Speaker Annet Anita Among inaugurated the Bukedea Teaching Hospital and College of Health Sciences today with President Museveni as the esteemed guest of honor. Despite recent criticisms concerning accountability issues in Parliament, Museveni commended Among as a proficient planner and questioned the focus on critiquing her rather than individuals cooperating with foreign interests.
During his address in Bukedea, President Museveni lauded Speaker Anita Among and pondered over the extensive criticism directed at her on social media, contrasting it with the apparent silence regarding those collaborating with foreigners.
That facility is a political tool not a service point
— Moses Okello (@MosesaMosesa) March 23, 2024
Strategically attaching it to this regime and perhaps the incoming.
— 🇺🇬 David G Lukyamuzi (@lukyamuzi_david) March 23, 2024
How did they convince President @KagutaMuseveni to preside over this launch? It’s a mockery that one can divert state resources, build a private hospital, call it the biggest in the country, spend hundreds of millions of taxpayer cash to launch it and invite a President no less. https://t.co/h07kO9zGsC
— Anthony Natif (@TonyNatif) March 23, 2024
Part of Bukedea teaching hospital (tax-payers money); it's very expensive to build private medical facilities like the International Hospital Kampala, and it takes years to build. Dirty money needs 'laundry'; that's why it's termed, money laundering. @TonyNatif @AAgather pic.twitter.com/0y6yZhbOBC
— Ayeny Angulo (@AyenyAngulo) March 23, 2024
How sustainable is a big private hospital in Bukedea? Private hospitals and clinics barely thrive in Kampala. How will health workers be paid? How will the procurement of medicines, equipment and sundries be funded?
— F. Golooba-Mutebi (@FGoloobaMutebi) March 23, 2024
Significantly, attention was drawn to the names assigned to the facility’s blocks, all of which were derived from the presidential family. Notable names included the General MK Block, Natasha Children’s Ward, Charlotte Ward (MK’s Wife), and the Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Library, among others.
Public discourse surrounding these names was met with scrutiny, with many interpreting them as strategic positioning by Among for both the present and future. Some perceive this as an attempt to align herself with potential future leadership, particularly in the context of speculation surrounding Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s presidential aspirations.
Conversely, others view Among’s utilization of these gestures of gratitude as a means to cultivate favor with Museveni and his associates, potentially deflecting attention from allegations of corruption, abuse of power, and intimidation. A recently leaked phone conversation heightened concerns, revealing Among’s reference to the fatal shooting of a social critic, implying potential consequences for continued criticism.
Critics perceive the hospital launch and the naming of its blocks as efforts by Among to rehabilitate her image and maintain the trust of the president and his inner circle, despite ongoing controversies.
