Uganda’s neighbours; Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, DR Congo and South Sudan have all registered more than 300 combined cases of COVID-19.
Security and immigration personnel stationed at the country’s border points have a high task ahead of them after President Yoweri Museveni announced that the COVID-19 frontline was now being shifted to their area of jurisdiction.
In his Tuesday speech, Museveni said the fight against the virus would be shifted to “additional danger points”.
The danger points, he said, include the land borders with the East and Central African countries; the cargo truck drivers and crews of trains; the air-craft crew ─ members for cargo planes; and the health workers treating the corona-virus people.
However, the President said there could be some danger of infiltration across the porous border.
“With the infiltrations from the neighbouring countries, we are relying on two elements: the LC Is and the village members who should not allow their villages to be polluted with this disease by allowing strangers to hide among them and the corrupt immigration and police personnel that, in exchange for bribery, allow strangers to enter Uganda illegally.”
It is against this background that he made known the punishment that awaits anyone allowing illegal entrants into the country.
“Security is going to strengthen the counter-intelligence efforts to eliminate corruption in our forces and anybody found guilty will face the charge of murder or attempted murder,” the President said.
“It will not be nice for them,” he added.
Uganda’s neighbours; Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, DR Congo and South Sudan have all registered more than 300 combined cases of COVID-19.
Kenya, which is the leading trade partner with Uganda, has registered more than 200 cases.
New threat
The President also announced new measures that would be used to deal with the new threat paused by cargo transporters.
“On the issue of the truck crews ─ the driver and two others ─ they will be tested at the border but they do not have to wait for the test results. They can continue with their journey and the outcome of the test will be communicated to them later and further management will follow as is necessary,” he said.
“Within the country, the truck drivers, whether transiting or destined to Uganda, will only stop at designated points in the country and nowhere else. The crews of the cargo planes that fly into the country will be accommodated in designated hotels,” Museveni added.
Just hours after the President made the above pronouncements, the Ministry of Health announced that two truck drivers (one Ugandan and another Kenyan) had tested positive to COVID-19 after crossing into the country from Kenya.
So far 372 truck drivers have been tested for the virus, with 370 turning out negative. Uganda has registered 55 cases of COVID-19. No virus-related death has been registered.
This article was originally published on New Version.
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