The speaker of parliament Rt. Hon. Jacob Oulanyah has tasked Human Rights Activists and University students to shift their focus and awareness efforts on addressing issues affecting the ordinary people in the society.
The Speaker, noted that the words, and actions of the Human rights activists must resonate with the challenges that the ordinary person faces in the village. Adding, “if we are talking about social transformation, let’s talk about that.”
Oulanyah made these remarks during the 12th inter university Human Rights Competition hosted by Gulu University, under the theme “Promotion and protection of Human Rights in relation to Sustainable Development Goals.”
The speaker said that many times, activists, experts, and scholars love to engage in board room talks neglecting the plight of community members like poverty, teenage pregnancies others that regular people face.
Speaking at the National Validation for the 2nd Assessment Report on Implementation of Uganda African Peer Review Mechanism National Program of Action for the financial years 2019/2020 and 2020/2021, in October, Oulanyah said that the 11th Parliament, decided to focus on the people, and the things impacting on the life of the Ugandan in the village.
Dr. Livingstone Ssewanyana, the Executive Director of Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI), Noted that the purpose of the Inter University debate on Human rights is to build a group of leaders that would be assertive to the issues of Human rights concerns and respectful of the dignity of the people.
Ssewanyana, asked the speaker, and parliament to focus on upholding the constitution and human rights of the people of Uganda.
Professor Openjeru Ladda, the Gulu University Vice Chancellor, said that addressing the issues of human rights abuses contributes to sustainable goals, noting that debating is a great preparation for a fair competition, tolerance and fairness which are being inculcated in the lives of young people.
The competition was won by Uganda Christian University UCU, followed by Makerere University, 1st runner up and Bishop Stuart University as the second runner up. The best research paper went to Makerere University.
These were awarded cash prizes of Shs.500,000, Shs. 300,000, and Shs. 250, 000 respectively, including certificates of participation.
The Competition that saw 14 universities compete, Students from 14 Universities competed on several topics that included Sustainable Development Goals, covid-19 restrictions, among others.