President Yoweri Museveni has urged universities in Uganda to work to ensure that they pass out employable and enterprising students saying it is the key determinant of success for any university. This was at the 18th graduation ceremony of Kansanga-based Kampala International University (KIU) on Saturday where 2410 students, including State Minister for Privatization and Investment, Anite Evelyn, graduated in different disciplines. The president was a guest of honour at the graduation that saw 22 students get first class degrees, four of whom were female.
In his address, the President advised the graduands to emulate the entrepreneurial and ambitious nature of city business man Mr. Hassan Bassajjabala, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of KIU adding that graduates must refrain from being dormant after university but seek to be wealth creators. Mr. Museveni boasted about his government’s inclusive nature to ensure that all students access university education which was difficult in the previous regimes as there was only one university then.
“Over 11,000 would finish A-level and Makerere would admit only 1,000 out of those all on government sponsorship. I wondered where the rest of the students would go. So when the Muslims came to me seeking to start a university, I gave them space to start Islamic University of Uganda (IUIU). In the same way, the Catholics came and I gave them Nkozi NTC where they put Uganda Martyrs University and later the Protestants who started Uganda Christian University in Mukono. When Basajjabalaba came to me also and told me he wanted to start a university, I gave him a go ahead because I wanted everyone eligible to access university education”, he said.
He added that when the puppies are young, it is better you feed all of them. When they grow up, that is when you see which one will be the hunter. By feeding all, it means that you are not prejudiced. And that seeing KIU’s success now means that they (the NRM government) made the right decision.
He informed the graduands that government has opened up public universities to students who are not on government scholarship as long as they could self-sponsor their studies and have minimum qualification because it gave them an equal opportunity with the others. He added that government has further opened up private universities to encourage more students to access university education as long as private universities fulfilled the pre-conditions of the Education Ministry’s Uganda National Council of Higher Education.
The President also cautioned the graduands to live disciplined lives and avoid indulging in promiscuous activities that, he warned, would endanger and kill their lives.
“I don’t drink, I don’t understand why people drink because beer is so bitter as Mululuza and then there is whiskey which just burns you. You students must strive to be disciplined,” he warned.
