The former President of Uganda, Idi Amin slowed the rate at which the country was progressing in terms of economic and political growth, and had it not been him, Uganda would be far. This is according to President Yoweri Museveni.
He says although Uganda’s economy has grown 29 times since 1986 to the extent that in July, Uganda will be about 50 dollars short of middle-income status, the pace was slowed by Amin’s misrule.
Museveni who was Wednesday addressing the nation during the National Resistance Movement/Army Liberation day at Kololo independence grounds, said the country abandoned all its plans in order to first fix ‘problem Amin’.
“We wasted a lot of time. Idi Amin wasted our eight years. Many of the things we planned had to be abandoned. For instance, by 1971, we had the East African Community and it was moving well with Mzee Obote (Uganda), Mzee Kenyatta (Kenya), Mzee Kaunda (Zambia) – actually Zambia was about to join EAC and even Somalia had applied. Now Idi Amin comes in and the Community breaks up completely,” says the President.
“After 16 years of having to sort out that problem, that is when we come and bring back the Community and now DRC has now come in. We are beginning but we would have been very far if Idi Amin had not wasted our time.
The President also used the event to ask leaders in Africa to sit at around table and exchange views on dealing with military coups that seem to have become a trend, especially in West Africa.
On school going children who got pregnant during the lockdown, the President said he will convene a meeting with religious leaders to find a solution.
“What I can tell you is that I won’t agree to condemn a child not to study because she got pregnant once,” said the President in what seemed to be a response to some religious leaders who recently rejected allowing pregnant school going children back to religious-afflicted schools.