The Minister of Security General Elly Tumwine has warned the European Union (EU) that they will also refuse their diplomats from coming to Uganda if they do not rescind their decision of imposing sanctions against some officials from the East African country.
The furious high ranking UPDF officer made the warning during an interview with CBS radio on Monday. He said Uganda is a sovereign state that shouldn’t be threatened by Western powers.
Gen Tumwine said that since Uganda does not depend on donation of western powers entirely, they can do without their them.
“They are our friends but they must know that we don’t live on their donations. I don’t have any plan of going to their countries because Uganda is the best country. Don’t they come here? If they put sanctions on us, we shall also ban them from coming here, we shall see who loses most,” Tumwine said.
“Since 1962, Uganda can decide its issues conclusively, so let them talk. We don’t fear whites, let them do what they want but Uganda is still in our hands.”
On the issue of Human rights violation by the ruling government as noted by the EU parliament last week, Gen Tumwine rubbished the allegations.
“Freedom and liberty in Uganda were not brought by whites. It is we the National Resistance Movement that brought them to Uganda.”
Gen Tumwine’s fury follows the move by EU Parliament to recommend sanctions against Ugandan individuals and organizations which they claim are responsible for human rights violations during the recent general election. The EU Parliament said the elections were not democratic and transparent.
In its statement issued on Thursday, the Parliament resolved that “…sanctions against individuals and organizations responsible for human rights violations in Uganda must be adopted at EU level under the new EU (European Union) human rights sanction mechanism, the so-called EU Magnitsky Act”.
The resolution was endorsed by 632 votes, with only 15 against and 48 abstentions.
The resolutions were based on human rights violations that happened during the recently concluded general elections.
Also during his state of the nation address on matters of security last Saturday, y President Yoweri Museveni told off EU Parliament that Africans specifically Ugandans are not interested in travelling to their countries.
“I read in the newspapers about the European Union Parliament sanctioning some Ugandans from travelling. For anybody to think that Africans are dying to go to Europe is something that shows a lack of seriousness. Well, I need a lot of persuasions to leave Uganda. I normally do it for friendship,” Museveni said.
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