Banish tribalism, Museveni tells Banyoro

NATIONAL | TRIBALISM

President Yoweri Museveni has called upon the people of Bunyoro sub-region to banish tribalism.

He was speaking at the commissioning of the lands ministry's Kibaale district zonal office, where he also handed over 254 land titles, under the Land Fund, to lawful owners.

The ceremony took place on Saturday at Bujuni Primary School in Buyanja Constituency in Kibaale district.

It was attended by Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for East African Affairs, Al Hajji Kirunda Kivejinja, and a number of Cabinet ministers, among others.

President Museveni said the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) government has promoted unity among Ugandans so that the country can develop.

He noted that there is a lot of tribalism at play when it comes to choosing leaders and who can settle in Bunyoro.

Museveni said land wrangles in the area started with the coming of the colonialists, who divided people according to tribes and rewarded those tribes that co-operated with land from other areas in the country.

According to a press release from State House, the President said his government has tried to unite Ugandans to put an end to the disunity caused by the colonialists, strongly cautioning politicians and media houses against promoting tribalism.

He urged them to unite their platforms to promote unity among Ugandans in order to enshrine in the wananchi the necessity of togetherness in developing their country. He also cautioned Ugandans against choosing their leaders along tribal lines and instead focus on competence.

Meanwhile, lands minister Betty Amongi revealed that one of the tasks of her ministry is to address historical injustices related with land.

She said the new lands office in Kibaale is a very important milestone as it will not only issue land titles, but also deal with land surveying and mapping, among others.

Amongi advised those who got back their land titles to use their land to improve their lives economically.