Category: Daily Monitor

The Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU) has responded strongly to Minister of Public Service, Mr Muruli Mukasa’s ultimatum to teachers to call off their strike.

In a statement released after a meeting of the National Executive Committee and branch chairpersons on Saturday, UNATU accused the government of attempting to coerce teachers into returning to class without addressing their grievances.

The Minister had threatened to treat teachers who fail to resume work within a week as having abandoned their duties and resigned.

However, UNATU General Secretary, Mr Filbert Baguma, dismissed the threat, describing it as “extreme, inflammatory, and unlawful.” He added that such threats violate the principles of natural justice and the Constitution of Uganda.

“Your threat to treat teachers as having abandoned duty and resigned is an extreme, inflammatory, and unlawful measure,” Mr Baguma said. “It violates the principles of natural justice and the Constitution of Uganda. Such threats are designed to intimidate and coerce, further demonstrating the government’s refusal to engage in good-faith dialogue required by the Recognition Agreement under Clause 8.”

Mr. Baguma insisted that the teachers’ strike will go on until amicable redress is secured from the government.

“UNATU reiterates that teachers are not striking out of selfishness or ingratitude, but in pursuit of justice and fairness,” he said. “We will not be intimidated into silence or submission. The Constitution, the law, and international best practice are firmly on our side.”

UNATU Chairperson, Mr Zadock Tumuhimbise, rallied teachers to remain focused and united in their demand for equitable salary enhancement across all categories of teachers.

“I wish to emphasize once again that our strength lies in solidarity,” he said. “No directive, however forceful, can silence a united voice. We must remain focused, resist intimidation, and continue to walk this journey together until the government meets our legitimate demand for equitable salary enhancement across all categories of teachers.”

Mr Tumuhimbise also warned those who might be tempted to betray the cause, saying, “For those that have chosen to betray the cause, we continue to take note, but we will not allow your disloyalty to deter us from our genuine cause.”

Dear President Museveni, as you conclude the presidential campaigns in Lango Sub-region this week, I wish to bring to your attention the case of the NRM enthusiast many Lango NRM people refer to as the ‘Luttamaguzi of Lango’, who was martyred and has never been recognised by the NRM and the government.

John Carlo Ogwal, aka Ogwal ‘Cadre’ was the first Resistance Council (RCIII) chairman of Chawente Sub-county in the then Apac District. He took his work and love for NRM so seriously that people nicknamed him ‘Cadre’ in reference to the political mobilisers in the District Administrators’ (now RDC) office.

In 1987, there was festering rebellion in parts of Lango led by elements who used to say they wanted to bring Obote back.

On March 30 1987, Ogwal Cadre, who also dealt in cattle trade, called a meeting at Apwori Trading Centre in Chawente, to mobilise locals against letting their children join the rebellion. As he was doing that, the same rebels, ironically led by a notorious fellow, descended on his home and found he wasn’t around. They arrested his wife and forced her to take them to where he was addressing the group.

Ogwal Cadre was arrested and tortured, with the rebels taunting him, ‘lwong Museveni bin lari’ (call Museveni to save you!) He had enough courage to tell them in Leb-Lango ‘Let me die if it brings peace’. The rebels walked him a few kilometres away to Apyelamot on Aduku-Aboko-Chawente Road. They stopped at a spot where he met his death.

Among those watching was Basil Okello Onach, then a student and now the immediate former Kwania District chairman, whose home was and is still near the scene of the event.

Ogwal was just 40 years old. Ogwal Cadre’s home is in Adakingo Village in Atongtidi Sub-county in Kwania District. Ogwal is survived by his wife and children. After his gruesome killing, all his children dropped out of school.

I understand that until last year when the late Brig Charles Oluka sent an officer to document the family, not a single government or NRM official has ever visited the family.

It would be befitting, Mr President, if this NRM cadre is given a posthumous honour in whatever form, either by erecting a monument in his memory, a national medal or both, or indeed whatever honour you may deem befitting.

The Election Management Committee (EMC) of the National Unity Platform (NUP) recently made public the results of its candidate selection exercise.

Highlight of the exercise: Mr Medard Sseggona was denied the NUP flag for Busiro East. However, there is also the curious case of Zahara Luyirika.

Ms Luyirika applied to be the NUP candidate for Kampala City Woman MP. But the EMC returned her as the aspiring candidate for Makindye West. Even the CIA and Mossad can’t decode the committee’s wisdom.

The joke now is: What if Byabakama were to declare Mr Robert Kyagulanyi as the winner of a race he never sought to participate in? In a quintessential ‘Zahara Luyirika Effect’, what if the Byabakama-led Electoral Commission declared Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu as the (winner of) president of Kenya?

