President Museveni yesterday announced that private cars will be allowed to return to the roads on Tuesday May 26, 2020. This came as a clarification to his statement he made on monday that didn’t not indicate exactly when private cars would be allowed to get out of lockdown.
His minister for informaton Judith Nabakooba had told the media that all relaxation measures that had been announced by the president, would wait for the distribution of a government-provided facial mask in two weeks time.
Yesterday however, Musveni said that members of the general public are free to start using their vehicles by Tuesday May 26, in case they wear any type of mask whose quality is approved by the ministry of health.
The President made the changes in the wake of public outcry that arose from his Monday address, that attracted mixed interpretations.
The president however shifted forward the date for the return of public transport means from June 2 that had earlier been announced to June 4. He warned however that the relaxation of the public transport regulations will not be seen in all the 40 border districts for fear of importing the virus into the country from neighbouring countries which have higher levels of infection than Uganda.
Members of the public had protested the President’s requirement not to get out of lockdown without the government-provided face mask. Museveni had indicated on Monday that government would distribute at least one standard mask to every Ugandan aged 6 years and above.
In yesterday’s address, he softened this stance by saying that someone is free to wear any type of mask as long as they meet the safety standard prescribed by the Ministry of Health and the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS).
On the resumption of studies in the border districts where public transport remains blocked at least for three weeks, Museveni said the ministry of education will make special arrangements to transport the students to or from those border districts as they access their schools.
The government says that most of the other social distancing restrictions that have been in place for the past two months aimed at curbing the spread of the deadly Coronavirus, such as public gatherings in crowded places like shopping malls, arcades, will be reviewed after 21 days from yesterday May 19, 2020.
