Africa-Press – Uganda. Kitgum District leaders have expressed concern over the growing resurgence of Covid-19 in the area amid the residents’ continued reluctance to follow the standard operating procedures (SOPs).
This comes after five residents of Kitgum Municipality tested positive for the disease. They are part of the 54 positive cases that were confirmed from tests conducted between April 2 and April 3 across the country by the Ministry of Health.
Mr William Komakech, the chairperson of the Kitgum District Covid-19 taskforce, who is also the resident district commissioner, said all the five cases are members of the same family.
“All the five are now self-isolating and are receiving treatment from their home but one of them, an elderly woman, who is seriously ill, is to be evacuated to Gulu Regional Referral Hospital for advance treatment,” he said on Wednesday.
Mr Komakech added that surveillance teams are now tracing the people who might have come into contact with the five family members and they will be quarantined at their respective homes.
The new cases come at a time when most people in the district have almost abandoned all the SOPs such as wearing facemasks, handwashing, sanitising and social distancing.
This newspaper has also observed that most bars and nightspots in the area have opened contrary to the President’s directive, while most residents are no longer observing the 9pm curfew time.
Mr Simon Okongo, the head of the surveillance team, during a meeting of the district taskforce on Tuesday, revealed that the new wave of infection could be worse.
“A lot needs to be done to stop the new wave of infections in Kitgum District. People should go back to the earlier ways of observing the SOPs as required,” he advised.
Since April 2020, the district has registered 269 positive cases of Covid-19, with 106 being community infections.
Four people in the disease have succumbed to the disease, including Gaston Billy Graham Odongkara, the former district vice chairperson, who passed on in September 2020.
Cumulatively, Uganda has registered 4,751 cases of Covid-19 with 335 deaths across the country.
BUSIA ON HIGH ALERT
Meanwhile, authorities in Busia District are on high alert following a resurgence of Covid-19 in the neighbouring Kenya.Mr John Rex Achilla, the Busia resident district commissioner (RDC), said they have stepped up screening of all travellers and truck drivers arriving at the border before they are allowed to proceed into the country.
This, Mr Achilla said, is aimed at testing the authenticity of Covid-19 negative certificates, arguing that in the past months, some unscrupulous people had started forging negative Covid-19 certificates. Dr Willis Syongola, the district health officer, said: “We have also embarked on training of village health teams (VHTs) and local council officials throughout the district to help in surveillance.”
He decried the high level of complacency in implementing the standard operating procedures (SoPs).By David Awori
