Former Forum for Democratic Change Dr Kizza Besigye has asked the government to focus on vaccinating essential workers especially teachers as an effort towards fighting against covid-19 pandemic which escalated in Africa from first to third wave.

Besigye has on many occasions outlined alternatives that can be used to fight back Covid-19 pandemic which has reached its second wave in the country so far caused the deaths of 334 in Ugandan and over 4 million people worldwide ever since its outbreak early 2020.
He also had shown concern on suggested covid-19 relief fund for vulnerable claiming that it should be doubled to sustain beneficiaries well in these lockdown pandemic.
“How can you say that you are budgeting 20kg of posho for a family for 42 days, how can that work? Even that posho can’t deal with the needs ofchildren,”Besigye said.

Speaking with the media yesterday, Besigye said that once vaccination of essential workers such as teachers is prioritized, key sectors such as education can equally be reopened and the losses registered so far can be bridged.

“Vaccinate the teachers and let education continue, students are either way not eligible for vaccines since they are below 18 years. Let us protect essential workers whose work makes them more vulnerable. The work of the health workers requires them to be protected. Let us protect the teachers,” said Besigye.

Besigye noted that lockdown measures are weakening the marginalised people on a daily basis and exposing them to the possibility of being killed by other infections like malaria.

“What will change after 42 days? People are not being vaccinated, the capacity to deal with the sick has not changed. The end of lockdown will be the start of illness and death. What it means is some kind of lockdown will continue and people will continue to become weaker and weaker. It is reckless for a country to remain on this path,” he said.

Besigye said government wants to continue managing the pandemic in the same discriminatory way they manage state affairs.

Meanwhile, the chairman Federation of Small and Medium Sized Enterprise Uganda (FSME), John Walugembe, has also called upon the government to lift the lockdown and re-open the economy since many businesses are most likely to collapse.

Walugembe said that many businessmen and women are badly off because they have to pay off their loans even when their businesses are not working due to the lockdown which was implemented the public is not assured of when exactly their business will be allowed to operate.

President museveni suspended all Public and cultural gatherings including conferences for 42 days across the country as a way of controlling the spread of the second wave of Coronavirus. The schools and institutions of high learning have also been closed for 42 days effective from 7th June 2021.