President
Yoweri Museveni has lashed out at Ugandans crying over the high
commodity prices, saying they have several local options and cheaper
choices to make. Prices of household commodities including sugar, salt,
soap, cooking oil, fuel, and bread among others have skyrocketed since
the beginning of the year - with the government attributing the
inflation to the Ukraine-Russia war and lockdowns in the world's trade
corridors.
Speaking during the International Labour
Day celebrations held at Kololo Ceremonial Grounds on Sunday afternoon,
Museveni said Uganda has everything and can be self-reliant and stay
clear of all the world economic dynamics. He said the only thing that
Ugandans have to worry about at the moment is the weather which affects
agricultural production.
"You know Africans really confuse
themselves, you're crying that there is no wheat [forbread]. I don't eat
bread myself. If there is no bread eat muwogo [cassava], muwogo is
here. My real worry worry worry was actually the weather because the
rain delayed. Instead of starting in March, it started in April, so I
think as a country we should plan that in the next budgets - may be in
the other because this one we're not able to deal with the issue of
irrigation so that we don't depend on this [weather]. Once we do that,
for me am not concerned with anything - Uganda has got everything, there
is nothing we lack, it is a question of just waking up. Even in the
next few years, we shall be having our petroleum here and we have got
other energy sources, so all those don't concern us. The only one we can
look at is irrigation because that can cause us real, real problems,"
said Museveni.
The
president also maintained his stand on prioritizing better payment of
civil servants in science-related fields as workers push for the
harmonization of salaries across the board and enactment of a minimum
wage. He noted that although civil servants in other fields would get
enhanced salaries, government decided to start with scientists.
He was responding to calls from Usher
Wilson Owere, the chairperson of the National Organization of Trade
Unions (NOTU) for better pay for workers in arts and humanities, saying
that they are equally important.
In his response, Museveni noted that
although there is a claim of equity, the reality is that scientists are
more important to the nation now and need special treatment.
"We
shall support our arts people but let's start with the scientists
because we don't have enough money to handle both. So rather than
saying, we all get stagnant, no. That is not correct. Banyankole have a
saying that when you're drinking alcohol you say we're all equal - we're
all men here when you're drunk, but when the beer goes away, you
discover who is better than the other one. So please, this onsinza ki [how are you better than me?] must stop. Soroti Flying School was about to collapse because of this onsinza ki,
we're all government workers. In the end, we shall pay all of them well
but if we can't pay all of them well. Rather than saying we lose
everybody, I don't think that is the correct way. It is suicidal," added
Museveni.
Although Owere presented the grievances
of post-primary science teachers who declared industrial action recently
because of being left out of the salary enhancement for scientists,
Museveni did not respond to the matter.
Without a response from
the president, the union of science teachers that recently broke away
from the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU) is left with no other
option other withdraw their labour when learners return to school for
the second term on May 9.
Earlier on, Owere had also tasked the
government to re-introduce the minimum wage bill to ensure that
employers stop exploiting lower-level workers. The tenth parliament
passed the bill but the president declined to sign it and returned it to
the house with comments.
Owere, who asked what could have
happened to the bill, petitioned the speaker of parliament, who attended
the event, to include the bill on the order paper.
"There is the
issue of minimum wage, I remember we sat with you [president] and
agreed on something and ministry of Gender started moving but when we
saw them moving slowly, we went ahead of them. Our good member of
parliament presented a private member's bill which you didn't sign, you
returned it to parliament. Now, me, am not coming back to you
[president], am asking parliament since the speaker is here. Honourable
speaker where is the bill which was returned to you? Because the
president pronounced himself, we want you also to pronounce yourself on
this issue. And minister of Gender, your predecessor said there is
adequate law, where is that adequate law? Where is that adequate law?
These are areas that we want to correct," said Owere.
Dr Silver Mugisha, the managing director
of National Water and Sewerage Corporation who is also the chairperson
of the Federation of Uganda Employers also appealed to the government to
take into account the concerns of employers while considering the
minimum wage and related issues.
"The Federation of Uganda
Employers is committed to continuous engagement and advocating for a
comprehensive win-win employee welfare solution that promotes labour
productivity and employment sustainability. Your Excellency, we can talk
about minimum wage but as we talk about it, we need also to look at
productivity and also how employment can be sustained. We don't want
something to be done on one side and kill something on the other side,"
said Mugisha.
In his statement about the commemoration
of Labour Day, Mathias Mpuuga Nsamba, the leader of the opposition in
parliament, noted that there might be no reason for the workers in
Uganda to celebrate Labor Day given the enormous problems they are
facing today.
“Prices of essential commodities and fuel have
continued to rise majorly due to the government’s mismanagement of the
COVID-19 stimulus loan from IMF in addition to the unfair tax regime.
Consequently, many workers… as well Ugandan employed in the informal
sector cannot afford some of the essentials of living,” Mpuuga’s
statement read in part.
Mpuuga also decried the unprecedented
youth unemployment, which he blamed for the trafficking of Uganda
workers (youths) to Middle East countries.
In the same development, Museveni noted
that the newly launched Parish Development Model has the potential of
solving unemployment in Uganda if well implemented. According to his
calculations, with the said model, the agriculture sector will create up
to 50 million jobs.
The minister of Gender, Labour and
Social Development Betty Amongi also noted that her ministry has been
diagnosing the problems in the booming external recruitment of migrant
workers in a bid to streamline the business, adding that workers in that
sector are not mistreated as it has been previously.
Amongi noted that they have already made some reforms, which they think will bring the sector to order.
