do what I do are
automatically wrong. Today, China is the second richest country
in the world and it will overtake the USA by the year 2025 in GDP
size. What, then, do the proponents of “appearing rather than
doing” say? In the last Beijing Summit, 39 Heads of State and
heads of Government from Africa were there in person. Then
there were a number of Vice Presidents and Prime
Ministers. Doing has overcome appearing in this case.

The NRM is strengthening Uganda actually as I have shown

above in reality. Nevertheless, there is no harm in having a
responsible and truthful press, at least, within Uganda. We can,
then, see how to deal with the racist foreign media which believes
that Africans are incapable of doing anything right unless they
are puppets of Western interests. The West has had a lot of
puppets in Africa since 1960 – Mobutu, Banda, Idi Amin,
Habyarimana, Kayibanda etc. – who destroyed those African
countries. Patriots, some of whom may have their own mistakes,
where they are in charge, have reversed the decline of
Africa. Uganda is certainly on the ascent.

Sixth and, finally, the NRM must stand firmly and unequivocally
with the Bibanja holders in Buganda, Ankole, Tooro and Bunyoro
where that evil system had been introduced by the British. The
British in 1928 had seen the evil of that system of theirs and
introduced a Decree to ameliorate the suffering of
the Bibanjapeople in the form of the Busuuluand Nvujjoso called
Law (in effect a Decree because there was no Parliament) of
1928. This provided that while the collaborator landlords
retained the ownership (obwananyini), the bibanja owners could
not be evicted except with the permission of the Governor and
would only pay nominal rent, not commercial rent, of only Shs.8
per annum. The Bibanja owners had some relief and the Law
stayed like that until 1975 when Amin brought in his Decree
which, actually, abolished the Mailo-land but, of course, without
discussion because that was Amin’s way. The NRM would have
whole-heartedly supported Amin’s Decree except for one
point. When, in 1928, the British had reigned in their
collaborator chiefs by stopping them from excessively looting the
Bibanja owners, many landlords had sold off their ownership to
new people. It was, of course, wrong for anybody to buy land
occupied by people unless you were ready to equitably negotiate

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with them and compensate them fairly on a willing buyer, willing
seller basis so that you use the land for production, not for the
feudal relationship of owning people instead of owning cattle,
goats or coffee. Nevertheless, since the NRM never wants to be
unfair to anybody – Bibanja owner or landlord, in the 1995
Constitution we, more or less, went back to the British position of
1928: ownership for the landlord retained; no eviction for the
bibanja owners except for the refusal to pay the nominal rent;
and only nominal rent to be paid and never commercial rent. We
also established the Land Fund which could be expanded later to
enable the bibanja owners to pay off the landlords so that the
latter also do commercial agriculture in part of the land that is
free or go to industry, services or ICT, the other sectors of the
economy.
This was a deliberate, win-win compromise so as to keep our
people united. After all, both the landlords and the Bibanja
owners were members of the NRM. In Kufu, Namwandu
Mulyanti, a landlord, was our supporter. The other residents –
Muburizi Wamala, Kakwaya, Sinabulya etc., etc. were bibanja
owners and were the main support of the NRM. It was our duty
to harmonize the interests of our people. Unfortunately, some
myopic and greedy people think that they are too clever and what
the NRM thinks does not matter. Working with the corrupt
Magistrates and the security personnel, they have been massively
and illegally evicting the bibanja owner families, many of them
the historical supporters of the NRM and, in the main, being
responsible for the return of democracy to Uganda and the return
of the traditional institutions like the Kabakaship through their
support for the NRM. Therefore, the bibanja owners be assured
that the NRM and myself, as your leader in the resistance, will
not abandon you. If some of the landlords do not want a win-win
solution, which is the NRM way, we shall stand with you. I thank
Justice Bamugemereire for moving in some of the areas and
exposing the criminality of the landlords.

Therefore, Ugandans, this lengthy speech is to assure you that

Uganda is on the ascent; nobody will bring it down, no matter
how hard they try. We have very powerful internal forces that will
combine to defeat the primitive fascists backed by external
parasitic elements. We are in the process of tightening the weak
points. Be calm and supportive. The rest we shall handle.

