By Davis Buyondo
Kyotera
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Kyotera district have appealed to all governance systems to strengthen the monitoring and proper management of all key projects to efficiently benefit the citizen.
The call was made in a series of engagements organised by Transparency International –Uganda in Kyotera town this week.
The major concerns include the increasing patient neglect and lack of enough medical supplies, absenteeism and abscondment from duty, selling government drugs, corruption, poor road network and shoddy work, among others.
Agnes Namusiitwa is the Programmes Coordinator-Kakuuto Network For Indigenous Voluntary Associations (KANIVA), an advocacy organisation that looks at service delivery.
She noted that they coordinate associations to mobilise and organise training to sensitise local communities about their rights to get effective service delivery.
She said their operations reflect on hiccups in the health, education, and other sectors in the lower local governments that need improvement for the good of the citizens and also give credit where it is due.
According to Namusiitwa, the reports they receive from communities indicate that the health services have not favoured the poor citizens because accessing free healthcare services from Kalisizo government hospital and lower health centres, is difficult.
She explained that there is a growing public outcry over whereby pregnant women are forced to pay midwives to deliver, while drugs are openly sold making life difficult for people seeking services in government health centres.
“For example, Kalisizo hospital and Kakuuto HCIV a patient pays sh40,000 and more to have a hernia operation or to deliver in the theatres. This is a death sentence for the poor who cannot afford to pay,” she noted.
She added that the concerned district authorities have neglected these concerns by covering the perpetrators yet they are consistently raised every day.
Namusiitwa attributed the patient’s plight to lack of hospital management committees to monitor the operations and address some failure
Kalisizo Hospital
According to Richard Bantubalamu, the Kalisizo Hospital Administrator, they charge sh20,000 for theatre operations to enable regular maintenance of the theatre for improved services. He said that a receipt for the money is issued to the patient for transparency purposes.
“However, no one comes to the facility and returned without receiving a service. The charges are mainly for the theatre but other services are free and they keep improving every day,” he said.
DHO
Dr. Edward Muwanga, the District Health Officer, confirmed receiving reports about payment for minor operations and treatment such as wounds as well as selling of government drugs in different health units.
However, he said that there are some misbehaved health workers who do things contrary to their professional conduct.
“We are aware and not seated. We receive complaints from communities so we are investigating to arrest the wrong characters. Already we have prosecuted several and cases are in court,” he said.
Transparency International-Uganda
David Kizito, the Programme Officer –Transparency International-Uganda (TI-U), said that virtually all communities in Kyotera are grappling with inefficient services.
He attributed to the increasing corruption, mismanagement of the meagre resources, recruitment of incompetent staff, ignorance of community members and chronic absenteeism.
He further urged the district planning authorities and contractors to fully engage community members and allow them to do evidence-based monitoring of the projects in their area.
While conducting surveys about good governance, he noted, they base on the five aspects of transparency, accountability, integrity, public participation, corruption, and institutional performance.
Kizito cited Kasensero landing site, which is one of the country’s biggest source of revenue contributing at least sh4bn to Uganda’s economy every month.
“But the Kyapa-Kasensero road which links the landing site to Kyotera-Mutukula highway has been impassable for decades. Fishermen, transporters and residents have for long pleaded with the government to tarmac the road in vain, which is unfair,” he said.
Deputy DISO
Obed Asiimwe, the Deputy District Internal Security Officer, said that more improvement is needed in the monitoring and evaluation of government projects and services.
He appealed to CSOs to present different reports about what is not done right to the RDC’s office for close monitoring. “We need to work together to ensure people receive efficient services,” he said.
He thanked the whistleblowers for highlighting areas that need improvement which gives the government the opportunity to improve.
Past Cases
In September last year, eight people including top administrators of Kalisizo hospital were interdicted over missing government drugs worth sh19.5m and a refrigerator.
In March this year, police arrested two midwives at Kalisizo Hospital were arrested for allegedly neglecting a pregnant woman leading to her death.
It is said that Gaudencia Namata, a resident of Buziranduulu Village in Kasaali Town Council, Kyotera district, had gone to deliver and the midwives asked for sh160,000 to attend to her. She later died without assistance.
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