Five Perish, 15 Cheat Death in Masaka Road Accident

Five people have been confirmed dead and 15 severely injured in a Sunday accident that happened at Kabira village, Kamengo, in Mpigi District on the Kampala-Masaka Highway.

The accident involved a commuter tax Reg. NO. UAX 751M that was heading to Kyotera in Rakai District and a Mitsubishi Pajero Reg. No. UAQ 770S, that was heading to Kampala.

Police identified the dead as Michael Ssebunnya (a taxi driver), Robert Bwanika, Maria Nankinga and other two who did not have any identification document.

Meanwhile, three children are the 15 that were critically injured. The injured were rushed to Mulago Referral Hospital for medical assistance.

The Mpigi District Police Commander, Ahmed Kimera Sseguya attributed the accident to reckless driving and speeding.

“Our preliminary investigations show that all problems came after the recklessness of the Pajero driver and people should learn to follow road signs because if he had read the climbing lane signage, he wouldn’t have caused this accident,” he said.

Stu­dent Loan Scheme In Ugx 5bn Deficit

The Higher Ed­u­ca­tion Stu­dents Fi­nanc­ing Board (HESFB) is faced with a Ugx 5 bil­lion fi­nan­cial short­age, which could af­fect ad­mis­sion of new stu­dents to dif­fer­ent uni­ver­si­ties.

The board which was set up in 2014 has been charged with pro­vid­ing loans and schol­ar­ships to bril­liant and needy stu­dents, with the funds cov­er­ing tu­ition fees, re­search and func­tional fees.

Ac­cord­ing to of­fi­cials from HESFB, gov­ern­ment is yet to re­lease the funds re­quired to fa­cil­i­tate new students join­ing the 6 pub­lic uni­ver­si­ties and se­lected char­tered pri­vate uni­ver­si­ties in the 2017/​2018 aca­d­e­mic year.

Rev. Fr. Prof. Cal­listo Locheng, HESFB board chair­man re­vealed to leg­is­la­tors on the com­mit­tee that govern­ment is yet to re­lease Ugx 5.6 bil­lion re­quired to pro­vide loans to new stu­dents join­ing the nine gov­ern­ment uni­ver­si­ties and other char­tered pri­vate uni­ver­si­ties in the 2017/​2018 aca­d­e­mic year.

Locheng fur­ther re­vealed that Ugx 6 bil­lion has also not been re­leased to fa­cil­i­tate pay­ments for continu­ing stu­dents. He said if the money is not re­leased soon, the board will be un­able to call for applica­tions for new stu­dents to ap­ply for the loans and schol­ar­ships.

Michael Wanyama, the Ex­ec­u­tive Di­rec­tor of HESFB told the MPs that while the scheme pro­vides funding to stu­dents for tu­ition and func­tional fees, there is no pro­vi­sion for ac­com­mo­da­tion and food.

Wanyama lamented that this has forced some stu­dents, es­pe­cially those from ex­tremely poor fam­i­lies, to drop out of school.

State Min­is­ter in charge of Higher Ed­u­ca­tion, Dr. Chrysos­tom Muyingo told the com­mit­tee that government is seek­ing for the money to fund the new stu­dents.

Muyingo also scoffed at con­cerns by some leg­is­la­tors, in­clud­ing Ja­cob Opolot and Joseph Ssewungu, on the un­fair dis­tri­b­u­tion of the loans. While the MPs said the most vul­ner­a­ble dis­tricts are get­ting few slots com­pared to fairly de­vel­oped ar­eas, Muyingo said the loans are given on ba­sis of merit.

Ac­cord­ing to sta­tis­tics from the board, at least 3,799 stu­dents have so far ben­e­fited from the scheme.

In the 2014/​2015 fi­nan­cial year, 1,201 out of 2,125 ap­pli­cants were awarded the loans. In the 2015/​2016 fi­nan­cial year, 1,273 out of 4,399 ap­pli­cants were awarded while in the 2016/​2017 fi­nan­cial year, 1,325 out of 3,762 ap­pli­cants were awarded.

Best Performers in the AUPL to be awarded

The national league sponsors Azam TV and Rwanda Football Federation have formally agreed to award the best performers at the end of the season.