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 As far as the external relations are concerned, we always work
with the African countries, the Asian countries, the Latin
American countries in the South-south Co-operation. This is
what we did in the anti-colonial struggle, this is what we are
doing now. We work with the Soviet Union (Russia) because it
stood with us in the anti-colonial struggle ever since 1917 when
the communists took power in that country. We work with the
countries of the British Commonwealth and with the European
Union under the ACP-EU Lome arrangements. We work with the
USA under the AGOA arrangement which, helped by our sister
Rosa Whitaker, I negotiated with President Bill Clinton. With the
European Countries, we share the religion of Christianity and
basic principles of democracy. With the USA, 12% of the
population of that country are Africans. In all these
arrangements, it is important that external players refrain from
interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. Interfering in
the internal affairs of other countries is morally and practically
wrong. Morally wrong because the question is: “What superior
intelligence do you have to think that you can understand the
problem in my house better that we the occupants? If there is a
problem in our house, we the occupants will solve it. Keep out. It
is also practically wrong because outsiders cannot have enough
information about a foreign situation. They are most likely to
make mistakes. The examples are numerous: Vietnam,
Cambodia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya. When foreigners were
chased from Vietnam, it is now one of the fastest growing
economies in the World. What was the justification for foreigners
making so much chaos about something they did not
understand? Besides, what is good for the goose is good for the
gander. Why does a section of the USA spend so much time
trying to prove that President Trump’s election was, somehow,
through the hacking of some computers, aided by external forces
and see no problem in openly encouraging indisciplined elements
from friendly countries? If there is any problem in Uganda, I,
surely, will handle it better than the outsider. I think the
accusation against President Trump is that the Russians hacked
the computers of somebody to get bad information about Hillary
Clinton, the candidate that was competing with him. It is so
serious that some of them talk of impeaching President Trump if
it turned out to be true: yet, it would be merely giving information
by the Russians to the detriment of the candidate they did not
prefer. Assistance with information. In Africa, on the other hand,

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NGOs funded by foreign Governments, actually give money to
opposition players, give advice, lie on their behalf etc. These
foreigners may think that Africans are weak and foolish. Indeed,
that is what Henry Kissinger is reported to have said once in
1973 in the Arab-Israel war.

However, God, sometimes, stands with the weak. Africa may one
day surprise those who abuse her. In this case, we, the sleeping
Ugandans, seeking to operationalize Article (1) of our
Constitution which says that all power belongs to the people of
Uganda, may have to enact the Sovereignty Act where citizens
who helped foreigners to interfere in our politics would attract
appropriate legal sanctions. I thank the Americans for reminding
us by harassing Mr. Trump on this alledged connections with the
Russians.

The issue of torture which has been bandied around so much in

recent times, like all the issues of security in Uganda, is
something that will not take me 10 minutes to understand. I
have either been watching or observing these issues for the last
56 years. Indeed, on the 20thJune, 2018, I wrote a circular letter
to all the security personnel when this issue was raised in the
media. Which genius in the World can understand this issue
more than some of us that have been handling all this for so
long? Here is a copy of that letter.
There has been so much talk about the torture by the security
forces of people like Hons: Bobi Wine and Zaake. This talk is in
the media and in other non-Court fora. Yet, these are matters in
the Courts of Law. The questions in the minds of those who love
fairness are the following: “What if those allegations turn out to
be false? How will the accusers, local and foreign, rectify the
injustice they have done to the Security forces? If any one of
them implied or said that where I commented on the Arua events
since I was on the scene, I was telling lies, will I be entitled to
damages? That will be good for my Party, the NRM. Some of the
NGO money via the Opposition may, in the end, help to fund the
NRM. Final question in this connection: “Do the Security Forces
personnel have rights according to these “human rights” activists
or are they to be assaulted, beaten, stoned or maligned with
impunity?.”

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Uganda is not a failed state. It has powerful institutions: the
armed forces, the LC structures, the Leagues, the District
Parliaments (Councils – 123 of them), the National Parliament,
the Ministries etc., etc. These have handled the issues of Uganda
from a very low base to where it is now. If there are people of
good will, the World is not short of vacuum areas, where there is
no state authority. They could, surely, help there if they have
some redundant capacity. There is Afghanistan, Somalia,
Eastern Congo, Iraq, Yemen etc.

Ugandans you liberated yourselves from tyranny and death. See

the mass graves in the Luwero Triangle. We are the only ones
that can guarantee our future. The way it was in the past, so it
is today and so it shall in the future. We are the ones to
guarantee our future working with friends that respect our
sovereignty and our intelligence.

Coming to the Political Parties, apart from the legal and court
solutions, there is the standing arrangement of political dialogue
through Interparty Organization for Dialogue (IPOD). I am going
to ask the NRM delegates to that forum to raise the issue of
political violence, the issue of alleged torture, the issue of inter-
party support for taking advantage of the youth dividend by
expanding their empowerment that has already started. Cabinet
decided that the State House Comptroller, Madam Lucy Nakyobe,
should head this effort because she has already started and what
she has done has been successful.

I thank everybody.

Long live the NRM,

Long live Uganda,

Long live Africa.

Yoweri Kaguta Museveni

President

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