Pastors didn’t reject proposed faith-based policy

This serves to clarify issues captured in the Daily Monitor of Thursday, July 18 as an outcome of the meeting that I chaired with the National Pastors Platform of Uganda on Wednesday, July 17 in our boardroom. It is very unfortunate that your reporter got it wrong and misled the country regarding the above subject.

Let me state it clearly that pastors presented their position paper on the proposed religious and faith-based organisation like any other stakeholder, whom we have consulted during the development process of the policy. The issue of rejecting the proposed policy and telling off the minister over State regulation was smuggled in by the writer.

Secondly, I ably explained to the pastors that at the moment, there is no policy, no law, no Bill to be discussed by either Cabinet or Parliament. We are still holding consultations with stakeholders and validation of the draft policy is slated for Wednesday, July 31. I want the country to get it clear that validation of the draft policy is not a final policy until Cabinet approves it.

There is a difference between a policy, a law and a Bill. A policy is a government plan of action in a specific sector and this is not a legislation or law until it is presented to Parliament in form of a Bill to be debated and enacted into law, which depends on the wish of the stakeholders.

I encourage all pastors and religious leaders to visit our Department for Religious Affairs to get proper and updated information regarding the policy development process.
Rev Fr Simon Lokodo,
State minister for Ethics