Saloon Operators Petition Parliament Over Lockdown

BY AWORI ESTHER LUCY

KAMPALA, Uganda|SHIFTMEDIA| Salon and Spa operators in Uganda have followed the boda boda operators in decrying the continued lockdown government four months down the road due to COVID-19.

In their petition to the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, on 7 July 2020, they said that they had written to the Ministry of Health in regard to their plight but have not received any response. President Museveni has in recent address to the nation regarding the lifting of COVID-19 lockdown ruled out Saloons and boda bodas citing high risks attributed to their operations.

As part of the measures to mitigate the spread of Covid-19, government directed the closure of salons and spas, among other businesses.

Ugandan boda-boda operators earlier this week sued the government for not allowing them to resume passenger transport.

Through their association, the National Federation of Professional Cyclists Network (NFPC), they say that the government is acting in a discriminatory manner by allowing other businesses, particularly other public transport service providers, to re-open.

The lead petitioners are Fred Kagaba, Twaha Semakula, Mr Yassin Ssemujju and Umar Jjuko Kateregga.

In the suit, they are seeking a declaration that “government refusing people engaged in the boda boda transport business to carry passengers is not acceptable or demonstrably justifiable in a free and democratic society and, therefore, an infringement and threat to their economic right to carry out their lawful occupation, trade which is contrary to the Constitution.” The suit was filed at the High Court in Kampala.

Handing over their petition to Speaker, Abdu Karim Mucunguzi, Chairperson of the Salon and Spa Association in Uganda cautioned that failure to re-open salons and spas may expose people to the pandemic since some salon operators are working, without taking precautions.

“You see people looking kempt. Where do you think they are getting all this done? It is through back doors and this is risky,” he said.

He added that their continued closure has affected the youth who are the bulk of the workers in salons and spas.

“We have over 1.5 million salons and spas in the country and they employ mostly young people. For four months now, we have not been able to feed our families, neither can we pay rent. We need help to get back to business,” he said.

The association spokesperson, Ms. Christine Nakasiga, said the Association is willing to train all salon operators on the standard operating procedures, once they are re-opened.

“Government should provide us with the operating procedures for salon operators. We are ready to follow them,” she said.

Kadaga, who recognised the salon and spa operators for their efforts in making people look good as well as creating employment, pledged to forward their issues to the National Covid-19 Task Force and President Yoweri Museveni.

“I do sympathise with what has happened and although we have this pandemic, as a country, we should be trying to find ways of facilitating our people to work but also to be safe,” she said.

The country currently has close to 1,000 registered cases of COVID-19, with over 800 discharged after recovering.