The Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs) of Luwero and Nakasongola districts have come under fire for skipping a key event organized by the Ministry of Health to commission Community Health Extension Workers (CHEWs), despite having been formally invited.
On Monday, senior Ministry of Health officials, including the Director General of Health Services, several Commissioners, and Permanent Secretary Dr Diana Atwine, were in Luwero and Nakasongola to officiate the passing-out ceremonies of newly trained CHEWs.
A total of 202 CHEWs were commissioned in Luwero and 136 in Nakasongola after undergoing six months of training.
The CHEWs are expected to be deployed at the parish level to bolster primary healthcare delivery.
However, the absence of CAO Innocent Asaba Birekeyaho of Luwero and CAO Winston Aggrey Muramira of Nakasongola caused visible disappointment among the ministry officials.
Also, absent were the Resident District Commissioners (RDCs), Richard Bwabye of Luwero and Festus Bandeba of Nakasongola.
Their deputies were instead sent, but they only arrived at the tail end of the functions.
Luwero District LC5 Chairperson Erastus Kibirango defended the absent officials, explaining they were finalizing financial year payments.
“They were engaged in crucial end-of-year financial processes,” he said.
However, Dr Atwine dismissed the explanation as unacceptable, noting that she too is an accounting officer who managed to complete ministry payments before making the journey to attend the events.
“I am disappointed to travel from Kampala to Luwero and Nakasongola and find no district leadership present—not even RDCs or CAOs. This kind of indiscipline undermines service delivery and cannot be tolerated,” Dr Atwine said.
She further stated that she would report the CAOs to their supervising authority, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Local Government, and demanded a formal apology from the absentee officials.
Dr Atwine emphasized the importance of CHEWs, describing them as a crucial government intervention meant to enhance healthcare at the grassroots.
Working alongside Village Health Teams (VHTs), CHEWs are responsible for health education, disease prevention, and linking communities to formal health facilities.
The CHEW program, funded by the World Bank, aims to strengthen Uganda’s community health system and bridge the service delivery gap between rural populations and health facilities.
English 