The scheme is to reward home-grown talent and to increase competitiveness of the local league through recognition of outstanding footballers playing in the 16-team topflight division.

According to officials, the awards scheme for the Player of the Year will be developed using the most competitive criteria.

For instance, a technical score criteria which forms the major selection format looks at a player’s ability to demonstrate the eagerness to search, manage and serve the ball as well as the scores made.

Other important items that form the selection criteria for the Player of the Year includes morale, fair play, ability to demonstrate skillful moves and social aspects such as demonstration of exemplary moral conduct.

Since the start of the season Azam and Ferwafa have been awarding the Player of the Month.

The Player of the Month is voted for by fans after being nominated by a team of four technicians and eight journalists. The Player of the Year will earn Rwf1m.

Awards category

Player of the Year

Top Scorer

Best Young Player

Mostly Promising Player

Best Goalkeeper

Goal of the Season

Best Coach

Team of the Year

Fan Club of the Year

Best Referee

Mubarak Munyagwa Finally Released from Jail

High Court in Kampala has afternoon released the embattled Kawempe South MP, Mubarak Munyagwa who has been in jail for the last two weeks over failure to clear a Shs100m debt he owes to a city businessman John Baptist Maali.

In order for him to be released, Munyagwa had to first pay Shs15m and agree to court terms and conditions on how the remaining sums will be cleared.

Meanwhile, court has ordered him to pay sh20m on May 2, sh30m on June 2 and sh35m on August 2, 2017 plus sh6m being interest. Failure to do so, the execution for the total sum shall issue.

This website understands that part of the money was contributed by former Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) presidential candidate Dr Kizza Besigye.

Munyagwa’s troubles stem from a failure to give vacant possession to a piece of land he sold to Maali in 2015. Maali claims that he requested Munyagwa to refund his money but in vain. It is alleged that Munyagwa through his agent, Meddie Basajja, approached Maali saying he was interested in selling his land at Kyadondo Block 205, Plot 509 in Kawempe measuring 0.316 hectares.

Munyagwa, then Kawempe Municipality division mayor, reportedly confirmed to Maali that the land in question was his and that he had bought it from a one Bakali Sentongo and he was processing its title from Kampala District Land Board. Maali contends that after Munyagwa’s assurance that the land in question belonged to him, they made a sale agreement which was witnessed by Munyagwa’s lawyer Joseph Kyazze and his agent Basajja.

He then paid sh100 million to Munyagwa who promised to vacate the land and also give him transfer forms to process the land title. Court was informed that despite reminders, Munyagwa failed to honour his obligations.

Many Thanks to KCCA for Banning Street Preaching

By Haji Nsereko Mutumba

I would like to commend Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) for banning ‘street preaching’ in the city.

Much as we all need the word of God, the manner in which it is preached must be orderly. Those who preach it should not insult members of other religions, and the preaching must be done in gazetted places.

I have personally been a victim of insults from these so called ‘street preachers’ who are more of street bullies than preachers.

No preacher be it a Pastor or a Sheikh has the moral authority to judge people. Theirs is to spread the word of God in the most convincing and nice manner.

It is upon the recipients to decide whether to follow or reject the message.

Some of the abusive ‘preachers’ have to the extent of boarding pioneer buses where they shout to passengers up to the final destination.

Anyone who dares ask them to control their voices receives all sorts of insults and threats. The owners of pioneer buses should follow the example set by KCCA by banning such acts on public buses which are used by people from different religions.

Some sources have even claimed that some of these abusive preachers who are normally at traffic jam prone areas collaborate with criminal elements who grab phones from unsuspecting passengers.

This makes it not just a KCCA issue but a security issue that could get worse if it is not addressed from the word go.

If these people are being deployed by certain prayer houses, the authorities should reach out to the leaders of these places of worship and ask them to call them back.

We need an orderly city.

The writer is the UMSC spokesperson. He can be reached on 0772409504/0701409504 or pro.umsc@gmail.com

3 Nabbed in Possession of Pangolins worth UGX6m

Police in Abim District is holding three men who were netted while in possession of 1 live and 2 skinned pangolins worth UGX6 million.

