Members of Parliament on the Parliamentary Forum on Ethics and Integrity have asked the government to provide more resources to boost ethics and morality in the country.
According to the forum chairperson, Dr James Nsaba Buturo, building ethics and integrity will harness Uganda’s transition to a middle-income status.
‘Uganda is still categorised as a developing country. It is beginning to emerge out of the shadows of least developed nations, but for how to successfully break through ranks of least developed nations and graduate into the club of nations that are developed, it has to make a quantum leap over vestiges of ethical malfeasance which continue to constrain her efforts,’ he said as he gave a key note address during a belated Global Ethics Day commemoration event, organised by Makerere University in conjunction with Directorate for Ethics and Integrity, Office of the President.
An initiative of the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, the day encourages individuals and organisations to reflect on and discuss ethical issues.
The day is officially marked on the third Wednesday of October every year.
Launched in 2014, the day also provides an annual moment for individuals and organisations to reflect on and act on the importance of ethics in various aspects of life.
The former Ethics minister also asked Ugandans to play their part by ensuring that their actions, deeds and relationships are honestly informed by imperatives of ethics.
He also advised educational institutions at all levels to make learning of ethics and morality a mandatory course.
‘Ethics and good governance are intertwined principles that guide individuals, institutions and governments to act with integrity, accountability, and fairness for the public good,’ he added.
He said that Uganda will rise and shine as well as become blessed with more stability, security, peace, unity and development when it integrates ethics and good governance in her development goals and architecture.
Dr Nsaba Buturo said that whereas the government is investing large sums of money to bolster Uganda’s pace of modernisation in fields such as education, health, road infrastructure and technology, a more urgent strategy should be made to invest more resources in the moral and ethics infrastructure, both of which are the bedrock of Uganda’s successful transformation.
Mr Joel Wanjala, Under Secretary at the Directorate for Ethics and Integrity in the Office of the President, who represented the Permanent Secretary, said the government has played its part in rejuvenating ethics and integrity, although more effort is needed.
‘As a government, we have done our part, but we are not yet there. The legal and policy frameworks are in place, the Leadership Code Act, which is now Cap 33, is in place to hold all leaders accountable, the anti-corruption act is in place, the Inspectorate of Government Act is in place, the Whistle-blower Protection Act is there,’ he said.
About the anti-corruption act in place, Mr Wanjala said the directorate is doing whatever it takes to close the existing gaps in it to ensure its enforceability.
According to the Principal College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS), Prof Hellen Nambalirwa, the day brought back the very critical aspect that has been forgotten.
‘We are where we are because the Humanities and Social Sciences have been ignored. We are the bridge between science and society. If science is made without ethics the society can never take it up in an ethical manner,’ she said.