From the beginning, NUP lacked moderation of agency. I gave up on NUP as a political group to lead the national drive for change when a senior official said Dr Kizza Besigye’s kidnap in Nairobi, Kenya, was drama.

What we see now is a party limiting its outlook to holding electoral positions (and thereby making the tag of a struggle rather incompatible with the party). What we see now is a party beholden to an individual whose interests and vision are limiting in ideological outlook and purposefulness.

But how did we reach here? I blame Mr Museveni.

People are asking: why and how can NUP choose Mr Mathias Walukaga over Mr Sseggona? My answer: it is the same reason NUP chose Kyagulanyi or his brother Fred Nyanzi Ssentamu over other ‘supposedly’ more qualified aspirants. Some people are saying this rupture could be the beginning of the fall of NUP. A friend was asked to give reason as to why he thinks NUP will fall.

Dear reader, we don’t need a reason (the why or how) to express fear that this may lead to the downfall of NUP. What we need is a look back at the history of political parties in post-independence Uganda. Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC) never recovered from the (1964?) Gulu National Conference, where Grace Stuart Ibingira was pitted against Party Secretary General John Kakonge. Plus: the FDC seems to have never recovered from the Patrick Amuriat victory over Mugisha Muntu.

With these two examples, it is evident that internal party cohesion is the outcome of the moderation of agency. Failure to accommodate diversity in opinion may engender disruptive tendencies in all socio-political identity groups. But on a serious note, we are in what most Ugandans see as a major transition (likened to the 1954-1962 period), but these NUP people are involved in petty issues (driven by personal egos).

During any transition, you are better off with serious bargainers at the table than just numbers. Case study is 1979-80: whereas Mr Museveni’s was in the least a minority view, the outlook of his leadership balanced him in. That’s why the actions of most UNLF members, in one way or another, always sought to accommodate him and his views.

But why should we blame Mr Museveni for mishaps in NUP? Because under his wise leadership, political leadership has become the only profit-making industry. That’s why it is now a matter of life and death. As a result, we have reduced the seriousness of national politics.

This reduction was captured well in an audio-visual clip in which Mr Walukaga said the Shs200 million for his parliamentary vehicle allowance will be shared among the sub-counties of Busiro County East. Maybe it is this promise that won him the NUP flag? Mr Sseggona, do you copy?

As we begin the campaign period ahead of our country’s general elections early next year, it is important that we reflect a bit on the need to avoid civil unrest which is one of the major factors that disrupt farming. We will be listening to several different politicians, many of whom could be spreading misinformation and disinformation about fellow candidates and the different political parties in the race for the various political offices.

They might also engage in sowing seeds of discord like highlighting economic inequality, ethnic discrimination, political oppression, and corruption. The farmers make the majority of voters and they will be the largest group targeted by the aspiring leaders as they mobilise support. The danger is that such language could erode public trust and spread widespread discontent that may result in civil unrest instead of better governance.

False narratives can deepen divisions and stroke hatred especially in a situation where thousands of young people are not in gainful employment and feel excluded from the sharing of the national cake. We also have to factor in the use of social media nowadays which does not appear to mind about truthful spreading of news and information.

If elections are not well conducted they could be the springboard of civil unrest, war, and genocide. Where do such terrible evils leave our small farms? The videos that we have seen on TV, of people fleeing their countries or their regions of settlement, never depict them carrying their crop fields. They only show desperate men and women carrying their mattresses and just a few other personal belongings. Some of the videos display people carrying along a few sheep and goats and you really wonder if they are sure of grazing ground wherever they are headed to spend their refugee years. No farmer will run away with his or her garden if a civil war breaks out tomorrow.

Farmers must therefore take this campaign and election period very seriously. They should pay due attention to what the political candidates and their agents are saying and promising. Their choices should be governed by careful consideration after listening to all the candidates and not really because of gifts such as money or items like, sugar, salt, bars of soap, and loaves of bread.

The farmers should indeed elect candidates who have the best plans for developing agriculture. They should seek to know the truth by reflecting deeply about what the different candidates are promising.

In January 2023, congregants flocked to Our Lady of Fatima Kayunga Catholic Parish in Kayunga Town, Kayunga District, for Mass. As is characteristic of many urban churches, this House of God fills every Sunday. However, during the Mass, a yet-to-be-identified female worshipper, who had entered the church with three children, excused herself. She asked her elder child, who was five at the time, to mind his siblings while she went out to ‘ease herself.’

The children – two boys and one girl – were aged between five years and three months. The church’s toilets are located about 100 meters away. The children waited patiently for their mother’s return. However, almost an hour later, as Rev Fr Emmanuel Walakira, the Parish priest, ended the Mass and gave the believers the final blessing, the mother was nowhere to be seen. As the congregants walked out of the church, the children were stranded. They attracted the attention of the believers, among them, Ruth Nakitto, a primary school teacher. A search for the missing mother proved fruitless.

