The Fatboy Show Presenter Olive Najjuma has questioned whether President Museveni meant his promise to raise the monthly allowances for medical interns for their services provided at government hospitals.
This comes after 27 members of the Uganda Medical Association were arrested yesterday and detained at the Central Police Station in Kampala as they were holding a procession to Parliament to petition the Speaker Jacob Oulanyah over their plight as medical practitioners.
Olive explained that when the medics met and talked to the President, he issued directives to the Ministry of Health and Finance to settle the demands but they have not been implemented.
“So the President kinda made an empty promise because it's confusing. If the President directed that medics be given what they want and those directed say they can't because they don't have the money, do you then believe that the President meant what he said?” she probed.
She noted that this is the second time medical interns are being fired since 1996 when their predecessors also got fired for striking for the same grievances. For three years, the government didn’t hire any new doctors.
Meanwhile, she noted that the salary increment proposal meant for science teachers and scientists indicated that Dr. Henry Mwebesa, the Director General Health Services salary, was increased from Ugx.9 million to Ugx.23 Million yet the intern doctors who were requesting for a reasonable increase in allowance from Ugx750,000 to Ugx. 2.5million while working 24/7 were told to pack up and leave.
Public health doctors laid down their tools on November 16th over poor working conditions, compensation of health workers who succumbed to Covid-19, increase in their pay, reduction of taxes and procurement of vehicles for all medical consultants.
The Fatboy show is hosted by James Onen aka Fatboy, Olive, Sarah and Lesham every weekday from 6am to 10am on RX Radio.
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