By Our Reporters
The Deputy Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament, Jacob Oulanyah has advised Mukono Municipality Member of Parliament Betty Nambooze to take matters of mistreated Ugandans abroad to Uganda Association of External Recruitment Agency (UAERA), an umbrella body under which firms involved in labor externalization coalesce.
Oulanyah also tasked UAERA to expeditiously handle the repatriation of workers stranded in foreign countries under uncomfortable working conditions. Oulanyah said labor export agencies that are licensed and operating within the law, subscribe to UAERA through payment of insurance and should handle repatriation or treatment of workers.
“So, there should not be any burden to any parent that their child is stranded somewhere and they are looking for money to repatriate them or that they should refund money before they are brought back,” Oulanyah explained.
The Deputy Speaker made the remarks in response to a concern raised by Mukono Municipality MP, Betty Nambooze on Thursday 1st August 2019. Nambooze said that youth who sought employment abroad through labor agencies were stuck and unable to return to Uganda. Nambooze noted that following the Deputy Speaker’s 18th July directive, several girls remain stranded at the Uganda embassy in the United Arab Emirates as they wait for support to return home.
This was after Nambooze elaborated on the procedure and asked Oulanyah to update Parliament of a decision he had taken about setting up a select committee to investigate issues of mistreated Ugandans that go to work abroad because she was receiving new cases of girls claiming mistreatment. Nambooze claims that when she raised the issue of 53 girls that were stranded at the Ugandan embassy in United Arab Emirates (UAE), the ambassador retaliated by chasing away the girls. Oulanyah, who seemed disgusted with the matter, suggested the vocal MPs reaches out to UAERA as well and get a more detailed of what has taken place since.
