The Minister In-Charge of the Presidency, Babirye Milly Babalanda has emphasized that patriotism is everything needed in building a nation and without a patriotic population, a country cannot achieve development.
“Without a patriotic population, you waste your time setting up beautiful and imposing infrastructures. You waste your time to put up great health centers and schools. You waste your time equipping farms and demonstration centers among others. Why? It is because all of them will be vandalized and destroyed; they will be built with half the required materials and would collapse in a short time; and the situation would revert to zero all the time,”Hon. Babalanda said.
The Minister made the remarks on Friday as she presided over the passing out of 1171 student patriots from nine (9) secondary schools who underwent a patriotism course in Jinja District. The pass out ceremony took place at Buweera Church of Uganda Primary School Playgrounds in Buwenge Town Council, Kagoma, Jinja District.
She said patriotism is a strong pillar of development and a basis of strong homes, admirable communities and respectable nations.
“The NRM four core principles of Democracy, Socio-economic transformation, Patriotism and pan-africanism have been key in converting the country from a failed state in the 1980s to a prospering and flourishing democracy we are all proud of today.I am happy to note that the leaders of this area have been at the fore front of partnering with the President to put into practice the four core principles, but particularly the principle of patriotism,” she said.
“However, I have learnt over the time that Busoga as a sub-region needs to work more to build this pillar of development. There are our friends in this part of Uganda who do not very well understand the power that lies in supporting one another to develop. When you maintain poor attitudes on most things and towards your neighbor; you over-the-time develop a poor mindset, even towards things that are meant to develop you.”
The Minister also noted that in Busoga, there is a disease of poor mindsets that has crippled any effort at development and society transformation.
“We need to deal with this disease with both hands.I am glad you are graduating from this course as mindset change agents. Go out in your communities and fight this terrible disease. You have been equipped as government ambassadors to teach the communities about what the government is doing – in terms of the policies, especially those that address poverty, corruption and household incomes,”she rallied the young patriots.
“Go out and change the mindsets of the people. Start with your homes, with your parents, your siblings and your school mates. Tell them about the need to love their country. Speak about Uganda; speak for Uganda; defend Uganda; speak about the future Uganda that you want to find and remind everyone why God is first, then Uganda and all the others are secondary,” she added.
The Minister further commended the parents of the participants for allowing their children to be taken on this vital training. She said in them [patriots] is the future leadership of a corrupt-free Uganda.
“In them is a reliable team that will think straight and cause permanent transformation for their generation.We look to them to change this country into a first world and we are very proud of them. Please go forth and change your country for your children and your grandchildren.”
The Minister however lashed out at unpatriotic parents who participate in crime, in stealing people’s land, in beating up women and denying their children an education.
“Please note that you are enemies of your own country. Let these children be an example to you,we will rely on them to forward cases of corrupt people to the RDC’s office,” Hon. Babalanda warned.
The Jinja Resident District Commissioner (RDC), Mr. Richard Gulume counseled the patriots to always put discipline first in whatever they do if they want to succeed in life.
“Discipline is the master key to success. You cannot achieve anything without it,” Mr. Gulume said.
He also disclosed that due to the patriotism program, strikes in schools drastically reduced.
On the other hand, the Deputy Commissioner in-charge of Patriotism- Office of the President, Mr. Mubarak Magomu reminded Ugandans that it was a fulfilment of every citizen to undergo the patriotism program.
“We want to raise the highest level of consciousness through patriotism program. I call upon teachers that while teaching patriotism in schools integrate the six points as advised by the President which include excelling in academics, spiritual consciousness, hard work, doing physical exercise, values and discipline that will help our children to develop and be responsible citizens,”Mr. Magomu stated.
Mr. Samuel Kirenda Isabirye, who represented Patriotism Coordinators in Busoga sub-region said during the training, participants were exposed to elementary military skills and Ideological classes among them including; orientation to patriotism studies, political history of Uganda, cardership, discipline and patriotic methods and their relevance, HIV/AIDS and roles of the youths in national development.
“This patriotism course has improved discipline among students in schools, bringing the occurrence of strikes down. It has also raised the level of national conscious among youth shown by knowledge of anthems in Swahili both Uganda and East Africa among other achievements,”Mr. Kirenda, who also serves as the Patriotism Coordinator for Jinja District.
He also thanked President Yoweri Museveni for introducing the program which has been in place since 2009.
“Without ideological knowledge, Africa will perish given the current wrong ideas being propagated by the West.”
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