Africa-Press – Uganda. The noise surrounding the whereabouts of double-cabins bought using Covid-19 donations, ceased after the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), finally released 162 vehicles out of the procured 282.
This was after government through the Finance ministry, promised to pay taxes for all the vehicles amounting to Shs9.4b.
The vehicles were handed over to the Health ministry last Wednesday by Toyota Uganda at Cadam Enterprises car bond in Naguru, Kampala.
The cars that have been in the country for some time, couldn’t be released by the tax body due to non-clearance of taxes by government.
The Shs23b was part of the Shs29b total cash donations that government received in the first lockdown in 2020.
Mr James Tukahirwa, the Senior Assistant Secretary at the Health ministry, said they expect 120 vehicles that he said are still in transit from Mombasa to Cadam Uganda car bond from where the Health ministry will pick them and relocate them to Namboole stadium.
“It has been estimated that by September 30, all the cars will have been brought into the country,” Mr Tukahirwa said.
Toyota Uganda offered a consensual price of approximately Shs83m per vehicle, which is almost half the price of a brand new Toyota Hilux double cabin.
Mr Tukahirwa said President Museveni needed the cars for medical activities in different districts in the fight against Covid-19.
This means that each of the 145 districts will at least get a double cabin pick up truck, which according to Mr Tukahirwa, will be done very soon to avoid parking the cars in one place for long.
The rest of the cars will be distributed to other health sections like the blood bank, central public health lab for sample collection, and even Uganda Virus Research Institute, which has been involved in Covid-19 sample collection and testing.
