By Nabimanya Ronald
In recent weeks, a Tik Tok video went viral, unfairly portraying Gen. Salim Saleh as someone who selectively gives small sums of money without supporting broader initiatives that could create sustainable livelihoods for many Ugandans. While social media offers a platform for open expression, it’s important that such narratives are rooted in truth, fairness, and context.
Let us begin with facts.
Gen. Saleh is not a government institution, nor does he command a national treasury. He is one man albeit with influence and goodwill who has used his position to help countless Ugandans in both visible and invisible ways. His approach has never been about individual handouts for their own sake, but about platforms, programs, and pathways that uplift communities.
Through his leadership under Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), Gen. Saleh has been instrumental in driving efforts aimed at empowering ordinary Ugandans especially farmers, youth, and creative industry players by connecting them to national development frameworks designed for long-term impact. These efforts go beyond giving; they are about building.
Unfortunately, many Ugandans overlook the role of organization and coordination in benefiting from such programs. Often, individual requests sometimes genuine, sometimes misguided are presented to Gen. Saleh directly, expecting personal solutions to systemic issues. The result? When these personal goals aren’t met, frustration is weaponized into misinformation.
We must ask: Is it fair to turn a national development discussion into a personal attack? Can any one person, no matter how generous, solve all of Uganda’s economic challenges singlehandedly?
Gen. Saleh’s long-standing commitment to Uganda is evident not only in policy and program but in personal sacrifice. From the liberation struggle in the bush to working directly in the villages to meet the people at their level, he has not distanced himself from the very people he seeks to empower.
It is disheartening when some of those he assists turn around and use the very support he offered as a weapon against his character. But even then, he continues to build using those same metaphorical bricks not to defend himself, but to lay the foundation for others to rise.
To the youth: if Gen. Saleh could begin making change at 16, what stops you from starting now, at 25, 30,40 or 50? This country needs leaders, doers, and thinkers those who will champion programs, organize communities, and seek solutions, not just personal favours.
Let us not be a nation of individuals with megaphones and no message. Let us be organized, informed, and united. When we disagree, let it be with respect. When we seek help, let it be with humility. And when we speak, let it be with facts. Let’s rise above smear campaigns and engage each other with ideas that build, not words that destroy. The author is Nabimanya Ronald is a Ugandan author, publisher, and concerned citizen. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
