President Museveni has said Uganda can develop with or without World Bank funding after the latter suspended loans to the East African country over its passing of the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023.
According to the President, no one can coerce Uganda into abandoning its principles.
“Last night, an official from the World Bank rang me to alert me about the statement from that Bank regarding the suspension of any new requests from Uganda for loans,” he wrote on Wednesday evening.
“I want to inform everybody, starting with Ugandans that Uganda will develop with or without loans. It is, therefore, unfortunate that the World Bank and other actors dare to want to coerce us into abandoning our faith, culture, principles and sovereignty, using money. They really under-estimate all Africans,” he added.
On Tuesday, the World Bank announced that Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act was against its values of equality and protection of sexual minorities, hence could not continue supporting Uganda with loans.
But Museveni said nobody should put Uganda under any form of pressure since it’s a sovereign state.
“We do not need pressure from anybody to know how to solve problems in our society. They are our problems,” he said.
“We are continuing to talk with the World Bank so that both they and we avoid this diversion if possible,” he added.
On May 26, President Museveni signed into law the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, attracting backlash from the West and cheers from religious leaders.
The controversial law introduces strict penalties. including death for aggravated homosexuality, as well as imprisonment of up to 20 years for acts of homosexuality, promoting, child grooming and promotion of the vice.
Some groups then went to court to challenge the act. Lawyer Hassan Male Mabirizi, who recently filed the petition before the court’s sub registry in Kampala, said the law is against the treaty establishing the East African Community, which calls for adherence to principles of democracy, rule of law, accountability, transparency, and social justice.
