President Museveni has said that the two districts of Mubende and Kassanda have not recorded any new Ebola virus cases for 13 and 15 days respectively but has directed the extension of the lockdown for another 21 days.
The development was announced by the Vice President Jessica Alupo who addressed the nation on behalf of the president on Saturday evening.
“Therefore, to further sustain the gains in control of Ebola that we have made, and to protect the rest of the country from continued exposure, all the directives issued on October,15, 2022, followed by those communicated on November, 5, 2022 by the Minister of Health, will be extended for another21 days,” Museveni said .
The president explained that the imposition of another 21 days of lockdown is meant to cater for the incubation period for Ebola that in case of a new infection or one that had not been detected, it can come out during this time.
“The districts of Mubende and Kassanda have only gone 13 and 15 days respectively without a case and there are 23 people in quarantine in Mubende while in Kassanda there are 102 contacts under follow up. This situation is still fragile. Without completing 21 days as we saw with Mubende, a case can pop up anywhere. It is therefore important that we complete the entire cycle which will bring us to December, 17,”Museveni said.
He noted that if there is no case, then “we can open fully.”
According to Museveni, it would not make sense for government to rush to lift the lockdown imposed on the two districts now and later it turns out the infections were still around.
“If we open now and a case appears, we will have destroyed all the gains made in this war. I therefore appeal for calm and understanding. Our healthcare workers will continue to do all it takes to save lives and bring the epidemic to an end.”
Museveni urged members of the public to cooperate with health workers and report anybody with signs and symptoms like that of Ebola early enough to improve survival of the patients but also to protect the rest of the population.
“Again, I urge you: do not run away from one place to another when you’re a contact. Instead, identify yourself to the nearest health facility to get early care, should you get ill. In addition, spreading the disease to the other parts of the country exposes many people to infection and makes the epidemic more difficult to control.”
Currently, there are 141 cumulative Ebola cases in Uganda with 79 of them fully recovered whereas 55 have succumbed to the virus.
Only six cases are still admitted and receiving treatment at both the Mubende and Entebbe Ebola treatment units.
