President Museveni’s state of nation address left Ugandans in wonder. President Museveni favors politics more than human life, as he downplayed the high death rate against the background as his front lines Residence District Commissioners in the affected Mubende district and surrounding areas cry foul.
On 27, September 2022. Team of Uganda Journalists who appeared on NBS TV breakfast talk shows revealed that 75 percent of people admitted with Ebola in Mubende district succumbed to death,
“7 people out of 10 people who got contact and developed symptoms of Ebola virus died with the disease, the talk show even the doctor who was the head of the Ebola talk forces in Mubende district agreed with the journalists on the panel.
KAMPALA-UGANDA: On 27, Thursday, 2022 Breakfast Talk Shows on NBS.TV, Ugandans may count themselves a lucky day, the eminent of Uganda Journalists appeared to tell Ugandans the catastrophe of Ebola danger and the death tools in Mubende district.
Mildred Atuire was the host talk shows on NBS TV and her moderator was Simon Kagwanjala, the beauty of shows came barely open with Kagwanjala had opportunity of breaking information of the situation on the ground, “The catastrophic Ebola hemorrhagic death tools that is causing manic in the affected Mubende and surrounding districts, 75 percent of the people who were victims succumbed to death.” And yet the following week president Museveni loudly criticized the Uganda Daily Monitor for missing reporting the death tools which was told by Rosemary, the Mubende District Residence Commissioner (RDC).” The NBS media guro told the listeners.
Kagwanjala says, Ebola outbreak which was confirmed on September 20, 2022 by Uganda Health Ministry we are talking of 75 percent 7 out of 10 people died, that was three weeks when Ebola pandemic happened.
He argues that the reason why 160 intern doctors working in Mubende Regional Referral Hospital boycotted work. On the 27, September 2022, the death was still rising by that time, it was 35
Simon Kagwanjala told the morning breakfast talk shows that Ebola was sweeping the country, part of Kyegewa, Bunyagabu.
Dr. Obeti admitted and confirmed the intern doctor from Tanzania who was doing master in medicine died of Ebola virus.
Rosemary Byabasaija, Mubende RDC who was also one of the panel on the monitoring Breakfast Talk shows decries, says as she was speaking they are struck with dead bodies, due to lack of transport.
“The medical doctors and health workers in Mubende Regional Referral Hospital were not facilitated, and yet we have over 2000 thousands doctors in Kampala City, there is no hero, we have a challenges if Dr. Mathew Lukwiya and 126 medical health workers succumbed to Ebola in 2000 when the outbreak occurred in Gulu district.” Rosemary Byabasaija lamented.
In the health center the morale of health workers was very low, as patients who were diagnosed with Ebola ran out of the isolation center.
The lockdown declared by the Health Ministry ARE ON Mubende, and other four districts in central western Uganda.
President Museveni acknowledged that indeed In Mubende; the epicentre of the EVD epidemic, the chairperson of the district Ebola taskforce, and Resident District Commissioner (RDC), Ms Rosemary Byabasaija, says the disease could soon be contained considering the fewer numbers admitted at the isolation centre.
“We have 10 people admitted to the Mubende Hospital isolation centre but the cumulative confirmed cases were 58 by October 18,” she says. The patient was admitted to Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital together with six others from Mubende and has since recovered.
Dr Obeti said the district surveillance team listed 48 contacts and all their 21-day incubation period elapses today.
The MoH and partners, including UNICEF, developed the preliminary costed response plan for Uganda with three planning scenarios for a period of four months. Following the first confirmed case, the MoH carried out a rapid risk assessment for planning purposes, which informed the district risk categorization as follows: Category 1 – epicenter; Category 2 – high risk – presence of probable or confirmed case; and Category 3 – moderate risk – rest of the country. As a result of this assessment, five districts were classified under category 1/very high risk and 15 under category 2/high risk.
The President of Uganda has so far addressed the nation twice to update the population about the EVD outbreak including prevention and control measures, and reassure them. He appealed to the public to remain calm and follow guidance from health workers rather than seeking help from witch doctors, traditional healers and religious leaders as they are not able to treat EVD; emphasizing that only trained health workers should handle suspected and confirmed cases. To address the continued rise in Ebola cases, on 15 October, the President announced restrictive measures to support the control of EVD transmission, including prohibiting movements into and out of Mubende and Kassanda districts, curfew (07:00pm-09:00am) and a restriction on the movement of public transport, private transport and boda-bodas for a period of 21 days, starting 16th October 2022.
