Museveni Rallies Kakumiro Residents on Wealth Creation

KAKUMIRO – President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has urged residents of Kakumiro District and the wider Bunyoro sub-region to prioritize wealth creation programmes as the most reliable pathway to socio-economic transformation and poverty reduction.

The President made the remarks on Monday while addressing a campaign rally at Kakeka Grounds in Kakumiro Town Council.

President Museveni encouraged residents to join what he described as the money economy, anchored on four key sectors: commercial agriculture, manufacturing, services, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

He called on the population to take advantage of the prevailing peace to work hard and increase household incomes through government wealth creation initiatives, including NAADS, Emyooga, Operation Wealth Creation, the Parish Development Model (PDM), the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme (UWEP), and Youth Livelihood Programmes, which he said inject money directly into communities.

According to the President, while infrastructure development such as roads, electricity, schools, and hospitals remains important, real transformation is achieved when households generate income.

He tasked local leaders with sensitising communities on wealth creation, noting that wealth addresses most societal challenges, apart from freedom, which he said is guaranteed by government.

President Museveni emphasized that socio-economic transformation is impossible if households remain stuck in subsistence farming, urging residents to shift to commercial agriculture. He noted that the fertile land in Bunyoro presents a unique opportunity to boost household incomes and reduce poverty.

He highlighted the four-acre model, under which one acre is allocated to coffee, another to fruit trees, a third to food crops for household consumption, and the fourth to pasture for livestock.

The President further cautioned Ugandans against waiting for government employment, noting that public sector jobs are limited and cannot absorb the rapidly growing population. Instead, he encouraged citizens to take advantage of opportunities in the private sector, which he said offers millions of jobs.

President Museveni warned against equating infrastructure development with wealth distribution, observing that poverty persists even in urban areas with modern amenities.

On service delivery, the President pledged to upgrade Kakumiro Health Centre IV to a district hospital and elevate existing Health Centre IIIs to Health Centre IVs to improve healthcare services. He also promised to tarmac the Kisiita–Nkoko–Masodde and Ntwetwe–Kiboga roads.

8 - Families fight over dead body in Masindi

Masindi: Residents of Kasomoro Village in Buruli County, Masindi District, were Wednesday afternoon left in shock after two families clashed over the burial of Aisha Mbabazi.

Mbabazi, who passed away on Tuesday evening, had been married to Abdul Ahmed Byarugaba for 20 years. The couple lived in the same area and had nine children.

The deceased’s husband, Abdul Ahmed Byarugaba, told our reporter that the family had agreed to bury Mbabazi at his home, but the in-laws rejected the decision and insisted on taking the body to Mubende District for burial. Byarugaba said the disagreement disrupted burial plans, yet a grave had already been dug at his home.

Faruk Tibamwenda, the deceased’s brother and an heir, said he held discussions with another brother only identified as Ramathan in an attempt to harmonize the matter, but Ramathan declined to agree.

Ramathan insisted that those interested in burying their mother should travel with him in his vehicle.

Some relatives suggested that Mbabazi should be buried from her marital home, but the proposal was rejected.

Tibamwenda further told our reporter that Ramathan and his colleagues had previously sold their share of family land and relocated to Mubende District, where they eventually took the body for burial. He added that although the family had agreed to bury Mbabazi in Masindi, a group from Mubende forcefully took the body.

He also revealed that due to the dispute, three graves were dug at different locations the marital home, the ancestral home, and ancestral land. Tibamwenda attributed the conflict to claims that dowry had not been fully paid.

The LC1 Chairperson of Kasomoro Village, Yosam Majara, confirmed that the scuffle arose due to disagreements over the burial site.

Majara said this was the first incident of its kind in the area and appealed to married couples to fulfill cultural requirements, including dowry payment, to avoid such conflicts.

However, the deceased’s husband dismissed the claims, stating that he had partially paid dowry in 2005 and 2006. He expressed disappointment, noting that all burial arrangements had already been finalized.

By the time we filed this story, the body had been taken to Mubende district for burial.