Kaliro, Uganda | By Michael Wandati | President Yoweri Museveni has promised to tackle the challenge of registering new churches as Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs).
He assured religious leaders that the issue will be addressed to ensure smoother registration processes for churches seeking official recognition as NGOs.
“The issue of periodic registration of new churches as NGOs, we are going to resolve it. A church is a church, not an NGO,” President Museveni made the commitment during the Universal Church Mega Youth Crusade, which was organized by Prophet David Isanga, the spiritual leader of the Universal Apostles Fellowship Church of Righteousness in Kaliro district.
The President’s pledge followed Isanga’s request to have the registration scrapped.
“For long this Church has been registering as a Nongovernmental Organization yet this is the only Indigenous Church founded by typical Ugandans; it is unique in its calling and I think even the rest of the world is looking forward to seeing it through that the Church of Righteousness propagates to their countries,” Prophet Isanga said.
We therefore request you that these taxes in the name of registering us as NGOs or companies limited by guarantee every after five years be scrapped,” Prophet Isanga added.
President Museveni contributed Shs 100 million to the Church SACCO. Richard Todwong, the Secretary General of the National Resistance Movement (NRM), mentioned that Bishop David Isanga had personally invited them to the crusade to witness God’s decree over President Museveni’s leadership and the blessings for the people of Uganda.
“Indeed, we can confirm and attest to the fact that your generosity and leadership to the people of Uganda has seen Ugandans in their various capacities excel including the Church,” Todwongo said.
Todwong also informed the President that the Church members had pledged their support for the NRM government. Additionally, President Museveni reiterated his encouragement for the people of Busoga to adopt the 4-acre Model farming method.
He emphasized that following this advice would help them generate wealth and improve their economic conditions.
“When I was coming here from where I landed, I was looking through the homesteads, and I saw that you need to do something about homestead incomes with “ekibaro” in this area,” President Museveni said.
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“After analysis, we recommend seven activities for you if you are working in a small area. We said have one acre of coffee, because the “ekibaro” showed us that with one acre of coffee, you can have Shs. 15m or more a year, secondly have an acre of fruits such as mangoes, oranges or pineapples, acre of three plant pasture for zero grazing cattle, number four grow food crops like cassava.
In the backyard do poultry for eggs and piggery. Finally, do fish farming in ponds for those near the wetlands. Wetlands can be used in a good way but for you, you are using them in a bad way; you use them to destroy the environment, yet you get so little from that,” President Museveni noted.
“I now want the Basoga to do the kibaro, if we irrigate all the acreage on the dry land, how much shall we get in terms of more yield? We are not against you using the wetlands but we want you to use them in a better way so that we can do more and get more money.”
