Thousands of Africans have thronged to Ukraine borders to flee the conflict/Reuters
Deputy Speaker Anita Among has given the Ministry of Foreign Affairs up to Tuesday next week to present an evacuation plan on how Ugandans trapped in war torn Ukraine can be evacuated to safety, after reports emerged that Africans are being refused from fleeing to safety to other nations.
Her directive followed a concern raised by Theodore Ssekikubo (Lwemiyaga County) during Tuesday’s plenary sitting where he expressed concern over failure by Government to communicate the evacuation plan as other nations fight to evacuate their nationals.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said that more than 102 civilians have been killed and 500,000 refugees have now fled from Ukraine to other neighbouring countries like Hungary, Poland and Romania, with war entering sixth day, following an invasion by Russia on Ukraine last week.
Ssekikubo said that whereas the whole world witnessed the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, Government is clueless about the number of Ugandans residing in Ukraine, claiming that some Ugandans have been residing and working in Ukraine and never bothered to notify Government about their whereabouts.
He added that his fears on the safety of Ugandans was further exacerbated when reports emerged that Africans and other nationals were being stopped from leaving Ukraine, preferring their nationals to be the ones to exit from that war nation.
“Whereas we may not do much as a country to stop the war, we need two things, first of all a position statement to tell us the situation and how our Ugandans can be evacuated,” said Ssekikubo.
Elijah Okupa (Kasilo County) tasked Government to reveal which side Uganda had taken, given that several nations have aligned themselves to a given side in the ongoing war.
He said, “We would also want to know what is Uganda’s position, because I am seeing some people tweeting that they are on one side, can we have a position?”
Although Okupa didn’t mention the names, Commander of Land Forces, Muhoozi Kainerugaba was the first government official to choose sides with the Ukraine war writing on his twitter handles, “The majority of mankind (that are non-white) support Russia’s stand in Ukraine. Putin is absolutely right! When the USSR parked nuclear armed missiles in Cuba in 1962 the West was ready to blow up the world over it. Now when NATO does the same they expect Russia to do differently?”
However, Deputy Speaker rejected Okupa’s plea describing it as incorrect, saying Parliament isn’t interested in the side Uganda was aligning with in this war.
Muwada Nkunyinji (Kyadondo East) who doubles as Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs informed Parliament that a number of African nationals including Ugandans are being pulled out of trains for those trying to escape the crisis and there is need for government response to those claims.
“We pray that government briefs parliament on the total number and measures being undertaken to ensure safety and evacuation,” he said.
