Ps Fred Bahati: Religious institutions should start to shun corrupt people. PHOTO/Abou Kisige.
My analysis
Pastor
Bahati’s solutions can over work in Uganda. Religious leaders in Uganda have
made an alliance with the corrupt. The accept gifts, cars and monies from the corrupt. When it
comes to Uganda’s
prosperity Pentecostal movement, it is also
very corrupt. Pastors collect tithes and offerings but do not account to the
flock. Virtually all the churches do not have audited reports of the churches’ transactions
. Some Pentecostals pastors are selling prayers and merchandising the sheep. If
the Pentecostal movement has failed to shun fraud pastors in their midst, how
can they shun corrupt politicians.
FIRST READ:
Retired Justice Prof. George Kanyeihamba attacks Ugandan religious leaders for hypocrisy when it comes to corruption
http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2012/11/retired-justice-prof-george-kanyeihamba.html
The Corruption ecosystem in Uganda : All Ugandans caught up in corruption
http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-corruption-ecosystem-in-uganda-all.html
Bahati offers 10 radical solutions to corruption
Publish Date: Nov 30, 2012
By Moses Mulondo
KAMPALA - The chairman of Uganda Bus Owners Association Pastor Fred Bahati has proposed 10 solutions to end corruption which include the need for churches and mosques to begin shunning corrupt people.
“The level of thieving in Uganda at present is beyond corruption but can be termed as terrorism, robbery, murder, kidnap, rebellion and devilish. We should improvise new measures which will cause the citizens to discriminate and make life hard for the corrupt,” Bahati suggested.
In a press statement he released on Thursday, Bahati proposed 8 radical measures the nation should undertake to wipe out corruption.
He wants the religious leaders and believers to allow the corrupt in the places of worship only if they have turned up to repent and return what they have stolen as Zacchaeus the Tax Collector did in the Bible.
Bahati, who is also the pastor of the Nsambya based Light Temple Ministries International Church, wants religious leaders to come out boldly and curse the corrupt.
This regular panelist on the Vision Group’s Urban TV also proposed the need to blacklist and hung the photos of the corrupt in the places of worship so people can shun them.
He wants the children of the corrupt to only be baptized after repentance and bringing what they have stolen.
“We should not also burry them or their family members because they don’t respect God. Those who robbed the funds for the people of northern Uganda who were terrorized by Kony is worse than Kony,” he further proposed.
Bahati wants the places of worship to also reject offertory, tithes and donations or any form of contribution from the corrupt.
He wants the religious leaders to call upon market vendors, supermarkets, petrol stations, banks, and other business people never to render any service to these people who steal funds meant to improve the welfare of ordinary Ugandans.
“Nobody should invite them on the weddings or even attend their functions. By isolating these dangerous thieves at that level it will be an indication to the young people that stealing is bad.”
Bahati also wants the ethics minister Fr. Simon Lokodo to resign arguing he has failed on his duty of mobilizing the citizens to rise up against corruption and other evils in the country.
“The ministry of ethics and integrity requires a more pragmatic and energetic person who will lay strategies of bringing back morals and ethics into Ugandans through crusades, workshops, adverts, and conferences,” Bahati argued.
He also wants MPs and all citizens to support John Ssimbwa’s anti-corruption Bill which calls for harsh punishments for the corrupt including the confiscation of the property of the corrupt.
The area people are saying they are not getting quality services. PHOTO/Francis Emorut
Mpigi residents demonstrate against
corruption
Publish Date: Nov 30, 2012
By Francis
Emorut
MPIGI - Residents of Kayabwe in Mpigi district have demonstrated against corruption, saying they have been deprived of quality services.
The residents who marched along Kampala-Masaka highway held placards with different messages.
The messages read: “Inequality breeds corruption, how has corruption affected you?” “Listen to our voices, I am not corrupt why not you?” “Corruption is worse than AIDS” “Let’s all fight against corruption” “What have you done to end corruption?” “The fight against corruption starts with you and protect whistle blowers”, among several others.
