Published on 17/07/2025
Lawmakers on Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) proposed that all Members of Parliament should receive treatment at their respective regional referral hospitals instead of private health facilities. The aim, they argue, is to draw national attention to the poor state of public health infrastructure.
The proposal was made by Hon. Asuman Basalirwa (Bugiri Municipality) during a PAC meeting with officials from Soroti Regional Referral Hospital on July 11, 2025, while considering the Auditor General’s December 2024 report.
“Every MP should be treated in their regional hospital. They should not be found in private or special hospitals,” Basalirwa said. “In the 1960s and 70s, Mulago Hospital was held in high regard—when President Obote was shot, he was rushed there. Even Field Marshal Amin Dada was treated at Mulago.”
He continued: “These days, when children of the political elite need to give birth, they’re flown to Germany. Our leaders have abandoned regional hospitals, which is the root of the problem.”
Hon. Gorreth Namugga (Mawogola South) supported the suggestion, noting disparities in access to medical insurance and post-parliamentary healthcare benefits. “One of us is proposing a bill for MPs to receive medical insurance after leaving Parliament,” she said. “But not everyone enjoys these privileges. Ordinary citizens struggle.”
The discussion comes amid a push by Speaker Anita Among earlier this year, asking Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja to allocate resources in the Parliamentary Commission budget for treatment abroad and burial expenses for former MPs, citing an overwhelming burden on Parliament.
The PAC proposals followed a damning report on the state of Soroti Hospital’s theatre. Dr. Ben Watmon, hospital’s Director, described the theatre as “in a sorry state,” adding that a 2023 Board of Survey nearly condemned it.
“Soroti has not received a capital development allocation in seven years,” he said. “We have repeatedly presented our priority needs to the Health Committee, but no funding has come through.”
Hon. Silas Aogon (Kumi Municipality) criticized the Ministry of Health’s failure to close the deteriorating theatre. “How can you say it’s unfit and still keep it open? That’s not caution—it’s carelessness,” he said.
Basalirwa echoed the sentiment. “How is that theatre still operating? That facility should be closed. Only then will government act. People think we are politicking when we propose closures, but what else will make them listen?”
He went further, suggesting that some dysfunctional public hospitals should be shut down if they can’t meet basic standards. “The state of the health sector is alarming—it’s sick,” he said. “Even Entebbe Hospital, near State House, lacks basics. What then of Soroti, the land of my in-laws? We need to dedicate at least 20% of the national budget to health.”
Hon. Elijah Okupa (Kasilo County) pressed hospital management for updates on a stalled plan by Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) to renovate the Soroti theatre. “UNRA contractors were ready to do the work, but the hospital administration insisted on receiving funds directly,” he said.
Dr. Watmon responded that the issue predated his tenure. “When I joined in February 2022, I received no handover report regarding UNRA’s engagement,” he said.
Rumors also surfaced during the meeting that Dr. Joseph Epodoi, surgeon who led the successful separation of conjoined twins at Soroti in 2022, had been transferred. Aogon raised the concern, saying, “We must ensure we retain our best talent.”
Dr. Watmon clarified, “Dr. Epodoi is still with us. Those reports are false. But we do need a new theatre that reflects our status as a regional and teaching hospital.”
Basalirwa, however, argued that transferring specialists like Dr. Epodoi could benefit the country. “Even if he were moved, it wouldn’t be a bad thing. These services should be decentralized. All Ugandans contribute taxes—such resources should be shared,” he said.
