I won’t seek MPs’ nod for projects - Museveni

President Museveni has said he will not seek MPs’ approval in the implementation of various government projects, accusing them of delays in passing decisions, which has stalled several projects.

Speaking at the closure of a three-week NRM retreat for new party MPs yesterday, the President said there has been a lot of delays by the 10th Parliament to approve major projects such as  the anti-tick vaccine project.

Dr Saimo-Kahwa led a team of scientists from Makerere University to develop the ticvac-u vaccine.

Following the discovery, Daily monitor in its April 15 publication explained how the team said the commercial production of the vaccine had hit a snag, blaming the delay on the late release of the appropriated funds by Parliament.

Dr Saimo-Kahwa said the commercial manufacturing was scheduled to start last month at the Kampala-based veterinary drugs manufacturer, Alfasan, but this did not happen.

Mr Museveni said  “the delays ...must stop when it comes to approval of decisions.”
“That one (10th Parliament) has been delaying. I am here in two capacities as an elected President of Uganda repeatedly but also as a leader of the resistance movement, I want no more games,” Mr Museveni said.

“We have the capacity to say no to everybody, and when we say no more, we mean no, so the Kahwa project has been going on. I am begging as if I want people to build my house. I am begging for Kahwa project to make a vaccine which will make your cows stop dying from ticks,” he added.
The President added that he will use his authority to endorse key decisions without having to lobby parliamentary approval.

Mr Crispin Kaheru, an elections’ expert, said lobbying or begging by one arm of government could symbolise inefficiency in work operations.
Efforts to reach Ms Helen Kawesa, the Parliament’s acting director of Communications and Public Affairs, were futile by press time.

Lays out six priorities
Meanwhile, President Museveni has listed six priorities for NRM MPs- elect to tackle in their respective areas.

These include social economic transformation, peace, infrastructure, production based on demand, education and health, and stability.
Mr Museveni urged MPs to end peasantry in their constituents through social economic transformation.

He also encouraged the MPs to educate the public to focus on producing things that are on demand.
“The peasants must disappear, not by killing them.. .The ones there should be the last. We should not have peasants producing other peasants,” the President said.

“You need peace in the country and in order to do that, you must be very firm against the trouble makers. These ones who want to make demonstrations, you should mobilise strongly and logically against them. Those bayaaye  (loosely translated as hooligans) people in Kampala have social economic problems partly because of the negligence of our people in the town who are not attending to them,” Mr Museveni added.

However, the President warned the legislators against engaging in cheap popularity, citing Kayunga Woman MP Idah Nantaba who he accused of misconduct while fighting issues such as land evictions.
He also accused Ms Nantaba of siding with liars.

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