By Aggrey Baba
Members of Parliament (MPs) have risen up in protest over the government’s failure to operationalize the AIDS Trust Fund, nearly a decade after it was passed into law.
The lawmakers, led by Mukono North MP Abdullah Kiwanuka (NUP), yesterday, couldn’t hide their frustration as they revealed that thousands of Ugandans living with HIV/AIDS are now on the verge of losing access to life-saving treatment, following a painful withdrawal of major U.S. health funding.
“There’s no time to waste! Our people are suffering, and we are still speaking English in boardrooms,” Kiwanuka angrily told Parliament. Adding that Parliament passed this law to help our own people, but up to now, nothing has been done. “Who is sabotaging this country’s health?”
The U.S government, which had for years funded critical health services through programs like PEPFAR, recently cut its support to Uganda, and other African countries over governance and human rights concerns.
The effect is already being felt across rural clinics, ARVs are running out, HIV testing kits are scarce, and health workers are overwhelmed.
Bugiri Municipality MP Asuman Basalirwa added his voice to the growing outrage, asking why government institutions were “intentionally sleeping on duty” as Ugandans living with HIV stare death in the face.
The AIDS Trust Fund, which was supposed to be funded through small taxes on soft drinks, alcohol, and airline tickets, has never been activated, and lawmakers revealed that although the Ministry of Finance had initially committed to rolling it out, it later backtracked without explanation.
Appearing before parliament’s committee on commissions, statutory authorities and state enterprises (COSASE), Mr. Rwotoyera, a top official at the Uganda AIDS Commission, confirmed to Parliament that the most vulnerable group, young women and girls are being hit the hardest by the funding crisis. “We are dealing with a silent emergency. If the Trust Fund doesn’t start working, we might undo years of progress.”
Even the Global Fund, another major donor to Uganda’s HIV fight, is reportedly reconsidering its future support due to accountability issues, adding salt to the already deep wound.
Some MPs went further to accuse the government of prioritizing politics over health, claiming that Uganda is too dependent on donors, yet an African proverb says that when the elephant steps aside, the ants will be crushed.
They now want the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Health to appear before Parliament and explain the delays, urgently.
When the music changes, so must the dance, and now the MPs are demanding that Uganda starts funding its own health battles instead of waiting for foreign handouts. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
