Parliament is set to test all the 529 Members of Parliament and staff for covid-19 ahead of its opening next week.
This is according to a letter by the Clerk to Parliament, Jane Kibirige to all MPs and Staff of the Parliamentary Service.
“As you may be aware, Parliament is to resume plenary on Tuesday 13th July 2021. Due to the current wave of Covid-19 across the country, Members and Staff of Parliament will therefore be required to undertake mandatory Covid-19 testing on Friday 9th July 2021. The exercise will take place at the Parliament Gardens from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm,” reads Kibirige’s letter.
The letter dated July 7, 2021, follows another communication issued early this week by Kibirige indicating that Parliament would reopen next week after two weeks of closure to enable the parliamentary building to be disinfected.
Business scheduled to be handled by the House next week is to constitute committees. In the communication, Parliament advised MPs to carry their National Identity cards to ease accessibility through the roads of Parliament.
“You will recall that at the close of the 5th sitting of Parliament held on Monday 14th June 2021, the Right Honourable Speaker adjourned the House sine die, I am directed to inform you that Parliament will have plenary sitting on Tuesday 13th July 2021 at 2:00 pm to consider the constitution of committees,” read part of the letter.
Although Parliament said it would close to fumigate, MPs and some staff and journalists have been accessing Parliament. Over 10 press conferences have been held with the MPs mainly talking about the cash relief to the vulnerable and the COVID-19 intervention measures.
Last week several MPs including those of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) and the opposition called for Parliament to reopen to deliberate on the government’s covid-19 interventions. However, the Government Chief whip Thomas Tayebwa said that there is no need to open Parliament in the wake of the pandemic.
Uganda is currently battling the second wave of Covid-19 and according to statistics issued on Monday 5th July, Uganda has since March 2020 registered 84,979 cumulative cases and 57,964 cumulative recoveries.
Currently, the country has 1,072 active cases on admission at different health facilities and 2,012 deaths.