It was later established that she had abandoned her children and disappeared into thin air. As the congregants pondered what to do next, Nakitto offered to look after the children until their mother resurfaced. ‘The other believers helped me to take the children to Kayunga Police Station, where a case of child abandonment was recorded. Then, I took them to my home in Kisaaba Village for the night. The Probation Office gave me official documentation that allowed me to look after the children as authorities searched for their mother,’ the teacher says.

The 46-year-old Nakitto is a teacher at Kayunga Girls Primary School. The three children are among the over 15 abandoned children that she has helped to take care of through the years. The children she picked up from the church are now aged eight, six, and three years. ‘I believe these children are a gift from God. They have no memory of their biological mother. I look forward to the day when she will surface again. One of them used to fall sick regularly, and we discovered that he was HIV positive. Today, the child takes the medication regularly,’ she says.

Charitable beginnings

Recently, the Rotary Club of Kayunga awarded Nakitto a certificate in appreciation for her work. The teacher’s desire to help the vulnerable started long before she qualified in her profession in 2002. ‘As a young learner at St Agnes Girls’ Primary School, Naggalama, I used to assist my fellow learners who were in need. I also remember getting food for the elderly, disabled cleaner of our school compound,’ Nakitto recollects with a smile.

Her charitable heart and discipline earned her many friends, among them the now deceased Rev Sr Ann Elizabeth, who was the headteacher. Nakitto comes from a family of over 20 children who were raised by a single mother, who is a tailor. ‘I am asthmatic, so the situation must have been difficult for my mother, who also faced challenges with paying school fees for all of us. Because I was sickly, the headteacher offered me a half-bursary,’ she says. Interacting with the nuns at her school inspired her to join religious life and serve God. Her dream of becoming a nun was, however, frustrated because of her constant sickness.

‘One cannot be allowed to become a nun with an asthmatic condition. However, I was blessed that St Ann paid for part of my secondary education. After I completed O-Level, the headteacher advised me to join a teacher training college,’ Nakitto recalls. In 2002, she qualified as a Grade III teacher from the now-defunct Rakai Primary Teachers College (PTC). In 2009, graduated with a Diploma in Primary Education from Kyambogo University. A teaching job took her to Kayunga, where she has since built her house and become a resident.

Last year, Nakitto, who does not have biological children and is neither married, took on two children whose mother had developed mental problems. The children are aged 13 and nine years old. ‘I still want to be a nun, although now it seems impossible. I do not have any plan to get married or have my own children because I have devoted my life to serving God and helping vulnerable children. These vulnerable ones are my children,’ she explains.

The challenges

Nakitto, who is a catechist at Our Lady of Fatima Kayunga Catholic Parish, singlehandedly fends for the children and pays their school fees on a meagre monthly salary of Shs450,000.’I was helped by well-wishers to become what I am today, so I have to help others as well. I am glad that we have never gone to bed on empty stomachs. I know God would reward me for my charity work,’ she notes.

To supplement her salary, the teacher operates a small retail shop in one of the rooms of her house. The shop sells sweets, bread, cooking oil, soap, and children’s toys. When Nakitto is not in class, she is at home operating her shop with the elder children. Additionally, she sells Bibles and rosaries at the church every Sunday to raise more income. Nakitto says she faces a challenge trying to instill discipline in the children because most of them come from a bad social background.

‘Sometimes, when I discipline them, they get depressed. Two of the children ran away. I have tried looking for them in vain. I am also financially constrained when it comes to meeting their basic needs. The child who is HIV positive needs to eat a balanced diet, but sometimes I do not have the money to provide it. But, I try my best,’ she explains.

Official stance

Damali Mirembe Manyindo, the founder and director of Sonrise Baby Home in Jinja District, says most of the babies and children she looks after are from Kayunga and the surrounding districts of Buikwe, Jinja, Mukono, and Kamuli. ‘Parents abandon children at health facilities, marketplaces, the roadside, and in public toilets, where they think they can easily be seen and taken away by Good Samaritans. Currently, our home is taking care of 34 babies,’ she says. However, Mirembe points out that many more are brought in, but the home does not have the capacity to contain them.

Dr Charles Iga, the director of production for Kayunga District, says poverty and domestic violence are the leading causes of child neglect in the area. ‘The government has put in place poverty alleviation programs such as Emyooga and the Parish Development Model (PDM), but not everyone has benefited. In some parishes in the rural areas, about a quarter of the intended beneficiaries have not received the PDM funds, so poverty is still a challenge,’ he says.

