28/08/2024
Was discussing the crisis of our country with a medical doctor, employed in a government hospital. After some long silence he said, "Walayi the Museveni regime has turned all of us into thieves." He explained that after some time in practice, a medical doctor finds themselves with two choices- to go abroad and earn befitting remuneration and other living conditions, or stay in Uganda and spend more time in their private practice than in the government service.
He went on, "Everyday I go to this government hospital, do some ward rounds for one hour in the morning, sign in the attendance book and then leave. I spend the whole day in my private clinic where I'll do one surgery and get as much money from it as I earn the whole month for my government job." It pained him that he has to engage in this kind of unethical conduct, where he is enlisted as a full time medical doctor at a government hospital and yet spends there the least time.
He concluded that if the government was paying medical doctors well and ensuring they have dignifying living conditions, they would not even have to go through the trouble of opening up private practices. The consequences of this state of affairs are on full display, if you visit the casualty ward at Mulago hospital or any regional referral hospital.
And if you watch closely, you'll see how this applies to many other sectors. The saddest thing is to realize that as a country, there is enough money to fix this mess. But the priorities of those who rule over us are elsewhere. Weep beloved country. By Lewis David Lubongoya