Police has identified the suspects as; Felix Orebo  a police officer attached to Jinja road police station, Bosco Logel a Para-Legal with Uganda Law Society and Sylvester Omara a Nursing Assistant at Koya Health Center II.

According to the O.C Station Abim Police Station Dickens Turinawe, the suspects were arrested in a fake transaction arranged by the Natural Resource Conservation Network

The suspects came along with 10.1 kilograms of skinned Pangolin and 1 Live Pangolin to the would-be buyers and they demanded for 6 million shillings.

The suspects are currently being interrogated at Abim Police Station and will be charged with Unlawful possession of a protected species and Conspiracy to commit a felony.

Zambian Opposition Denies Arson, Accuses Gov’t for plotting against it

Zambia’s main opposition party, whose leader has been arrested and charged with treason, accused the government on Monday of trying to frame it for arson as an excuse for greater political suppression.

President Edgar Lungu said last week he might declare a state of emergency in some areas after public buildings were torched in attacks he blamed on opposition members protesting at the arrest of their leader, Hakainde Hichilema.

The opposition United Party for National Development (UPND) denied that and said the arson accusation was a government ploy.

“They are creating deliberate confusion to justify a state of emergency. There are no UPND members who have been arrested for arson,” party spokesman Charles Kakoma said.

A Zambian court will rule on Wednesday on whether to throw out the treason case against Hichilema who was arrested on April 11 in a police raid on his home and charged with trying to overthrow the government.

The southern African country – the continent’s number 2 copper producer – has traditionally been stable but relations between government and opposition have been fraught since August when Lungu’s Patriotic Front (PF) beat the UPND in a presidential election marred by violence and which the opposition says was rigged.

It was the second time that Lungu beat Hichilema, an economist and businessman, in a presidential election by a razor-thin margin.

@Reuters

Kenya bus, tanker crash kills 24

A crash between a passenger bus and a tanker ferrying cooking oil has killed 24 people along the main highway connecting Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, and the port city of Mombasa, police said on Tuesday.

The accident occurred in the Kibwezi area around midnight (2100 GMT) on Monday as the bus driver was trying to overtake another vehicle but collided with the oncoming tanker truck, Kibwezi police chief Leonard Kimaiyo told Reuters by telephone.

“Twenty adults and three children died on the spot, while one adult died later in hospital,” Kimaiyo said.

The bus was heading to Mombasa from Nairobi. Kimaiyo said most of the passengers were families returning from Easter festivities and students preparing for the reopening of schools after holidays.

Another 19 people were injured. Kimaiyo said the death toll could rise.

By Agencies

Sudan Accuses South Sudan President of fueling Khartoum war

Sudan on Monday warned South Sudan to cease its support of rebel groups at war with Khartoum, accusing its president of meeting with rebels last week in a rare public statement from Khartoum’s intelligence agency.

Sudan regularly accuses its neighbour of backing insurgents in the Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan regions that run along its southern border.

South Sudan split away from Sudan in 2011 after decades of civil war fuelled by ethnic divides and disputes over oil.

Monday’s statement was exceptional for pinning blame directly on South Sudan’s president, potentially suggesting an escalation of tension between the neighbouring states.

The National Intelligence and Security Service statement said that “… since last Wednesday and until Saturday, April 22, the president of South Sudan … and several executive branch leaders and security officials held intensive meetings with leaders of the so-called northern sector in Juba”.

Sudan has intermittently threatened to close its border with South Sudan if it continued to support rebel groups, an allegation Juba denies.

“We warn the government of the south and demand that they stop immediately their interference in Sudanese affairs,” the statement added.

Army Needs Extra UGX37bn to Clear AMI­SOM Arrears

The min­istry of De­fense wants gov­ern­ment to fast-track the pay­ments of its field ar­rears worth Ugx 37 bil­lion in the new fi­nan­cial year.

In a state­ment, Adolf Mwe­sige the Min­is­ter of De­fence and Vet­eran Af­fairs says that the money is required since it in­volves the cen­tral part of the army cur­rently un­der the African Peace Keep­ing Mis­sion in So­ma­lia.