Collins Kafeero, the probation and social welfare officer for Kayunga District, says cases of child desertion are on the rise in the district. Sometimes, he receives two cases a month, brought by local leaders, the police, or the community. ‘When we receive a case of an abandoned baby, we take the baby to a home or orphanage. The child will be taken care of until it is five years old. If we fail to trace any relatives, we start the process of adoption, although we desire to reunite the children with their families,’ he says.

Kafeero blames the vice on domestic violence, fathers who neglect their responsibilities, poverty, mental disorders, and the death of parents. He also notes that some single mothers abandon their children when they find men who are willing to marry them. ‘My office is working closely with the Family and Child Protection Unit of the police to ensure that acts of child neglect are mitigated. We are also sensitising the public on the rights of children to have caregivers. If we find the relatives of abandoned children, we either counsel them and reunite them with the children, or arrest them and prosecute them,’ he explains.

Last year, a widow in Nawankonge Village, Kayonza Sub-county, abandoned her children, all of whom are below 11 years, to go and get married. She was arrested, but when she asked for forgiveness, she was reunited with the children. The community is now contributing to the children’s school fees. According to police statistics, 11 cases of child abandonment were reported to Kayunga Police Station in 2024, up from nine cases in 2023. The Uganda Police Annual Crime Report 2004 indicates that 3,663 cases of child neglect and 1,597 cases of child desertion were reported countrywide, while in 2023, 4,730 cases of child neglect and 1,918 cases of child desertion were logged.

The Manager Conservation education awareness at Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), Ms Vanice Mirembe has urged Ugandans to embrace the use of clean energy in order to combat the rapid environmental degradation caused by deforestation across the country.

‘Most Ugandans, about 75 percent are still using firewood, the other percentage, they are using electricity, which is very costly and a very small percentage, not more than percent, are right now using the clean energy in the form of gas, briquettes, and other methods’ she said.

Ms Mirembe made the remarks at the first Uganda Wildlife Authority clean energy exhibition, targeting schools at the Uganda Wildlife Conservation Education Centre (UWEC-CA) on Friday.

‘Currently, there is a lot of pressure on our forests, on the environment, on protected areas, because most of the neighboring communities have cut down all the vegetation and trees for firewood. We are doing everything possible to ensure that the public knows about clean energy to reduce the amount of pressure mounted on the forests’ she said.

She added, ”When we start at a young age, children get to know that you can use briquettes, they’ll go back home and talk to their parents, and also grow up into great conservationists, knowing that they have to understand the need to reduce pressure on the environment’.

Ms Mirembe further said UWA is carrying out sensitization of communities around protected areas to resort to energy saving stoves and various methods that use less energy than firewood.

‘Currently, we have MOU’s with communities around protected areas, they are looking for firewood everyday but it is not sustainable, climate change is here, with all its negative impact. Some of them come looking for firewood, and the best thing is to tell them to pick the invasive species, turn them into briquettes’ she said.

Ms Mirembe noted that UWA has projects in communities around protected areas supporting them in construction of energy cooking stoves, making briquettes among other interventions which has led to a drop in the number of people depending on firewood in the protected areas.

Mr Francis Ruhinirwa, a conservation education officer at UWEC-CA said the clean energy exhibition is aimed at creating awareness about the alternative fuel possibilities in Uganda instead of using firewood.

‘Majority of our visitors here are actually school groups which use firewood as a source of energy, our estimate is that a school comprised of about 500 learners, can use up fuel of a term that is equivalent to possibly an acre of firewood. Now, if we have about 40,000 schools, that is a lot of forest degradation that we are experiencing’ he said.

Mr Ruhinirwa said the exhibition which showcased biofuels, solar energy, eco and fuel-saving stoves, electric bikes and cookers is set to become an annual event to increase awareness of alternative fuels aimed at reducing the amount of firewood that is being used especially in schools.

In the remote village of Magada, Magada Sub-county in Namutumba District, farmers are revolutionalising their agricultural practices by adopting post- harvest technologies to minimise losses and maximise profits from their produce.

The farmers under their cooperative, Magada United Rice Farmers Cooperative Society Limited, previously produced poor quality rice due to poor post-harvest handling methods. These included harvesting rice using traditional methods, as well as drying their harvested rice on the bare ground.

Now, with the acquisition of rice thresher and storage facilities, farmers say post-harvest losses have been reduced.

‘Previously, we would cut and leave the rice in the paddy field for three or four days which would destroy it. On other days, we would dry harvested rice on the ground due to lack of tarpaulins,’ Ms Tapenence Namugaya on Saturday. ‘This meant the end product contained stones which fetched a low price,’ she adds.

Ms Namugaya is one of beneficiaries of Agra Cereals project being implemented by Kilimo Trust. The project is focused on reducing post-harvesting losses, improving grain quality and increasing market access for farmers in over nine districts in the eastern region.

