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By Spy Uganda
President Yoweri Museveni has defended his decision to appoint Balaam Barugahara and Justine Nameere to the Ministry of Local Government, saying their outspoken and confrontational personalities make them suitable for tackling corruption and poor service delivery.
Speaking during his address at the reading of the 2026/27 national budget at Kololo on Thursday, Museveni said he was aware of the public perception surrounding the two ministers, who are often described as controversial and combative. However, he argued that those traits could be useful in confronting officials accused of undermining government programmes.
Balaam Barugahara was recently appointed Minister of Local Government, while Justine Nameere serves as State Minister for Local Government.
“That is why I put in people who some people say are cantankerous like Barugahara and Nameere. Nameere is famous for quarrelling, so you go and quarrel with those people,” Museveni said.
The President said the pair had been tasked with helping to root out corruption, particularly among local government officials accused of mismanaging public resources and stealing funds meant for development initiatives such as the Parish Development Model (PDM).
Museveni also recalled defending Nameere against criticism from some leaders in Masaka who had questioned her conduct and communication style.
“When I went to Masaka to defend her, some people were saying, ‘How was that girl raised? She has no manners!’ But I said if her lack of manners will help us fight off evil…” he said.
According to the President, many Ugandans have become reluctant to call out wrongdoing because those who expose corruption are often accused of being disrespectful.
“Because here in Uganda, you are not even allowed to point out bad elements. When you call someone a thief they say you have bad manners. This is how you are going to destroy the country,” Museveni said.
The President expressed concern over continued reports of theft of medicines from government health facilities and the misuse of public funds at local government level.
He argued that government already has structures responsible for monitoring service delivery but many officials have failed to effectively carry out their duties.
“There is no medicine in government hospitals, but you have government officials, the sub-county chiefs, the Gombolola Internal Security Officer. They need to be strict. They are all there, but the drugs are being stolen. That is what I can no longer tolerate,” he said.
Museveni revealed that during the election period, he frequently received complaints about the theft and misuse of Parish Development Model funds, forcing him to repeatedly seek explanations from then Local Government minister Raphael Magyezi.
“Instead of campaigning, I was getting complaints about stolen PDM funds and kept calling him to explain,” he said.
The President also turned his criticism toward Members of Parliament, accusing both ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) legislators and opposition MPs of failing to adequately monitor government programmes in their constituencies.
“What are the MPs doing? Even the opposition ones?” Museveni asked. “As long as you are getting allowance from Parliament and you do not go to check what is happening, I will ask the Attorney General to see how to deal with you.”
He argued that legislators who receive facilitation to oversee government projects should be held accountable if they fail to perform that role.
Museveni further accused some opposition politicians of deliberately neglecting government programmes in order to create public dissatisfaction with the NRM government.
“Some of the opposition people do it maliciously; they want the programmes to not work so that the NRM government can be blamed. That is not good enough for you, because these programmes are not for the government; they are for your own people,” he said.
The remarks come as the government intensifies efforts to improve accountability and ensure that flagship programmes such as the Parish Development Model deliver benefits to intended beneficiaries.
Museveni’s comments also offer insight into the reasoning behind his recent appointments at the Ministry of Local Government, where he appears to be prioritising officials he believes are willing to aggressively confront corruption and inefficiency within local government structures.
, https://www.spyuganda.com/leave-my-cantankerous-quarrelsome-ministers-alone-museveni-defends-appointment-of-balaam-nameere/
