President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has warned that promoters of religious-based sectarianism in the Kigezi Sub-Region will be arrested and prosecuted.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Museveni was addressing members of the press from Kigezi following his three-day tour in the region to assess the impact of the Parish Development Model.
In the press conference held at the state lodge in Ntungamo District, one of the journalists expressed concern that there was an alarming increase in divisionism based on religious sectarianism that was being promoted by a section of individuals in the Kigezi Sub-region.
The journalist noted that the divisionism threatened the successful implementation of the PDM program, whose target is to lift 39% of Uganda’s population from subsistence to the money economy.
In response, Museveni warned that jail awaits the promoters of sectarianism, and he went ahead to describe them as “false prophets.” While addressing the Kigezi regional leaders in a meeting in Rukungiri on Thursday, Museveni also described the religious sectarianists as “self-seekers driven by greed.”
“I don’t know if these people knew that there are laws designed to deal with them,” he said, before asking one of his aides to read Section 41 of the Penal Code Act, which states that anyone found guilty of promoting sectarianism is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years.
President Museveni also warned that he had personally ordered an investigation into the matter and soon he would “catch” the promoters of religious sectarianism in the Kigezi Sub-region.
The Minister of ICT and National Guidance, Dr. Chris Baryomunsi, also condemned the promoters of politics of identity based on religion. Baryomunsi, who is also the Kinkiizi East MP in Kanungu District, asked the people in Kigezi to treat with contempt any political or religious leader involved in politics of identity.
He also asked the press to join the fight against the problem by exposing the culprits in their news reports. The latest politics of identity in the Kigezi sub-region recently hit the climax in the Kisoro Woman MP by-election, where a section of people openly made statements that majorly depicted a sharp battle between Anglicans and Catholics.
The by-election to replace the late Sarah Mateke saw Ms. Grace Ngabirano Akifeeza defeating her closest contender and former District Woman MP, Ms. Rose Kabagyenyi.
While campaigning for Kabagyenyi, the NRM Party flag bearer at Muramba Primary School playground, two days before the election, President Museveni warned that religious-based sectarianism was “poison” and asked Kisoro District political and religious leaders not to allow it in the district.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Security, Rtd. Maj. Gen. Jim Muhwezi, stated that politics of identity was not only a rising problem limited to Kisoro . Muhwezi, who is also the Rujumbura County MP in Rukungiri District, said that politics of religion had been reported from Greater Kabale District.
He noted that dividing people along religious lines was dangerous because it threatens national security. “When people are disunited, they can easily be infiltrated by the enemy. Therefore, this is a matter of national concern,” Minister Muhwezi said in a press briefing.
As Kigezi descends into religious political battles, the poverty rates are escalating, with the latest figures showing that the regional poverty rate has risen from 13.4% in the financial year 2016/ 2017 up to 27% in the 2019/2020 financial year.
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