The three-year project, running from 2024 to 2027, targets maize, beans and rice value chains, promotes efficient post – harvesting handling through provision of threshers, shellers and solar dryers to ensure quality grain.

About 105,000 smallholder farmers in the target districts of Bugiri, Iganga, Namutumba, Bulambuli, Mbale and Kween found in the Sub-regions of Busoga, Bugisu and Sebei have been trained on post- harvest handling practices for maize, beans and rice.

Mr Samuel Kiirya, another rice farmer in Magada sub-County said under the project, they have signed agreements with traders who buy their grain at better prices compared to middlemen. Mr Moses Mushebo, the chairperson of the association says as a cooperative with over 1,000 farmers, they now have access to hermetic storage bags.

‘Hermetic bags keep pests and moisture levels low, extending the shelf life of grains,’ he says, adding that each farmer now harvests about 500 kilogrammes of rice. Formerly, Mr Mushebo said, without a rice thresher, a farmer would spend about four days to harvest a four acre rice field.

‘The rice thresher is improving our produce because immediately after harvesting the rice you thresh it and return with it to the field on same day for more harvests,’ he says.

Significant losses

In Busoba Town Council, Butaleja District, Mr Paul Wananda, who received a solar dryer on behalf of Busoba Rural Farmers Association, said drying and preserving maize had been a challenge.

‘We often made significant losses due to poor drying and storage practices. That affected our income from the grain and also food security,’ Mr Wananda said.

The solar dryer, Mr Wananda said, would prevent mold growth and also preserves the quality of the maize. Mr Stephen Ekoom, the chief executive officer of the Farmers Guide Uganda Limited, said solar dryers ensure that the grains are not exposed to direct sunlight, winds and contamination.

‘The high temperatures deter insects and the risk of spoilage from microorganisms,’ he says.

Ms Rachel Ajambo, the country team leader, Uganda Kilimo Trust sayid they have since distributed service handling technologies including solar dryers, maize threshers, maize shellers, rice threshers and beans threshers, with the main aim of increasing the quality of the grain that is traded in our local markets and also in the regional markets to prevent future cases of rejection of Ugandan produce.

‘Without these technologies, farmers dry these commodities on the bare ground and this increases the input of foreign matters, for example, stones, animal dung, and things like this, which automatically reduce the quality,’ she said, adding that they have also linked farmers to structured markets.

‘We have several buyers that have been linked to these farmers. And so far, we have seen about 14,000 metric tons traded through these market linkages,’ she says, urging farmers to get organized in groups and adopt good agricultural practices and good post-harvest handling practices to ensure that they capture regional markets, which are more profitable.

Her call was reechoed by Mr Alex Ewinyu, the technical assistant, Kilimo Trust, who said there is an improvement of quality grain trade being traded with adoption of alternative energy post -harvest processes such as drying and threshing.

‘This is the goal of the project – to ensure that farmers actually get to produce quality grain,’ he says.

As voters leaf through manifestos of the eight political parties that have fielded candidates in next year’s presidential poll, a contrast that sets apart the ruling party from others will be hard to overlook.

‘We have . invested in health infrastructure. Uganda now boasts of 78 hospitals, of which 54 are general hospitals, 16 regional referral hospitals, five national referral hospitals and three specialised hospitals,’ the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party states in its manifesto launched on Monday, adding: ‘We have 217 health centre (HC) IVs at constituency level, and 1,553 sub-counties have a health unit of HC III and above. This is contrasted against only 49 hospitals and 597 dispensaries that Uganda had in 1986.’

Not good enough, the National Unity Platform’s (NUP) manifesto screams. Health is, says the leading Opposition party, ‘a right, not a privilege.’ The party, which also launched its manifesto on Monday, says it will ‘progressively increase health spending to 15 percent of GDP to deliver quality, accessible care for all.’ NUP promises to ‘recruit 16 times the current number of doctors and triple all other health workers to match population pressures,’ adding that this is not possible on the watch of the ruling party because of its alleged wastefulness.

‘It is only in Uganda where Museveni has more cars than ambulances attached to public hospitals. Gen Museveni has over 600 vehicles at his disposal yet the total number of ambulances in public facilities is about 178,’ the NUP manifesto thundered. The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), another Opposition party, is also unstinting in its criticism of the NRM’s provision of medical care to Ugandans across nearly four decades.

‘ For a healthcare system to run efficiently, it requires a combination of well-managed resources, skilled and motivated personnel, effective management, accessible and quality services with emphasis on outcomes,’ the FDC says in its manifesto, adding: ‘To achieve these, a country requires significant financial investment deployed in an efficient and effective manner. Uganda spends approximately $57 (Shs197,000) per capita on health, which is below the WHO-recommended $86 (Shs297,000). Out-of-pocket payments account for 28 percent of the total health expenditure.’