“Gov­ern­ment should fast-track the pay­ment of ar­rears amount­ing to US$ 10.6m (Shs 37 bil­lion) to compen­sate for the wear and tear of the equip­ment in line with the ex­ist­ing mem­o­ran­dum of understand­ing,” reads the state­ment.

In the Sec­tor Min­is­te­r­ial Pol­icy State­ment for the Fi­nan­cial Year, 2017-2018 cur­rently be­fore par­lia­ment, the min­istry states that the ar­rears are dat­ing as far as 2015.

With­out stat­ing the to­tal amount of ar­rears, the Min­is­ter also states that do­mes­tic ar­rears con­sti­tute a great chal­lenge to aris­ing from un­funded pri­or­i­ties.

“The Min­istry has ad­hered to Gov­ern­ment Pol­icy of en­sur­ing that do­mes­tic ar­rears take first call on the bud­get…how­ever, the chal­lenge of un­funded and un­der­funded bud­get has caused con­tin­u­ous accumula­tion of ar­rears,” he stated.

The min­is­ter wants di­rect bailout by gov­ern­ment so as to ad­dress all its cur­rent de­mands re­gard­ing unset­tled ar­rears.

How the bud­get will be shared.

The Min­istry of De­fence and Vet­eran Af­fairs has ear­marked a to­tal of Ugx 1.4 tril­lion which will be shared amongst all de­part­ments.

Ac­cord­ingly, Ugx 137 bil­lion will be spent on De­fence Equip­ment while Ugx 741 bil­lion and 17 bil­lion will be con­sumed un­der UPDF and the Air Force re­spec­tively.

Look­ing through the high­lighted pri­or­i­ties, the min­istry in­tends to spend Ugx 11.5 bil­lion on oil and lubricants for the army, Ugx 36.4 bil­lion on food and Ugx 10.9 bil­lion on uni­forms.

Im­por­tant to note is that Ugx 223 bil­lion has been ear­marked for clas­si­fied ex­pen­di­ture.

For the new Fi­nan­cial year, the  Min­istry tar­gets to “con­tinue to con­sol­i­date the achieve­ments that have en­sured a peace­ful, se­cure and sta­ble Uganda through col­lec­tive De­fence and Se­cu­rity with our neighbours and the in­ter­na­tional com­mu­nity,” ac­cord­ing to Mwe­sige.

The Min­istry has in the re­cent past been un­der sharp crit­i­cism from sec­tions of the op­po­si­tion and civil so­ci­ety for al­legedly mis­han­dling funds clus­tered as clas­si­fied ex­pen­di­ture.

Un­der the cur­rent fi­nan­cial year, Ugx 1.5 tril­lion was al­lo­cated to the min­istry, of which only Ugx 473.5 bil­lion has so far been used as of De­cem­ber 2016.

@Parliament

Four Al Shabaab Fighters Executed in Somalia

A military court in Somalia has executed four men it said were fighters belonging to al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab who were behind a 2016 attack that killed 80 people, a military officer said on Tuesday.

The four men were executed in Baidoa, which lies about 245 km (150 miles) northwest of Mogadishu, on Monday.

“Yesterday, four militants who had been behind blasts were executed. More men accused of being al Shabaab members will be executed today or tomorrow,” Major Nur Aden, a military officer in Baidoa, told Reuters.

The four were found guilty of being responsible for twin blasts in Baidoa in February 2016, resulting in the deaths.

Al Shabaab often carries out such attacks in the capital and elsewhere in its bid to topple Somalia’s government and to drive out African Union peacekeeping troops.

The group wants to impose its harsh version of Islamic rule in the Horn of Africa nation.

Uganda Boxing Team in Residential Camp ahead of ABC

By Emmanuel Sekago

The national boxing team, entered camp yesterday to concentrate on how to get medals in the forthcoming African Boxing Championship.

The team will represent Uganda at the continental showpiece due to start May 27 in Congo Brazzaville. It’s residing at national council of sports hostel in Lugogo

The African Boxing Championship is the biggest boxing event on the continent and acts as a qualifier for the World Boxing Championships.

