President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has vowed to intensify efforts to improve the welfare of veterans who fought in Uganda’s liberation struggles, saying that it is unacceptable for those who risked their lives for the country’s freedom to languish in poverty.
“It’s not good to have the veterans in poverty. It’s not good at all,” President Museveni told a gathering of veterans drawn from Luwero, Wakiso, Nakasongola, Kiboga, Kyankwanzi, and Nakaseke districts.
He made the remarks on Wednesday, 3rd September, 2025, while delivering a lecture of opportunity and officially closing the Transformational Leadership Course Intake 07/2025 for veteran cadres at State House, Entebbe, blending reflections on Uganda’s historical liberation journey, the ideological foundation of the National Resistance Movement (NRM), and practical measures to empower ex-servicemen economically.
The President emphasized that the sacrifices of the veterans, many of whom took part in the 1981–1986 liberation war, should not be betrayed by a life of deprivation.
“The ones who are leaving now are going with better packages, but for those who sacrificed earlier, we must make up for the shortfalls. We shall do this through revolving funds, organized at the zone level,” he added, while encouraging veterans to organize themselves in structured associations and Savings and Credit Cooperative Organizations (SACCOs) through which the government can channel financial support.
“We are giving money to the Kampala ghetto boys. Why can’t we give money to the SACCOs of veterans?” H.E. Museveni noted.
President Museveni insisted that veterans must be integrated into the four key sectors of the modern economy—commercial agriculture, manufacturing, services, and ICT – to ensure sustainable income and prosperity. He stressed that veterans without land should not be left behind. Instead, they could embrace trade, artisanship, or small-scale manufacturing.
“If you don’t have land, then your option is to have omwoga—an economic activity that is not based on land. You can do maize milling, tailoring, carpentry, or other trades that generate income,” he said.
Reflecting on the early stages of Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) launched in 2013, President Museveni revealed that veterans were always intended to be the first beneficiaries.
“I told General Saleh to first give seedlings to all the veteran families and those who supported us during the war. Only after that should others benefit. But I later heard some veterans missed out because they lacked land,” the President noted.
President Museveni used the same platform to revisit the three historical missions of the NRM, which are anchored in four ideological principles: patriotism, pan-Africanism, socio-economic transformation, and democracy that shaped Uganda’s liberation struggle, beginning with prosperity for all. He explained that genuine prosperity comes from every individual or family producing goods and services for sale, not from dependency or handouts.
To illustrate these principles, the President recounted how his father, Mzee Kaguta, sold cattle in cultural auction markets in Ntungamo to raise his school fees, with support from traders like Walusimbi Mpanga and Bukenya who were not of their tribe. This experience, he said, showed that prosperity relies not only on local communities but also on broader national and regional markets.
“I like the story of how I went to school. I was able to go to the school system in the 1950s and 1960s when the school system was for paying. How did I manage? How did Mr. Kaguta manage to pay my school fees? Kaguta had traditional cows, but he had no money. The only way he could get money was from the traders. A trader was coming from Kampala, here called Walusimbi Mpanga. He would come all the way to all those areas in Ntungamo and buy our cows. So that’s how Kaguta now converts his cows into money, and he’s able to pay my school fees and do a few other things,” he said, adding that the prosperity of the Banyankore and any other tribe depends more on Uganda.
Why East African integration matters:
The President delved into Uganda’s surplus production challenges, underscoring the role of regional markets. He said Uganda produces 5.3 billion liters of milk annually but consumes only 800 million. The same applies to other products like maize, where 5 million tons are produced against local consumption of 1 million, and sugar, where Uganda produces 700,000 tons against the domestic demand of 300,000 tons.
President Museveni explained that without regional and continental markets, Uganda’s industries would collapse under the weight of excess production.
“Fortunately, there is a regional market that buys our extra milk, beef, and maize. So that’s why we say we need East Africa, we need Africa for our own prosperity. And that’s why we say the second principle is pan-Africanism; Love Africa. Why? Because you need it for your own good,” he said.
On behalf of the veterans, Captain (Rtd) Leonard Settimba delivered a memorandum outlining concerns and requests, which included a revolving fund, requesting the government to channel affordable loans through Wazalendo SACCO or other institutions to support their income-generating ventures. They also proposed an annual national day to celebrate and reunite Kadogos and bush war fighters, which would also serve as a reminder of the sacrifices made for Uganda’s freedom.
The veterans expressed fears of land evictions but were assured by the President that no one would be removed from their land provided they pay busuulu (ground rent).
Brigadier General Justus Rukundo, Commandant of the Oliver Reginald Tambo Leadership School and Pan-African Centre of Excellence (ORTLS-PACEX), Kaweweta, thanked the President for supporting the training of veteran cadres.
He revealed that the school has trained 15 intakes of officers of different ranks and continues to rejuvenate ideological clarity and leadership skills among veterans.
The school is currently constructing a 20-room guest house named “ANC” in honor of South Africa’s African National Congress and Oliver Tambo. Plans for a learning auditorium and a senior officers’ dormitory await funding.
The ceremony drew high-level attendance, including Hon. Alice Kaboyo, Minister of State for the Luwero Triangle and Rwenzori Region; Maj. Gen. David Mugisha, Commander of the Special Forces Command; Maj. Gen. (Rtd) Phinehas Kitirima, NRM District Chairperson for Sembabule; Maj. Gen. James Kiwanuka, UPDF Joint Staff for Human Resource Management; Maj. Gen. Steven Mugerwa, UPDF 1st Division Commander, and Maj. Gen. Felix Kulayigye, Director of Defence Public Information.
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