Empirical evidence shows that widespread corruption and malpractice in the public health sector continue to undermine service delivery, depriving patients of essential care and straining limited resources. In an audit report covering the 2023/2024 financial year, the State House Health Monitoring Unit (SHMU) revealed that cases such as theft of medical equipment, drugs, and financial improprieties were uncovered in 17 health facilities countrywide. As a result of the investigations, the SHMU team recovered Shs719m.

The Unit also unearthed forgery of academic documents, neglect of duty, operation of unlicensed clinics, and criminal trespass on health facility land. The SHMU finance and audit output for the Financial Year 2023/2024 revealed massive financial irregularities in several health facilities, with Shs7b reported as unaccounted for or tied to suspicious accountabilities.

According to the report, the irregularities cut across hospitals, health centres, and district health offices (DHOs), with some cases already under investigation while others have been forwarded to the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) for forensic audits. In Tororo District, Tororo General Hospital failed to account for Shs194m, while at Nagongera Health Centre IV, Shs49m was misappropriated, of which Shs7m was recovered. Investigations into both cases are ongoing.

In Iganga District, the DHO’s office failed to account for Shs142m, while Iganga General Hospital posted the largest single irregularity with Shs1.09b unaccounted for, now under review by the OAG.

Bugono HCIV also reported unaccounted funds totalling Shs221m, with files submitted for forensic audit. The report further shows that Wakiso HCIV failed to account for Shs291m, while the DHO’s office in Kamwenge District had Shs1.1b unaccounted for. Rukunyu hospital was implicated in the loss of Shs595m; Bisozi HC IV Shs150m; Kitagwenda DHO’s office Shs493m; and Ntara HC IV Shs216m.

Still in Kitagwenda, several health centres reported missing vouchers, including Nyabani HCIII, Mahyoro HC III, Kanaro HC III, and Kicheche HC III, each amounting to Shs34m. In Manafwa District, Bubulo HC IV failed to account for Shs99m and reported missing vouchers of Shs19m. Bugobero HC IV had Shs123m unaccounted for and missing vouchers worth Shs22m.

In Jinja City, Budondo HC IV had irregularities amounting to Shs52m plus missing vouchers worth Shs25m. Bugembe HC IV failed to account for Shs109m, alongside missing vouchers of Shs143m. Mpumudde HC IV reported unaccounted funds totalling Shs122m and missing vouchers of Shs10m

‘High rates of scheduled and actual absenteeism in lower-level health facilities are forcing patients to self-refer to higher-level facilities. Additionally, installed biometric machines have either been malfunctioning or not properly utilised,’ Dr Warren Naamara, the HMU director, said. The report shows that in many facilities, the infrastructure, essential medicines and health supplies (EMHS), and staffing levels do not match the health care services offered.

‘Most facilities, despite being classified as HC III….provide health services equivalent to a HC II such as antenatal care and outpatient services. For example, Kajansi, Wakiso, and Buwambo HC IVs receive EMHS intended for lower-level facilities,’ the report reads. According to the report, officials at health facilities in Wakiso District were found to have misused non-wage primary health care (PHC) funds for personal benefit. The team also discovered cases of mismanagement for personal gain and a lack of financial accountability by most officers in-charge of facilities.

The report further shows that Dr John Mulidho, a senior medical officer (SMO) attached to Iganga Hospital, allegedly worked 46 days from July 2023 to May 2024. He was temporarily suspended from the payroll. Moreover Iganga hospital registered 45,865 patients against a set target of 19,386 for a period of six months, which was 287 percent or almost three times the expected patient numbers. This means the target setting was low or the hospital is getting patients who are not within their population jurisdiction. The Unit wants Dr Mulidho to be forwarded to the Rewards and Sanctions Committee and sanctioned in line with the Uganda Public Service Rewards and Sanctions Framework.

The SHMU also reported payroll irregularities, noting that the PHC payroll, as of June 30, 2023, had 75 excess staff, leading to the creation of fictitious cost centres. One theatre assistant at Bubulo HC IV in Manafwa, Ms Faith Haboya, could not be traced physically or on the payroll. Several staff were found to have abandoned duties. Some were arrested for neglect of duty. In Namayingo District, absenteeism remained high despite salary enhancements.

Audits showed many officers in-charge of health facilities frequently absent, with organised absenteeism through duty rotas at Buyinja HC IV. Health workers reportedly ran private clinics in nearby districts, contributing to absenteeism and mismanagement. EMHS worth billions, procured with public funds, were poorly accounted for.

