UGANDA: MARVICK UGANDA LEGISLATOR BLOCK COVID-19 VICTIM ACCESSING REGIONAL HOSPITAL

Aruu Member of Parliament, Samuel Odonga Otto Jr. on Wednesday defied President Museveni’s directive on COVID-19 when he stopped an Ambulance carrying a COVID-19 victim who was being brought to Gulu Regional Referral Hospital.

Odonga Otto people have different opinion and view.

View of a queer and cross thinker. The Kamdini Corona saga. By Zeru O. O. Abukha

GULU-UGANDA: Aruu County MP Odonga Otto on April 17, 2020 took upon himself to block mid-way a COVID-19 patient that was being transported to Gulu Regional Referral Hospital.

How can intellectuals resist the onslaught of war, violence, religious terrorism, torture, the central characteristic of the twenty-first century?

Can “Theory” or philosophy’ help us understand the sense of the world and developed a politics of dissent the way Odonga Otto used politics of hide and seek, Lapwo-pwo butterfly Odonga Otto who is everywhere.

This will explain who the world and Uganda inclusive are united on the campaign against COVID-19. The likes of Odonga Otto is one of the functional academic in culture where many pre scholars and political thinkers, says whoever is not with us is against us.

Gen. Salim Shali sometime says the enemies of the regime would be isolated and crush. The question now, Odonga Otto Marvick what is the role of critique in an environment where COVID-19 pandemic now does not spare even first world that have state of the art medical facilities.

When Johnson Boris when COVID-19   was reported in China boastfully says the United Kingdome when the cases of COVID-19 reach there, it would be a matter of second to deal with that. The USA president Donald Trump called it CORID-19 pandemic.

So, Ndugu Odonga Human Rights has become a tools of public power and expression individual desire and how it has become to provide the justification for a new configuration of political economic and military power.

Uganda Revenue Authority-URA on Wed. April 15, 2020 intercepted and arrested a track driver at Kamdini, 66 kilometer south of Gulu, based on communication from Malaba Uganda-Kenya boarder point that was wired to Uganda Police and security to intercept a track driver who tested positive for COVID-19.

According to the communication from Uganda Ministry of Health, that was relayed to security units manning the road block along the Great North Road from Tororo, Mbale, Soroti and Lira, that they driver of Kenya Number plat KCE-448E must be stopped.

When the track was stopped, official from the Ministry of Health communicated to Dr. James Elima the Director Gulu Regional Hospital to send an ambulance to pick the track driver and take him to Gulu Regional Hospital.

The official Ambulance went and picked the track driver, but when Odonga Otto learned of the mission to take him to Gulu, he organized some of his supporters and drove to intercept him on the way.

James Onono Ojok, the Assistance Public Relations Officer for Gulu University says when he learned of the mission, he also drove together with Odonga Otto, his mission was to witness what was unfolding.

Onono adds that when parties reached Palenga Center, about 20 kilometre along Gulu-Kampala highway, Odonga saw the on coming Hospital van, Odonga drove his vehicle across the road, while informing community that “be ready we have COVID-19 person in this van”.

“Shouting with loud speaker please close your door, we are blocking COVID-19 pandemic person who is being taken to Gulu.” Onono recalled what the Aruu MP was telling people.

Odonga Otto, the Aruu County MP insisted and ordered the van to go back to Kampala, not Arua town or Lira Town, the negotiation took place almost 30 munities until the driver of the Ambulance agreed to return to Kampala

According to Odonga Otto he was of the view that Gulu Regional Referral Hospital does not have COVID-19    pandemic equipment to treat the victim, therefore it would easily spread in Gulu and the entire Acholi Sub Region.

“We cannot allow our people to get infection from COVID-19 pandemic, because Gulu Hospital is not ready and well equipped” Odonga Otto was telling people.

Before proceeding to Palenga, he informed the community of Kora Abili to be ready to intercept the van carrying COVID-19 victim.

Dr. Cana, of COVID-19 Gulu District Task Force says Odonga Otto’ action was un called for.

