The Deputy Director General of the Internal Security Organisation (ISO), Colonel Emmy Katabazi, has urged Busoga women and youth leaders to change their mindset in order to pull themselves and their communities out of poverty.

He made these remarks on February 4, 2024, while at Wanyange Girls Secondary School in Jinja district, where local leaders were participating in a one-week cadre course on ideology and socio-economic transformation, ahead of the Tarehe Sita celebrations.

According to Col Katabazi, Busoga’s land is rich in minerals and other resources that the leaders can use to alleviate their communities’ poverty, in which they rank second after Karamoja.

“Busoga has minerals that can pull the region out of poverty. Mobilise yourselves and make use of these resources,” he urged.

“The region has land; use the one-acre land model. Plant commercial crops such as avocados and coffee; this will ensure that Busoga is not number two in poverty levels in the country anymore,” he added.

He urged them to engage in useful activities and preserve natural resources that will benefit not only the citizens but the country at large.

“Stop immature fishing and buying illegal fishing gear; it is keeping you in poverty. Fish mature fish, which we can export for more money,” the Colonel stated.

Over 480 participants who took part in the training pledged to heed the colonel’s advice, stating that they were ready to work for socio-economic transformation in the region.

“We thank you for your great advice and knowledge; we are willing to work with the communities and government to progress its programmes to get ourselves out of poverty,” a participant stated.

Col Katabazi also took the opportunity to recognise the UPDF’s sacrifices during the NRA war and urged the participants to live by the NRM ideology.

“The NRM is not a political party; it is a liberation movement that came to liberate Ugandans from colonial mindsets; follow these ideologies, and poverty will be a thing of the past,” he said.

Tarehe Sita commemorates February 6, 1981, when the five-year guerilla war that brought the NRM government to power was launched with an attack on Kabamba Military Barracks.

This year’s celebrations of the 43rd Tarehe Sita will be held on Tuesday, February 6, 2024, in Bugweri district, Busoga region, under the theme “Celebrating the People’s Struggle for Unity, Security, and Peace for Socio-Economic Transformation.”