The Ministry of Health says it has intensified the search for contacts of the seven truck drivers with Covid-19 who were found in Ndeeba, a city suburb, on Saturday night.
The National Covid-19 Response Incident Commander, Dr Ateka Kagirita, said on Monday that the truck drivers had escaped into the community after finding out their status. He said the escapees are among the 25 drivers who previously disappeared into the community after they tested positive at Elegu and Malaba border posts.
“The 24-hour operation is ongoing to hunt down all the truck drivers who escaped into the community after testing positive. We are working day and night to get who they got into contact with, establish where they slept, to ensure there is no positive case in the community,” he said.
Asked whether there will be any action taken against the drivers for disappearing into the communities, aware that they could spread the disease, Dr Kagirita said he would give the details later.
On Monday, the Uganda Professional Drivers Network (UPDN), revealed that the Saturday night development, which they attributed to their intervention to help the government come up with a more comprehensive plan to manage the truck drivers.
Mr Ndugu Omogo, the executive director of UPDN, said they are mainly Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania nationals.
“Some of them have been in the community for more than a week. Many of them ran away because there is no existing case management system. Many of them think the disease doesn’t exist and that government just wants to steal money,” he said.