In the last edition of African Boxing Championship held in Morocco two years ago, Uganda managed scoop 5 bronze medals having sent 7 boxers to the event.

Team in camp

Joshua Kizza, Moses Kabuuka, Juma Miiro, Isaac Masembe, Marvin Ssali, Waswa Ssali, Joshua Nyanzi, Shadir Musa, Latib Muwonge, Muzamir Kakande, David kavuma, Yusuf Babu, Kenneth Mubazzi, Reagan Simbwa, Safic Kiwanuka, Solomon Geko, David Ayiti, Tony Sekabira Med Mulandi, Lawrence Kalyango.

The Uganda Bureau of Standards has be bashed by social media users after it seized two bales of used ladies’ undergarments from one of the city shopping centres saying they are prohibited in the country.

After the seizure, UNBS took to its twitter handle to post; “UNBS has seized two bales of used undergarments-ladies’ panties and brassieres sold by Good Wish Industries Ltd along Kafumbe Mukasa Rd.”

However, it was not a surprise to many who started blasting it for selectively applying its iron hand to some goods leaving out others that are also not up to the standard in market as long as the owners are known in one way or another.

The following are some of the arguments from Ugandans:

Grace Natabaalo‏: Is this a new law or regulation? It has been happening for several years. I have seen them downtown since I was a child. And I am not young

I am not for it but I am surprised that you are taking action NOW

Lot Okot‏ : Is it a selective application of law or what because I have seen a number of people selling them in downtown and even now in Nakawa?

mubiru mahad: I gave up on u the day u wanted to seize toilet papers telling us how they only have chines language as if byakulya

However, UNBS decided to go down fighting by explaining to its critiques, but almost failed as people flooded its twitter handle with all sorts of abuses on how it has failed to do its work as expected.

UNBS: According to the Uganda Standards, importation of used undergarments is prohibited. The issue on the bales of clothes is importation of prohibited items; that is used undergarments.

UNBS: All products must meet labeling standards and toilet paper is not exempted. Consumers must know what they are purchasing.

UNBS: The issue on the toilet paper was labeling. consumers need to read and understand what they are purchasing.Especially the expiry dates.

Bugingo Denies Burning Bibles, Apologizes

City Pastor Aloysius Bugingo of House of Prayer ministries located in Makerere, Kikoni, has denied burning bibles, a pentecostal group has said.

The National Fellowship of Born Again Pentecostal Churches of Uganda (NFBPC) said it met Pastor Aloysious Bugingo on Sunday after becoming “greatly alarmed” by reports that he was “leading a campaign to burn Bibles”.

A video emerged recently on social media of the pastor purportedly condemning the current version of the Bible.

Photos have also circulated of Bibles being set on fire, but Pastor Bugingo is not seen in them.

In the video, the pastor, speaking in a mixture of English and Luganda to his congregation, he said:

Have you examined it well? Is it full of [references to] ‘ghosts’. Yes, it is for burning. Did you read that one? It has ‘ghosts’? Bring it…

People from the Bible Society wanted to call me to explain to me. But I told them it is not necessary to explain to me.

Tell those who publish them to return the verse where it should be. And write it as it is supposed to be written. Actually I am not ready for any meeting with anyone. Not at all!.

If I am doing the wrong thing. I am ready for hell.

There is no era that is wise enough that prints Mathew 17 verse 20 and they hide verse 21. These are for burning.

But when you are [spiritually] strong [like I am] I keep some of them because I want to teach correctly about them…but if you are not strong and you are not planning to teach others just burn it… Put the Bible for burning there.”

In a statement, Joshua Lwere of the NFBPC said the pastor denied burning the bibles and accepted that “age-long original manuscript controversies can only be handled by a corporate body forum, and by specialized, professional and scholarly expertise”.

Mr Lwere added:

I, therefore, urge all Christians and non-Christians alike to desist from any act of burning bibles. Whatever version you have, respect it as the word of God, irrespective of the version, or apparent inconsistencies in translations.”

NBS TV also recently put a video of Pastor Bugingo in which he denies calling for the Bible to be burned, saying: “Who can burn the Bible when it is where we find the word that binds us?” 

