The Uganda Police Force has terminated the Memorandum of Understanding – MoU with the Naguru-based Iran-Uganda Friendship Hospital
According to the MoU which was signed under the leadership of the former Gen Kale Kayihura, the police was to provide land for the hospital; free electricity, water, and fuel for the generator and ambulances. The hospital would in turn provide subsidized medical treatment to police officers in return.
But according to Erasmus Twaruhukwa, the Assistant Inspector General of Police, the hospital operators flouted all the clauses in the MoU and have continued to charge the police officers prompting the Inspector General of Police Okoth Ochola to terminate the arrangement.
Twaruhukwa, also the UPF’s Legal Advisor told Parliament’s defence committee on Tuesday that the IGP has also ordered a forensic audit into the operations of the hospital for flouting clauses of the agreement.
According to Twaruhukwa, they are working to resolve contention with the Directors of the Hospital indicating that the funds and assets of the facility will be transferred to the Muslim Physicians Without Borders (MSF) that financed the construction of the facility.
Committee Chairman Donozio Kahonda castigated the police leadership for entering into a vague and raw deal without specific terms of reference which gave leeway to the hospital operators to elude their responsibility amid huge resources that they have committed to the running of the health facility.
Since its inauguration in 2017 by President Yoweri Museveni, several senior and junior police officers have complained about the high charges at the health facility with a 50-bed capacity.
Now, the parliamentary investigations are expected to trace how much funds the hospital has generated since its inception, where the funds are being banked and how the funds have been used.