Dr. Cana says the hospital has COVID-19 Rapid Diagnostic Test Machine.

“I think we should not mix politics with medical work, what Odonga Otto did by blocking Ambulance we condemned it.” Dr. Cana warned.

He adds that the COVID-19 found in Elegu Uganda-Sudan boarder was first blocked not to be brought to Gulu, and now the COVID-19 victim will be released from Adjumani Hospital, another victim who is being treated in Hoima is going to be release soon.

Okidi Martin one of the opinion leaders says in the past this behavior cost the UPC government, because Acholi community were resorting to political mob justice the way MP Odonga Otto resorted to.

Sources close to the Deputy Speaker of Parliament says by the time Odonga Otto had made effort to block COVID-19 positive person Palenga, although the Minister Jane Acheing stood her ground ordering the Ambulance driver to proceed to Gulu, it was only help when the Jacob Oulanyah herd his voice say the COVID-19 should be taken to Kampala.

“When all attempt was futile by all the stakeholders including Martin Ojarza Mapenduzi, Gulu District Local Government Chairman, when Jaocb Oulanyah intervened the Health Minister Acheing order the Ambulance driver to return his vehicle to Kampala.” Source mooted.

Source further says, Deputy Speaker phoned Gulu District Chairman Ojara and says now the Ambulance will be heading back to Kampala, source proudly intimated.

View of a queer and cross thinker. The Kamdini Corona saga. By Zeru O. O. Abukha

I am not a medical person and I also do not claim to have any technical knowledge in that field.

First of all, I have heard all regional referral hospitals are managed and controlled by central government and not the particular local government where that hospital is. Is this true?

Secondly, When one is in Kamdini, Gulu is nearer (about 69 km) than Lira (about  77 something). And at the moment, Kamdini-Gulu takes about 45 minutes normal drive, but Kamdini – Lira today may take up to 1 hour 30 minutes.

Thirdly, The truck driver was tested in Malaba, continued to drive up to Kamdini. He was found positive alright, and capable of transmitting the disease, but he was not yet a patient ridden with Corona. He was not yet sick, but positive.

May be other medical elite clear this to me, the message sent, “that a corona patient is being put in an ambulance and being brought to Gulu”, was not all that right at all.

It was alarmist and undermines the real truth and facts on the ground. And I attribute this to Samuel Odonga Otto, who specializes in such a mode of information dissemination, especially when he wants to penetrate Acholi society for some reasons best known to him.

Fourthly, I do not think every person found positive have been handled the way this Truck driver was handled.

Even the truck driver never knew he was positive until he reached Kamdini. He was innocently proceeding on his job. Messages were sent after him, Check points in Soroti said he had passed, in Dokolo he had passed and Kamdini said he had not yet reached.

So they were alerted, and truly he came and he was stopped. Ministry of health now looked for the nearest facility to isolate this man, and that was Gulu. It was therefore very professional for the Ministry to have pointed Gulu instead of Lira.

The sixth, what others do not know is, if the ministry used a longer or much further referral station, and because of that something somewhere went wrong, they would be blamed for not acting professionally yet a closer facility was there.

Seventh. Of course, I am sure Samuel Odonga, with his position and exposure was quick to start claiming lack of PPE in Gulu as opposed to Kampala. He was much clever to even called on Langi to also join in rejecting the referral (something which in advance made Omara Atubo’s utterance a complete nonsense). But seen from the point that this man was not yet sneezing unnecessarily, no flue, no unnecessary sniffling, or other symptoms of sickness, this alarm was really uncalled for.

7. Lastly, I am quite sure, Odonga wanted to get a way of grand recognition in Acholi society, after he had recently lost face in our community. He has been notorious in quarreling with everybody, he tried being reserved, but could not hold it. This opportunity was very handy for him to reappear like the legendary “phoenix”, which burn itself to ashes so as to gain a sympathy and claim martyrdom only to resurrect very soon and found social space. Of course Samuel Odonga, my friend, as I know him, is doing this to even claim more from the society than the face appears.

This is my opinion, I beg to adjourn.