Pastor Bugingo, the leader of House Of Prayer Ministries, is based in Uganda’s capital, Kampala. He calls the property where his church is based Canaan Land, or the Promised Land.

17 Dead as Boat Capsizes in Senegal

Seventeen people drowned on Tuesday in Senegal when a boat carrying them capsized in the Saloum river, near the northern border with The Gambia.

Among the dead are fifteen women and two men.

The boat capsized near Bitenti Island, in the Fatick region, with rescuers telling the BBC that the cause of the accident is still unclear.

The number of dead is expected to rise, rescuers say.

Locals in the region earn their living from fishing.

They often take to the waters without lifejackets, significantly reducing ther chances of survival when accidents happen.

Meanwhile, Senegalese President Macky Sall has called for three days of mourning.

Malaria still number one killer, 63% Ugandans prefer self medication to testing

By Sarah Achen

The new study reveals that majority of Ugandans don’t believe in malaria testing known as RDT.

The study which was released by HEPS Uganda at Piato Restaurant in Kampala on Thursday 13^th indicates that 63% of the population believes in the outcome of malaria test, 21% not always, conduct their own diagnosis say theirs is more important and 16% have never had a malaria test. Others that also attended included CEHURD, PATH, Reproductive Health Uganda, Infectious Disease Institute among others.

According to Dr George Bwesigye from Najeera hospital, RDT Malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) assist in the diagnosis of malaria by providing evidence of the presence of malaria parasites in human blood. RDTs are an alternative to diagnosis based on clinical grounds or microscopy, particularly where good quality microscopy services cannot be readily provided. The current charge for RDT test is Shs 3000-4000.

The study involved listeners from up county radio stations was carried out by TRAC.fm in partnership with HEPS malaria campaign with the support of Ministry of Health, development partners carried out the study between Feb 6-22 2017 with 4586 responses.

It was also discovered that malaria had the greatest impact on people’s life accounting for 43%, followed HIV, thirdly Tuberclosis and lastly others at 15%.

The poll was aiming done to find out why people shun testing for malaria and 32% of the respondents say they don’t need the test, because they know if they have malaria or not, 24% say the tests are too expensive, 23% of the people don’t know there is a test and 21% add that the tests are not available.

Responding to the study, Denis Kibira the Executive director of Coalition for Health Promotion and Social Development (HEPS), the poll results indicate that there is public doubt regarding the quality of RDT on the market.

Civil society organisations health advocators say that eliminating malaria is everyone’s responsibility but government must take the lead by funding only 5% of the malaria budget because government is not demonstrating leadership.

The national response to malaria is funded from the national budget and from donations from development partners. The challenge is that response is too dependent on external donors, with government contributing barely 5% of total funding. Available data indicate that between 2014 and 2016, government for malaria totaled US dollar 11.8m, which is just about 5.6% of the total expenditure on malaria over the three-year period amounting to US dollar 207.6m.

Out of the total budget shs 60.9m US dollar government contributes 3.6m US dollar for malaria leaving a gap of 80%. Uganda needs shs 308m US dollar to eliminate malaria completely out of the country.

Malaria is still one of the major diseases affecting families all over Uganda. Testing a blood sample is the most conclusive way to know whether one has malaria or not. This can be done by a health worker or at home, using a testing kit.

Testing malaria makes treatment more effective and allows for other treatment options when one does not have malaria, as only one in three cases of fever is actually malaria. However, based on numbers from the Ministry of Health, only 60% tests for malaria.

Kibira explains that there is need to expedite the proposed reform of the law to expand the regulatory mandate of National Drug Authority to include medical devices.

Patrick Ojilong the advocacy manager of Action Group for Health Human Rights and HIV/Aids (AGHA) adds that 95% of the malaria funds are donor funded. If we don’t invest now our dream of eliminating malaria from Ugandan might be far from near.

Malaria is the single cause of illness death in Uganda. The country has the third highest number of deaths from malaria and one of the highest reported malaria transmission rates in the world. Malaria accounts for 30% -50% of outpatient visits, 15%-20% of hospital admissions and up to 20% of all hospital deaths.

