President Yoweri Museveni has commended the educated people for improving the quality of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF).

“We value the educated young people, and we want them for our institutions, especially the scientists. The educated people including the social scientists have improved the quality of our army,” he said.

Museveni made the remarks on Wednesday 20th March 2024 at State House-Entebbe while delivering a lecture of opportunity to a group of 89 scientists who were taken through a two-month basic military training at Sera-Kasenyi Training School last year.

The scientists included computer scientists, electrical engineers, Information Technology professionals, Software engineers, Telecom engineers, mechanical engineers, and civil engineers among others.

Out of the 89 scientists, 32 expressed willingness to join the army and continue with the military training.

Museveni informed the scientists that in the past, the army was for the illiterate people, and it could not perform, citing it as one of the reasons why the armies of Idi Amin and the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA) failed.

The President was also happy to note that the young scientists are coming out as change agents in Uganda.

“This has been my work for the last more than 60 years to develop young people into priests of change. Your qualifications and disciplines are what we need to build a modern army and economy,” he emphasized.

“Between 1976-1978, I trained in Mozambique 28 cadres, and these are the ones who built up our army. Only 3 of them are surviving; Gen. Saleh, Gen. Ivan Korea and another officer called Brig. Omule. You can imagine the 28 people are the ones who built this powerful army because I brought them and they trained others,” he added.

President Museveni also congratulated the scientists who had chosen a path of serving the country through the army. He however advised them that they should not join the armed forces because he asked them to, but they should do so based on their personal decision.

On the other hand, Museveni ordered the Deputy Commander of the Special Forces Command (SFC), Brig. Gen. Charity Bainababo to ensure that the scientists who are not joining the army are recruited into other science areas.

President Museveni also urged the scientists to be patriotic and understand the ideology of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) which aims at analysing the society and what should be done. 

Brig. Gen. Charity Bainababo informed the President that the scientists undertook training in military law, political education, physical training, skills at arms and basics in Kiswahili.

Brig. Gen. Bainababo also noted that the 32 scientists who expressed desire to continue with the military training shall be deployed in the army accordingly.