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Allan!
I really do not know who is advising this NRM fellows....How can one advise in
no uncertain terms that Military training must become compulsory in
Uganda..does the nrm realize that the some citizens they are training are the
some ones who tomorrow turn around get rid of the NRM..or better yet fight
among each other as was the case in Somalia! Indeed some of us simply dismiss
this NRM policy of i hear offering compulsory military training to Uganda..as a
rather silly preposition.
Nations who often offer compulsory military training to their citizens, are
nations who are constantly fighting wars..a good example here is Isreali.
Now in the case of Uganda, which war is Uganda gearing up to fight for the next
20,100 years? The answer to that is of course none.
That stated , why then must Uganda waste vital as well as crucial natural
resources to offer military training to Ugandans..and yet the some natural
resources could be used to uplift the people from poverty, provide better
education, and care for the health of our wananchi.
allan barigye <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: P { margin:0px; padding:0px } body
{ FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY:Tahoma }
Over to you Matek!!!
Military training to become compulsory ANGELO IZAMA KAMPALA
ALL able bodied Ugandans will undergo compulsory military training, according
to a resolution of the ruling National Resistance Movement.
The requirement will be contained in a law yet to be passed by Parliament.
Citizens who fail to do military training as part of national service can also
be punished.
Addressing a press conference yesterday, NRM Secretary General Amama Mbabazi
told journalists at the party headquarters on Plot 10 Kyadondo Road that the
party MPs endorsed the resolution during their five- day retreat at the
National Leadership Institute Kyankwanzi. MAHOGANY? Mr Mbabazi and Party
spokesperson Mary Okurut (L) during the press conference. Photo by G Sseruyange
At the retreat, MPs underwent military drills and donned army fatigues. They
also got instructions on how to handle AK-47 assault rifles.
"This is the beginning. We as leaders have led the way. We had basic training.
We will go back," Mr Mbabazi said.
He said NRM MPs were looking for a law to make Uganda more "sovereign". No
resignation call
Mr Mbabazi, who is reportedly under pressure to drop one of his portfolios
either as secretary general or security minister, said no one had raised the
question of his resignation in Kyankwanzi or anywhere else.
"I am not an employee of the party but a political leader. The problem is that
the party bureaucracy is not yet in place," Mr Mbabazi said in response to
complaints that his ministerial job made him unavailable to party business.
The national service resolution, Mr Mbabazi said, will call on Sections 8A and
17 of the Constitution which require Ugandan citizens to participate in the
common good as well as undergo military training in order to defend the
country. He did not state whether there were threats to the country or why the
provisions of the Constitution were being operationalised at this time.
Article 8A of the Constitution states that Parliament can make laws to "give
full effect" to the principles of common good while Article 17 requires able
bodied Ugandans to "undergo military training for the defence of this
Constitution and the protection of the territorial integrity of Uganda whenever
called upon to do so".
The same article says the state "shall ensure that facilities are available for
such training". The section requires lawmakers to pass a law that punishes
those who fail to do national service.
NRM, which has a parliamentary majority can easily pass the legislation
required to effect compulsory military training.
Mr Mbabazi said the Kyankwanzi school would open branches around Uganda to make
training available to many more Ugandans. He brushed aside criticisms that the
school was originally for party cadres teaching NRM ideologies.
"[Kyankwanzi] is open for other political parties who can go for a retreat even
today," Mr Mbabazi said.
National service exists in various forms in several countries around the world.
In Tanzania, the end of Mwalimu Julius Nyerere's era and liberalisation of the
economy coincided with the fizzling out of compulsory service which required
citizens to dedicate a year on national service.
Kenya also had a youth service for students prior to joining university but
training is non-military. National service is compulsory in Israel for those
above 18 with exceptions for those physically or psychologically unfit. Men
serve for three years in the national army while women are required to serve
for two.
Attempts to introduce mass military training have been around in Uganda for
over a decade.
Military service in Uganda has a minimum age of 18 and NRM, which has been in
power for 21 years, attempted to implement military and political training for
all students entering university popularly known as chaka mchaka.
The NRM proposal got mixed reviews from other political parties. The leader of
the Democratic Party John Ssebaana Kizito, described the move to make military
training compulsory as "useless'. Mr Ssebaana added that it was a gimmick for
the party to "siphon" money from the treasury.
"At this time NRM has so much else to do without introducing new things which
are useless to the nation," Mr Ssebaana said. The Forum for Democratic Change
(FDC) yesterday said it would wait to debate the merits of the proposal in
Parliament.
"I think they have brought this now to divert attention from their wrongful act
of dressing MPs in military uniform," said Wafula Oguttu, FDC's spokesman.
The Conservative Party said militarising Ugandans will not necessarily attain
its goal of encouraging patriotism.
"Compulsory military training is not relevant for Uganda today. Nationalism
cannot be measured by military training," said CP President Ken Lukyamuzi.
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