By Patience Ampaire
Leader of Opposition, Hon Mathias Mpuuga has urged Local Governments to start utilizing some of the locally generated revenue to improve service delivery. This is in line with the resolution that Parliament passed in September 2021.
Mpuuga made the remarks on Friday during the ongoing Shadow Cabinet’s oversight visits in Greater Masaka. This followed appeals by Fred Muhangi & Ibrahim Kitatta, district chairpersons of Lyantonde & Lwengo respectively, for Parliament to amplify their voice on increased funding.
Hon Mpuuga was shocked by what he called a terrible situation at Lyantonde General Hospital, which is currently battling the issue of poor funding.
”The district chairman, Mr Fred Muhangi, told us that, the district’s hospital lacks critical staff and cannot recruit because their wage bill & staff ceiling haven’t changed for almost a decade,” said Mpuuga.
Muhangi further reported to Mpuuga that over 20 schools in the district operate without pit latrines, which has compromised the learners’ hygiene.
Tumusiime Fred, the acting superintendent of Lyantonde Hospital told Mpuuga that the hospital lacks a mortuary, yet it receives several dead bodies from many districts including; Lwengo, Rakai, Kiruhura, and Sembabule.
On the above, Mpuuga told the journalists,”Lyantonde General Hospital’s mortuary which was built during the reign of Ssekabaka Daudi Chwa II is all that this hospital has!!. While the Kabaka’s government back then built a morgue that could keep 4 bodies, the regime is yet to find a reason to expand the mortuary. No wonder, we found some patients lying anywhere their caregivers could find space.”
Mpuuga commended Lyantonde leaders for being open about their challenges and promised to take their matters to Parliament, for solutions.” My duty and that of my colleagues here is to go and interest Parliament in these gaps.”
Reports in Lyantonde district reveal that HIV/AIDS is at 10.2%. With this, Mpuuga urged ‘life eaters’ to use preventive means to curb the rate at which the virus is spreading.
He asked the Resident District Commission (RDC) and other district leaders to put politics aside and sensitize the public on how to deal with the deadly health challenges, including how to prevent HIV/AIDs.
RDC Lyantonde district, Mbetegyerize Godfrey thanked the Government for considering Local Governments but called for improvements in the health sector of his district.
Zalwango Hasfa, a Councilor for Lyantonde Sub-county reported a challenge of inadequate drugs, a threat to the lives of many patients received from other districts, this hospital being on a highway.
In Lwengo, Chairman LCV Kitata Ibrahim reported unsafe water his people fetch from ponds for domestic use.
He appealed to Hon Mpuuga to call upon the Ministry of Water to ensure that the extension of water stretches to Lwengo and serves areas like Katovu Town Council that are badly off.
”It’s unfortunate that the locals from over 15 villages fetch dirty water that is likely to cause to them waterborne diseases, I will amplify the voice of Chairman Kitatta because the lives of our people are at risk.”