In Pader District, high absenteeism, late arrivals, poor attitudes, and unsanctioned study leave were noted. Only four of 13 officers in-charge of facilities met attendance guidelines during the SHMU monitoring visits. Stock discrepancies were found at Pajule HC IV, with medicines worth Shs14m unaccounted for.

In Mukono, review of payment vouchers and bank statements at Mukono General Hospital revealed Shs265m in missing payment vouchers and Shs260m in unaccounted or insufficiently accounted funds. Dr Patrick Kitimbo, the DHO, declined to comment on the matter when contacted.

Prof Mwambutsya Ndebesa, a lecturer at Makerere University and political analyst, said Uganda is plagued by a weak accountability system, both politically and financially. He said weak accountability has become a norm and culture in the country. ‘Political corruption must first be fixed before we even talk about financial accountability,’ Prof Ndebesa argued, accusing the ruling party of electing known corrupt officials to its top organ.

Associate Professor Paddy Mugambe, the Dean of the School of Business and Management at Uganda Management Institute (UMI), said there are serious weaknesses in the internal controls across the entire health service value chain. ‘These gaps may be contributing to occurrences that are highly detrimental to the provision of health services,’ he explained. He added: ‘The challenges could also be linked to deeper issues such as the unfavourable working conditions faced by health workers, which may lead to negligence or the intentional misuse of resources at their disposal.’

Mr James Wire, a former chairperson of the Board at Busolwe General Hospital in Butaleja District, said the challenges facing health facilities are multifaceted. They include political interference, where facilities are treated as cash cows by politicians who demand money from their PHC grants.

‘There are questionable recruitment practices that have allowed unqualified individuals to take up critical positions, and poor monitoring which leaves beneficiaries at the mercy of non-compliant technocrats,’ he said.

Poor Administration

Mr Marlon Agaba, the executive director of the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda (ACCU), said the biggest problem in hospitals and health centres is poor administration. ‘Health workers are not adequately supervised, and as a result, many fail to perform their duties. This is why funds are often unaccounted for,’ he explained. Mr Agaba also pointed out that medicine management is another major area of concern. ‘Problems occur throughout the entire supply chain-from procurement, issues at the National Medical Stores (NMS), distribution to districts and health centres, and finally delivery to patients,’he said.

He stressed the need to digitalise the medical supply chain up to the end user to curb these challenges. Currently, many health workers run private clinics and pharmacies, which creates conflicts of interest and opportunities for theft.

‘Medicines meant for public facilities often end up in private clinics. Government should implement a policy prohibiting public health workers from owning private clinics or pharmacies while in service.

Such a policy would help reduce absenteeism and resource mismanagement,’ he said. He added that manual record-keeping in health facilities further facilitates fraud, allowing health workers to divert medicines and refer patients to private clinics.

‘There is widespread fraud in the health sector. Some health workers take early retirement to enjoy enhanced pensions at the expense of service delivery. Others abuse study leave, continuing to receive full salaries while defrauding the government.’

The National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Mr Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, alias Bobi Wine, has demanded an explanation from Electoral Commission chairperson Simon Byabakama over why he was blocked from holding a campaign rally in Iganga Municipality.

Mr Kyagulanyi was scheduled to address supporters in Iganga on Friday, but was intercepted by police and the UPDF while traveling from Mayuge District, where he had earlier held a rally.

He questioned why he is being singled out, claiming his rival presidential candidates have freely campaigned in the same area.

‘I want Justice Byabakama to tell me why only I am being mistreated,’ Kyagulanyi said. ‘I am a presidential candidate like the others, and I am entitled to be treated the same.’

Mr Kyagulanyi added that ever since he arrived in Busoga sub-region, he has been barred from using tarmac roads and holding rallies in urban centers.

‘I have tested the potholes on rural roads, which has delayed us from reaching other venues on time due to long distances and poor road conditions,’ he lamented.

Mr Nasser Mudyobole, the NUP flag bearer for Iganga Municipality MP, said the actions of the police and army show that NRM’s presidential candidate, Mr Yoweri Museveni, lacks support in the region.

‘We defeated him in Busoga in 2021, and we are going to do it again,’ Mr Nassa claimed.

Ms Mercy Walukanba, NUP flag bearer for Bugweri District MP , said she wasn’t surprised by the blockade, noting that Mr Kyagulanyi had also been prevented from opening a party office in Namutumba Town Council on Thursday.

‘We are not scared. This only strengthens our resolve and shows Busoga loves its candidate,’ she said.

Mr Chris Wakalanga, NUP chairperson for Namutumba District, emphasised that Mr Kyagulanyi deserves equal treatment like any other presidential candidate.

According to Mr Kyagulanyi’s campaign schedule, he is expected to campaign in Namayingo and Bugiri today.

However, police said Mr Kyagulanyi cancelled their campaign in Iganga after failing to heed police guidelines.