Ministry of Health estimates that in 2013, 27.2% of inpatient deaths of children under than five years of age were due to malaria. Overall about 16 cases and about 10,500 deaths are reported per year.

Early diagnosis and treatment of malaria reduces disease and prevents deaths. It also contributes to reducing malaria transmission. The Uganda Malaria Reduction Strategic Plan 2016-2020 sets three targets in the control of malaria: to reduce annual malaria deaths from the 2013 levels to near zero by 2020, reduce malaria morbidity to 30 cases per 1000 population for instance reduction from the 2013 levels by 2020 and to reduce malaria parasite prevalence to less than 7% reduction from 45% in 2010 by 2020.

It was recommended that there is no quality assurance of Rapid Diagnostic Response commonly known as RDT by the private sector outside the National Drug Authority procedures and their quality should be ascertained by NDA.

Although many diseases can be prevented these days, people still affected by infectious diseases. Some diseases have a minor impact; others have a bigger impact on someone’s life. This impact can be loss of a family member, frequent illness, illness of family members, or loss of work days due to illness.

The Budget Framework for Financial Year 2017/18 indicates that up to 80% of funds required to procure medicines for malaria-the country’s single biggest cause of illness and death – have not been allocated. Since health care, including medicines are by policy provided free of charge in public health facilities in the country, government has the obligation to mobilize funds to fill the current funding gap for anti-malarial medicines.

PrEP reduces the risk of HIV infection up to 92% – Study

By Sarah Achen

PrEP is effective and it can reduce the risk for HIV by at least 90%, but it’s important that you first seek help from a health worker before getting it.

Dr Sulaiman Kato a Public Health Officer at GGwatiro hospital in Bweyogerere, Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, is a way for people who do not have HIV but who are at substantial risk of getting it to prevent HIV infection by taking a pill every day. The pill (brand name Truvada) contains two medicines (tenofovir and emtricitabine) that are used in combination with other medicines to treat HIV. When someone is exposed to HIV through sex or injection drug use, these medicines can work to keep the virus from establishing a permanent infection.

According to Mr Charles Brown the Advocacy and Laison Officer of PrEP projects at Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere, there is no PrEP policy in place but the Ministry of Health developed a guideline which has not been launched officially.

“The ministry is in the process of making the PrEP guideline official, as this can go a long way to help health workers prescribe the right dosage of the vaccine. It will also help them know the type of drug and give an idea of how to administer and know the amount in addition to monitor side effects,” Brown says.

Brown says PrEP is for people at substantial risk of acquiring HIV according to WHO guideline on PrEP or among key populations. These people include; commercial sex workers, Men who have sex with men, fisher forks, long truck drivers, trans- genders and uniformed services. Even adolescents can also get PrEP because HIV infection is higher among them. Majority of the young girls easily transmit HIV faster because they are not able to negotiate for safer sex with older men since the older men have a huge financial muscle. It’s also hard for a girl to walk into a shop and purchase for a condom like men do.

Brown adds that they are waiting for the launch then they embark on sensitizing and informing the public which health facilities will be offering the services. Even health workers needs to be sensitized too

Dr Timothy Muwonge a Principle investigator and HIV prevention Specialist at  the Infectious Diseases Institute Makerere University says that PrEP is Pre Exposure Prophylaxis ;meaning  Pre ( before ) Exposure ( an action that may lead to infection in this context HIV ) and Prophylaxis ( prevention )

PrEP is a “prescription only” biomedical mode of prevention for HIV that is offered after one has been screened by a qualified health care worker

Why PrEP?

PrEP is an additional method of prevention and not a replacement of the already existing methods and it’s NOT for everyone. PrEP is for people at substantial risk of HIV acquisition; the health worker should assess for the risk and advise accordingly.

HIV negative people at substantial risk are the ones who should be given. Before one is given PrEP, he or she should be examined to ensure that the client is in good health.

The 2016 a Uganda National consolidated Guidelines on HIV Prevention and treatment mention that PrEP will be only in a few sites that have funding and capacity to offer the services. From these sites they will be able to demonstrate the best practices PrEP services delivery in the country.