The LC1 chairman of Kayabwe Equator, John Semakula called on the area to join those protesting against graft which has affected service delivery in the district.
He said more awareness needs to be created in the community to join the fight against graft.
The demo comes in the wake of scandalous revelations of alleged corrupt officials and their dealings in the office of the Prime Minister, which has effectively forced key donors to withdraw financial aid from Uganda.
Mary Nantongo, a resident of the area said she was happy to join the demonstration because whenever she goes to a health centre, she is told by the health workers that there are no drugs.
Rwampara MP Vincent Chamadidi, officials from Inspectorate of Government, Democratic Governance Facility and Uganda Debt Network joined the residents in the peaceful march against corruption.
Chamididi urged residents to raise alarm whenever money is stolen in the district.
“Corruption is outright theft. Therefore, you should raise an alarm when money is stolen by district officials so that they are caught,” he said.
A mural installed by Uganda Debt Network was launched at the Equator in Kayabwe to raise awareness among the community on the war on corruption.
Civil society bosses to strip over corruption
Thursday, 29 November 2012 23:09
Civil Society Organisation leaders have
threatened to publicly strip naked if officers accused of stealing pension
funds and money meant for the recovery of northern Uganda are not prosecuted and the
money refunded.
The CSOs accuse government of permitting impunity
by not bringing the accused to book.
“We don’t pay taxes for thieves, that money
should be recovered from thieves,” said Richard Ssewakiryanga, executive
Director of Uganda National NGO Forum.
Sewakiryanga is particularly concerned that some
of the stolen money could have saved lives in the health sector.
“For us who serve people every day, we know the
pain of mothers who lose babies because there is no medicine in hospitals. So
many people are going to die,” he told a press conference in Kampala.
“Ugandans are dying because of lack of access to
essential health services. Mr President ... it is your duty to lead the finding
of the money that was looted so that we can get treatment for mothers with HIV,
pregnant women and children,” Leonard Okello, the Policy Advisor of the
International HIV/Aids Alliance said.
HIV/Aids, human rights, maternal and child health
advocacy organisations want corrective action against those implicated in the
theft of public funds, particularly from the ministry of Public Service, Office
of the Prime Minister and the education sector, which is suspected to be in the
region of Shs 1.5 trillion.
Of this money, an estimated Shs 500bn was stolen
from the ministry of Public Service in 12 years as part of the ghost pension
scheme, with Shs 63bn stolen between February and October 2012 alone. A further
Shs 50bn was reportedly stolen from the Office of the Prime Minister’s Peace,
Recovery and Development Programme for northern Uganda and Karamoja regions. New
revelations indicate that another Shs 950bn World Bank loan for education
projects was also targeted.
The CSOs want government to fulfil a commitment
to recruit an additional 6,172 health workers and enhance the remuneration of
workers at health centre IVs across the country. Joshua Wamboga, of The Aids
Support Organisation (TASO), says the Shs 63bn stolen from Public Service
between February and October 2012 would be enough to provide anti-retroviral
treatment (ARVs) to 17,204 HIV-positive people now waiting in line.
Following the Auditor General’s revelations and
the subsequent police-led investigation, Uganda’s
development partners such as UK,
Ireland, Denmark, Norway
and Sweden, among others,
have frozen aid to Uganda.
In a show of solidarity, the CSOs have launched a campaign called ‘Black
Monday’.
They will wear black every Monday to mourn the
continued death of women during child birth, lack of ARVs for the HIV-positive
who need them and hundreds of children in northern Uganda wasting away due to nodding
disease. Dr Lydia Mungherera, the executive director of Mama’s Club, appealed
to Ms Janet Museveni, the First Lady and minister for Karamoja Affairs, to
intervene.
“Mama Janet, as a champion of PMTCT (prevention
of mother-to- child HIV transmission) you told us you are going to take the
leading role of saving mothers. Do you see that your mothers and their children
are dying? As a mother of this nation, help us. You can talk to the president
and tell him we are carrying the bleeding heart of a nation.”