“The rally in Mayuge was successfully held. On their way to Iganga, Candidate Sentamu and his group were advised to follow the agreed-upon route to Iganga Municipality and specifically to Namungale Grounds. However, they opted to take an alternative route where they encountered our cutoffs. Consequently, they decided to head to Jinja City and cancelled their campaign in Iganga.

We urge him and his team to adhere to security guidelines to ensure smooth and peaceful campaigns,” reads part of the police statement.

On Sunday, famous saxophonist and composer Kenny G performed in Uganda. It was his first time in Uganda but his second in Kenya, where he revealed he had once come for a holiday. Now, Kenny G’s music is one that has transcended generations, most of it, released between the 1970s and 1980s, it still finds ways of staying relevant in some way.

In Uganda, as long as you’re social, you have definitely interacted with his music in one way or another. Thus, even when the concert mainly attracted a relatively older audience, there were still young people in their 30s enjoying it.

But the oddly misplaced people in the audience were the Gen-Zs. See, most of these are in their teenage season and a few have hit 20. ‘So, when I heard there was an international artist, I was excited because dad said he was taking us, but who is this now? Who’s Kenny G?’ One boy wondered while talking to his sister, who wasn’t really as clueless as he was.

‘You have definitely heard one of his songs, I discovered yesterday that I knew his music all along,’ the sister responded. There were many of such young people in the audience, who probably wanted to be anywhere in the world but at the Mistil Gardens, sadly for them, their parents either want them to experience fine music or simply carry them around as accessories.

There were two daughters who kept arguing with their father seeking to know if Kenny G is as big as Rema. The poor man kept laughing telling them Rema is not known beyond Uganda.

Maybe he didn’t notice that the Rema the daughters were talking about and the Rema he was dismissing were two different people, countries and sex.

Well, it’s understandable, two Remas, one did Calm Down and the other Juice wa Mango, they are both popular in their own rights. Just like Chris Evans, one plays Captain America, the Marvel Avenger who lifts Thor’s hammer, while there’s Chris Evans Kaweesa, a Ugandan artist who tells a story of how he was hit with a hammer ten times. different people, same scenarios and same names.

The beauty however, all these young people stayed active through the night, thanks to the DJ set which started with old school and somehow progressed to a Beyonce set from her Beyonce bowl Christmas performance and then the Superbowl performance by Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, 50 Cent, Mary J Bilge and Kendrick Lamar.

It was almost at that time that Kenny G stepped on stage. He started his set with Loving You. It’s somehow hard not knowing Loving You.ok you may not know the song but when you hear it, you will notice you have heard the song before.

The song, like many of his, are famous at Ugandan weddings, but not during the romantic moments. ‘Wait, this is the guy who does food music?’ One of the boys asked. And there you have it, Kenny G’s music is synonymous with being fed, at least in Uganda, whether it’s a house warming, birthday, anniversary or a wedding, this music is played as people are eating.

And in between, the announcer will ask someone to move a car before the music continues. His songs like Silhouette and The Moment have all been played at events while food is being served that people don’t really know which one is which. They only tell the difference when they start playing but still don’t know the titles.

So, often people would turn to each other and ask, so which one is that, the other would answer, it’s also played during meals. When it comes to concerts, Ugandans believe they have to sing along to every song to complete an experience, but this show was a challenge. Thus, most of them kept humming or making that tulululu. sound as he played.

Some were in the moment, like a gentleman who kept playing an imaginary saxophone using a Tusker Malt bottle, a sight that drew laughter from those around him. Then there was the sophistication, those who take their Johnnie Walker neat and those looking for themed cocktails. But at the end of the day, regardless of the bill of one’s sophistication, they were all humming wrong saxophone notes.

But then My Heart Will Go On, his closing song happened, this, everyone seemed to know the words, thus, a chance to put lyrics to a song that didn’t have lyrics had come. Everyone sang, and Gen-Zs somehow knew the song too.

On the side…

Kenny G was a master stroke, he was testament that once one keeps walking with a genre, time comes when they become the definition of it. Besides many saxophonists who bounce between variations of saxophones, this man has created a brand out of playing the soprano saxophone. He revealed that he moves with a 25-year-old saxophone, whether it is the same he played, that we didn’t get to know.

Besides his crowd work though, the easy approachable attitude during his performance, he was also the epitome of professionalism. He did his sound check at 4pm, that’s even when he had arrived in Uganda earlier on Sunday morning. The fact that he had performed in Nairobi the previous night didn’t affect him.

He did his sound check and stayed by the venue, especially in the VIP section trying to map the sound. Unlike most artists who choose mystery, avoiding to be seen before they hit the stage, he stayed behind until he was sure the sound was exactly as he wanted it.

That’s class.