Parliament has been closed for two weeks as a measure to contain the spread of the second wave of Covid-19.
According to waiswa Henry Yoweri, an official working in the Office of the Clerk of Parliament, the August House like the rest of the country has been affected by the second wave of the pandemic with a positivity rate of 17.1 per cent.
“As a mitigating measure in the prevention of Covid-19 infection, the administration of Parliament in consultation with the Office of the Speaker is closing Parliament to Hon Members of Parliament for a period of two weeks in order to disinfect the Parliamentary building,”Waiswa said in a statement on Tuesday.
“This notice will take effect from Monday 28th June, 2021 to Sunday 11th July, 2021. Members are advised to adhere to this instruction.”
The development comes at a time when Uganda is grappling with skyrocketing cases of Covid-19.
Currently, the country has 73,401 cumulative cases with 714 deaths.
Last Friday, President Yoweri Museveni announced a second lockdown meant to control the spread of the virus in the country.
The President put up new measures which include; suspension of private and public transport across the country for 42 days, immediate closure of Kikuubo and other business centres among other directives.
“Kikuubo and other Business Centres should be closed, and the situation reverts to the Presidential Directive of March 2020. Those kikuubo are very dangerous,” Museveni said.
He also noted that food market vendors should continue operating as long as they revert to the Presidential Directive of March 2020 to stay in their places of work.
” Food market vendors should camp at their places of work. The ministry of health can give them free bed nets so that they are not bitten by mosquitoes. We (guerrilla fighters ) used to sleep in the bush.”
He also permitted all retail shops across the country to continue operating.
” For our lives to continue, the following sectors should remain fully open; agriculture, industry, especially manufacturing and tourism; cargo transport , utilities, security, retail shops, health & medical services.”
On the other hand, Museveni directed Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) , Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) , and Local Government authorities to close and seal off all the bars that have made it a tendency to operate while their ban still stands
” Police should accordingly arrest and charge with hefty fines imposed
for reopening. It serves no purpose in arresting the revelers while allowing the owners to reopen the following morning.”
Museveni also revised curfew time from 9pm- 6pm to 7pm to 5.30am.
“It is observed that some sections of the public are not adhering to the curfew hours.As such, curfew throughout the country is pulled back to 7pm to 5.30am, Boda-Bodas will only be allowed to move only up to 5pm.”
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