The Prime Minister of Uganda Robinah Nabbanja has suspended all forced Covid-19 vaccinations at roadblocks in the country with immediate effect.
Speaking to NBS TV on Saturday, Nabbanja said that while it will help in vaccine absorption and extending services to people, district health teams must devise other mechanisms to increase vaccination uptake.
“The teams should come up with favourable means that could entice people to take up the vaccines willingly instead of forcing them,” the Prime Minister asserted.
For weeks now, health teams with the help of security operatives in various districts have been staging roadblocks before forcefully vaccinating public transport passengers who fail to present vaccination cards.
On Friday, the Health Ministry revealed that the public will be required to present proof of full vaccination to access transport services effective 1st April, 2022.
Addressing journalists at Uganda Media Centre, the Minister for Health Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng said that all passengers aged 18 years and above will have to present Covid-19 vaccination cards indicating full dosage before they are allowed to travel.
On Wednesday, the government withdrew a condition that passengers must prove that they are fully vaccinated before using public transport.
The cancellation of the directive came barely a week after it was announced by President Yoweri Museveni, as a condition for reopening the economy and allowing public service vehicles to load their full capacity.
The Works and Transport Minister Gen Edward Katumba Wamala said that many public transporters could not differentiate between genuine and fake cards, yet some already vaccinated travelers never received their cards from the Ministry of Health.
Aceng said that by the end of March, Ugandans will have been given enough time to get fully vaccinated.
She also noted that a system was being developed to validate all vaccination cards to ensure that there is no forgery of certifications.
According to records from the Ministry of Health, only 4 Million people have been fully vaccinated so far out of the targeted 22 Million.
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