"Lift the lockdown or prepare for disaster," experts warn government

The fate of several sectors, some of which create the most jobs and generate massive revenue to the treasury hangs in balance due to the lockdown which has seen many business cry out for help from the government.

The government instituted a lockdown to contain and curb the spread of Covid-19 but analysts say it has caused more harm than good as far as the economy is concerned.

During an online Webinar under the theme: "Covid-19 lockdown strategy: Is this public policy in public interest," some of the panelists said that very many Ugandans have been dying of depression, loneliness, hunger and the extended unemployment to due to poor Covid-19 response.

The discussion was moderated by Simon Ssenyonga, a lawyer.

Akampurira Walakira Rubangakene, the speaker of Kawempe division noted that the government should have used the first lockdown to prepare and strengthen its systems.

He said failure to prepare for the second wave of Covid-19 and the lockdown had greatly exposed the weakness of this regime to the rest of the world.

"What the government of President Museveni has done is to merely impose the lockdown without thinking deeper about systems, strengthening them which are supposed to help the country to merge stronger out of the pandemic," he said.

He explained that several sectors have greatly been affected with millions of Ugandans starving without what to eat while others have lost their jobs.

The unfortunate thing, he said, is that the government doesn’t have clear interventions to get the country out of this bad situation.

Abubaker Hassan Matanda, the national youth coordinator for Alliance for National Transformation (ANT), said many health workers who are key in the fight against the pandemic are crying for their salaries and allowances which have never been paid.

This, he said, is an indicator that the government doesn’t care about its people.

"When you have a government that has broken systems, a government that is corrupt to the core and a government that is not efficient, then there is no way any interventions can be successful,"he said.

But Phiona Nyamutoro, the National Female Youth MP, differed from this grim view.

He said that President Museveni has proved to the entire world that he has his people at heart regarding the way he has handled Covid-19 situation in the country.

"There are people who think the lockdown was against the population, that we are headed for the destruction. I categorically want to disagree with them," she said.

She said Ugandans should not blame the government because the pandemic has deeply devastated many countries across the world and yet some of these countries have better economy and health care systems.

“I think {NRM} leadership has don’t it best to contain the virus. Since the lockdown, I think there was tremendous decline in the Covd-19 case and I think there is a very good progress, “she said.