There are other formulations of PrEP apart from the oral and these include the Dapivarinering, injectable formulations like carboltegravir which are under research.

“In terms of the 90:90:90, I strongly believe there is light at the end of the tunnel to prevent new infections in people at substantial risk of HIV infection. When taken consistently, PrEP has been shown to reduce the risk of HIV infection in people who are at high risk by up to 92%,” Muwonge adds. PrEP is much less effective if it is not taken consistently.

Dr George Bwesigye from Najjera hospital explains that PrEP is a powerful HIV prevention tool and can be combined with condoms and other prevention methods to provide even greater protection than when used alone. But people who use PrEP must commit to taking the drug every day and seeing their health care provider for follow-up every 3 months.

UMSC Conducts Interviews for Students Joining Al Azhar Sharif University

Over 70 students from different parts of Uganda who applied to join Al Azhar Sharif University in Egypt in the academic year 2017/18 are interviewed at UMSC Headquarters Old Kampala.

The interviews are being conducted by scholars from Egypt assisted by officials from the UMSC department of Education.

The lead interviewers are; Dr. Muhammad Muhammad – the head of Egyptian scholars in Uganda and Dr. Ashraf Abusahif – the in charge of Egyptian properties and endowment in Uganda.

The UMSC officials working with the Egyptian scholars are Shk. Juma Bakhit Cucu the Secretary for Education, Hon. Shk. Mansur Hussein and Hon. Shk. Rashid Musa – both Members of General Assembly.

The interviews involve written Arabic, spoken Arabic, Quran memorization and general knowledge.

According to the UMSC Secretary for Education Shk. Juma Bakhit Cucu, this year; Al Azhar University has accepted applications for secular studies as well as female applicants.

Previously, there was room for only applications for Islamic Studies and for male students only.

After the interviews, the papers of those interviewed will be sent to Azhar University where 26 best performing students will be selected and their names sent back to Uganda around July 2017.

male applicants should endeavor to score 15 and above points while girls should make sure they score 13 and above points.

Officer Who Told M7 of Mafia in Police Suffers Repercussions

Police Disciplinary court yesterday charged one of its men, Stephen Mugarura with discreditable conduct for reporting to President Museveni that the Uganda Police force is full of Mafias.

Mugarura a couple of years ago authored a dossier, highlighting criminal activity within the force and shared it with the President.

Police has therefore concocted a number of cases against him which include; petitioning the President without going through the proper channels, use of excessive force and being absent from duty without official leave (Awol) among others.

“You, ASP Mugarura Stephen, petitioned His Excellency the President of Uganda Yoweri K Museveni about the alleged criminal conduct of some police officers without using proper channels, which was against the police penal code,” one charge read.

Mugarura took a plea of not guilty on four counts and said the two counts of discreditable conduct and being Awol were cleared by the director of public prosecutions (DPP).

“I wish to state that on count 1 and 6, I will not take any plea because the cases were fully investigated and I was cleared by the DPP and the director of legal in the police force,” he said.

However, state prosecutor Catherine Kushemerwa said the DPP advised that Mugarura should be tried in a police disciplinary court, but didn’t drop the charges.

Journalists Barred from Covering COSASE-M7 Probe on 6bn Handshake

Journalists from all media houses have been barred from covering  the 6bn handshake probe at state house where the President is set to appear before COSASE.

MPs on the commissions of state authorities and state enterprises are meeting President Yoweri Museveni today as they conclude investigations into the payment of the Shs6b oil bonus.

However, unlike the past meetings where COSASE has been grilling other members in front of media, it has not been the same at statehouse as Museveni has refused to appear while the media is present. Statehouse has not yet given any reason as to why journalists couldn’t be allowed in.

It should be noted that, according to the officials who appeared before the committee chaired by Abdul Katuntu and a number of documents tabled, the reward was reportedly initiated by Museveni a $404m case against Heritage Oil was won in London.

During her appearance before the commission, URA commissioner general Doris Akol told the members that before the team won the case in London, President Museveni promised that he would “thank them” if they won the case.

He is therefore set to answer to COSASE why he chose to reward the participants with these huge sums of money even those that did not have big impact on the case.

We shall keep you posted