The First Lady of Uganda and also Minister for Education and Sports, Ms Janet Kataaha Museveni has asked women to make commitments as they mark women’s days in order to give them meaning.
Speaking during the celebrations to mark the belated women’s day for Ntungamo District held at Kajara county grounds in Rwashamaire on Tuesday, Ms Museveni said celebrations of eating, dancing and singing have no meaning whatsoever if no commitments to what women must do are made.
“Women’s Day would have meaning if as women we agree and make commitments on what we should do and then the next celebrations we make it for testimonies on achievements for what we have done. What do women get in celebrating the day for women? It’s time to make commitments like the women of Ntungamo, we avoid coming here to do nothing. Singing and dancing are for the satisfied,” she said.
Ms Museveni castigated women for abandoning their duties and turning up to celebrate women’s days instead of working towards fulfilling their goals and those of their families.
“When I came to the ministry (of Education and sports) I started campaigning throughout the country for packing food for children, telling women to pack the available food for their children not to go hungry to school. Now women whose children sleep in class without food and come here to dance for women’s day, do you think it’s right?” she asked.
“We need to redefine Women’s Day as Uganda other than following what the UN put up to celebrate. That would mean nothing,” she further said.
Ms Museveni urged women to start engaging in small savings groups that would make them easily access credit than going for money lenders.
Ms Museveni who is also the Ntungamo District NRM party chairperson urged politicians to stop early campaigns and allow elected leaders to perform for the time left in their term of office.
She asked locals to be shrewd towards the parish development model (PDM) money and monitor other government programs including schools and health facilities.
The Rushenyi County MP Ms Naome Kabasharira said there was a need to prioritize local investment in sectors like tourism by improving infrastructure.
The Host MP, Ntungamo woman MP Ms Baata Kamateneti said there had been gross abandonment of key government programs by civil servants who are meant to implement them. She warned that even the PDM might collapse if the civil servants don’t sensitise the locals.
Ms Kamateneti said the day was celebrated in style with a preceding four days’ workshop, training women on different skills development including credit and savings.
Women leaders called for inclusiveness in social, economic and political developments arguing that while they are sometimes left out, they remain fixers where men fail to perform.
