Free houses for poor elderly people

The Government is to build houses for the poor elderly people, President Yoweri Museveni has announced.

Government also plans to make durable bricks at the zones which individuals would buy to construct houses, Museveni said in Masuliita and Matugga, where he addressed the civilian Luwero war veterans who he said will be instrumental in this new drive.

The President who is on a new anti-poverty campaign said on Friday that  small units for making bricks using hydra form machines  will be established at the zonal level.

 "We will sell the bricks to those who can buy them.  For the elderly who cannot build for themselves, we shall build houses for them. The young will buy but we shall also see what other support we can give them," Museveni said.

He said this will be done using the old zones that the NRA used during the war. Each zone, according to him will be overseen by an army commander. He explained, however, that the commanders are not intended to take over the jobs of the district and local officials on the ground. "The commanders will be monitors", he said.

The President who is on the anti-poverty campaign said that the Luwero-Rwenzori region which he will tour in this campaign will be used as a spring board for the rest of the country's development.

He advised that though the people can ask for collective development services like road infrastructure, they should focus more on what they can do to get rid of poverty at the household level. 

He said that though he is enlisting the help of the veterans in this anti-poverty fight, the campaign is "not only for veterans but for everybody."

Museveni also promised to establish coffee processing machines for communal use by the coffee farmers as well as milk coolers for those producing milk and fruit juice processors. He said that what is needed is for the people to start the processes.

The President also promised that large districts will receive additional road equipment to repair the existing roads and construct others. The small ones will remain with one unit.

He cautioned people to guard against HIV/AIDS, noting that the disease is still prevalent. He also decried teenage pregnancies which she said are very high because children have failed to know that they are supposed to be in school and "not wives."

While in Masulita, the President donated over sh70m to several SACCOs.