President Yoweri Museveni has promised to fully reopen the economy by January 2022 whether Ugandans go for vaccination against COVID-19 or not.
While addressing the nation yesterday on the state of COVID-19 and other pertinent issues of National Importance, Museveni said that all educational institutions and other sectors of the economy will be among those that will fully reopen in January next year.
Museveni said that by end of this year, government would have received enough jabs to vaccinate the target population, adding that it is now the citizens' responsibility to go for vaccination.
“If this is done, we shall be able to open schools and the rest of the economy by January 2022. But whether people go for vaccination or not, we shall still reopen the economy. If anything goes wrong, the moral responsibility is yours," Museveni said.
He blamed politicians and other public servants like DISOs, RDCs, CAOs and sub county Chiefs for not doing enough to sensitize masses to take up the vaccine.
"I don’t believe that Ugandans are refusing to get vaccinated, they are just not told. I now want to inform you that vaccines are available at the health centres," he said, adding that excuses will not help us fight the pandemic.
"Walking shouldn’t be an issue for the vaccine. Be willing to move! Stop trying to burden us. We can’t come home to home," he added.
Uganda is among the few countries in the world that has delayed to fully reopen the economy since the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. Educational institutions have been the most affected.
"So be informed that the schools will be opened in January and the rest of the economy will be opened in the same month."
In his address, Museveni defended the move to delay reopening of schools despite its challenges that come along with the closure.
"All the complications that come with school closure, like teenage pregnancies, loss of school time, etc., are reversible. Death is irreversible. Young mothers can go back to school and study. Dead people cannot," Museveni said.
Museveni also reechoed his position on the recent spate of terror attacks in the country saying that Ugandan government has the capacity to defend its citizens.
" I would like to assure the public that neither rural based insurgency nor urban terrorism will defy our capacity. This is our land and we shall protect it from all nonsense," he said.