Government warns lockdown could be reintroduced if Covid-19 guidelines ignored

Cabinet spokesperson and Minister for ICT and National Guidance Judith Nabakooba  warned the country could face another lockdown if the public continues to ignore Covid-19 guidelines.

Nabakooba said that government is not interested in locking down the country again but they might be forced to if circumstances dictate.

Nabakooba made these remarks while appearing on NBS Television's Morning Breeze, on Tuesday.

She said that, "We have sensitized the masses, but they are not following the guidelines. People started relaxing because our numbers were low, and people were not dying."

https://nilepost.co.ug/2020/06/15/ugandan-government-threatens-to-reimpose-covid19-lockdown/

The national guidance minister said that in case of an increase in Covid-19 infections, "Our health system will be overwhelmed if we don't do the right thing."

Uganda currently has registered 1,203 cases of Coronavirus. Five people have so far died of the pandemic that has affected all parts of the globe.

Nabakooba said that government has so far distributed 13 million masks around the country to aid in the fight against the Coronavirus and asked the public to use the masks properly when they are in the public.

She advised, "If the government has not yet reached your district, improvise."

"People had relaxed thinking they are far away from Coronavirus and we are now getting community cases. Masks are meant to protect the people," Nabakooba added.

Nabakooba's comments come at a time when the country has so far recorded five Covid-19 related deaths, four of which are from Kampala which is a major cause of worry.

In her final remarks on the Covid-19 situation in the country, the minister said that, "if peace fails, government will enforce the Covid-19 measures" to curb complacency.

This is the second time that Nabakooba hints on a possible reintroduction of a lockdown that includes restriction of movement.

Last month, she warned that government might be forced to lockdown the country again over the same complacency that saw Uganda entering stage 3 of the Covid-19 pandemic as sporadic cases continued to be reported.

Several members of the public and some politicians are however against the idea of keeping the country on lockdown due to the implications it brings to the economy.