The Police in Kabale Municipality have foiled a demonstration by pre-intern doctors who are complaining over delayed allowances and also accuse the Ministry of Health of not deploying them to government hospitals.

The group began their demonstration along Garage Street in Kabale town but they were intercepted as they headed for a press conference at Christ the King Church Hall.

The Police officers led by Andrew Akanyijuka, the Officer in charge at Kabale Central Police Station swung into action and ordered the protesting pre-intern doctors to surrender all their placards and leave the area.

Akanyijuka later demanded to meet the leaders of the protesters but none of them was willing to identify themselves as the leader.

The angry protesters said that the Ministry of Health was poorly handling their grievances which they had clearly stated on a number of occasions.

The pre-intern doctors have also asked the government to pay them salaries instead of allowances and that must be provided in the national budget just like all other government employees.

The new interns were supposed to be deployed at the over thirty internship sites by 01^st April 2023 but according to a circular the Director General of Health Services, Dr. Henry Mwebesa sent to Directors of government hospitals, the one-year internship training will begin later.

Dr Mwebesa noted that there were still a number of issues to be sorted out during the training, adding that consultations were ongoing. One of the proposals by the health ministry is a change of policy to have all privately-sponsored medical students meet their internship costs instead of the government covering it as has been the case because the costs have gone high and the government can longer afford it.

Job Namanya