KAMPALA – In recent months there has been several reports on social media and mainstream media that the government is forcing people to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
The most recent one was mid-December when local authorities set up roadblocks on the Kasese-Fort Portal and Kasese-Mbarara Highways to ensure that all travelers using public means and heading to Kasese had to stop and either give evidence that they were vaccinated or be vaccinated on gunpoint.
There are several questions the Ugandan government needs to answer to the population of Rwenzori and Kasese in particular. Some of the questions have been raised by Mr. Tamale Mirundi and I, these are as below:
Could it be the repeat of what happened in Kano, Nigeria or something else? Why would government start with the population that has disagreed with it previously? Of all populations and border districts which the pandemic has ravaged, why start with Kasese?
Why forceful vaccination? Could there be a Mafia testing their laboratory concoctions on the innocent travellers and of course of which the results cannot be predicted at the end of the session.
What economic reasons for forcing the population to get vaccinated.
What is the legitimacy of that medicine? What if it is a trial vaccine?
What are the chances that someone has travelled with their vaccination cards? Since their Question is where is the evidence for vaccination?
The actions of authorities and others violates human rights as per the Constitution and could be legally challenged.
Government still has alternatives it could use to avert the inequalities.
Instead of forcing people, government should pass a law whose enactment will see unvaccinated people banned from accessing public places like schools, public transport, and hospitals, public offices among other places.
The Ministry of Health should give a comprehensive statement condemning the illegalities of their technocrats, the government should apologise to the people that were been vaccinated on gunpoint.
The writer, Chrispus Mubale Muke is a journalist and social critic
