President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni says that persons suspected of murder should not be granted police bond and bail.
The President said he was sad and angry following the recent murders but confident that security agencies were working to restore security and fight crime in the country.
Museveni made these remarks at the presentation of the 2018/2019 National Budget at the Kampala Serena Conference Centre, Thursday, 14 June 2018.
He added that insecurity was something that would be dealt with.
“In the Bible, God referred to these people who commit crime as pigs and I can assure you that at the end of the day, these people have provoked us and we are going to crush them,” he said, adding that, “There are things I am not going to accept, like granting Police bond and bail to people suspected for murder”.
He condemned the act of killing innocent people and encouraged the public to be vigilant about suspicious individuals.
“It has been noted in the murders of Col. Ibrahim Abiriga and Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIGP) Felix Kaweesi that the criminals first come to the place they are going to commit crime. We must watch out for people who are suspicious around us,” he said.
Museveni requested the Speaker to grant him time so that he addresses the Parliament on the steps being taken to tackle insecurity.
“I heard you say that you want a ministerial statement on the security situation. Give me time next week so that I tell you what we are doing,” Museveni said.
The President also promised to improve the technical capacity of security agencies.
On addressing poverty at household level, the President urged Members of Parliament to encourage their constituents to embrace commercialised agriculture in order to financially uplift themselves.
“You as MPs should focus on commercialisation of farming because majority of your people are languishing in poverty because they are engaged in subsistence farming, which is very unsustainable; commercial farming is the way to empower people financially,” the President said.
He noted there is a problem of mind-set with people thinking that money will solve problems of poverty.
“We have given Ushs450 billion to Naads for buying seedlings that are granted to farmers without including the youth and women development funds. Poverty is still a problem so we need to talk to people engage in commercial farming,” the President added.
He also promised to support agriculture through irrigation and provision of fertilizers.
The President asked MPs to focus and convert the youth who have no jobs and property by supporting them in groups to start up commercial ventures.
He noted that the country had taken good strides in achieving and sustaining growth.
“We have more electricity than we are consuming and this will attract investors here to use it for establishing factories,” he said.
The President however noted that the government needs to make sure that electricity is affordable to investors. “We also have to address the issue of transportation of cargo through an efficient railway and water transport.”
The National Budget of the financial year 2018/19 is Ushs32.7 trillion up from the Ushs29 trillion in the 2017/18 financial year. Recurrent expenditure, which includes wages and salaries, interest payments will take 60% (Ushs19.4 trillion) while development expenditure will account for 40% (Ushs12.9 trillion)
