Last year in September, President Museveni directed all security units especially the Police and LDU officers to stop arresting people under the outdated law of ‘Idle and Disorderly.’ The President said that ‘idle and disorderly’ is a nonsensical crime that was created by colonialists because they did not want Africans to be near them.
Although the President gave this directive, it has not yet been fully implemented since the law has not yet been repealed.
Now, Bishop Reuben Kisembo of Rwenzori Diocese wants the law to stay put, for it will prevent the youth who are the biggest percentage of the population in Uganda from being lazy and idle.
The Clergyman argues that allowing the children and youths to be idle, disorderly, and redundant is cheap politics and cheap popularity that will land the country into anarchy with high rates of social criminality.
From the very beginning, Kisembo says, God created Adam and Eve and put them in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it and when they sinned, God told Adam that he will toil and sweat in order to get what to eat.
Similarly, he advised youths to not sit around and be idle, for when they do so, “they become parasites depending on other people and because they want to eat, they resort to stealing.”
“So we encourage children and youths who are below 30 years not to be idle but to engage in productive activities like crop and animal husbandry, making and selling bricks, bikomandos, joining sports and entertainment clubs and learning vocational skills like knitting among others,” Kisembo advised.
The Bishop appealed to the President to withdraw his directive for Police to stop arresting idle and redundant youths if he wishes his bazukulu well.