As It Happened: Thursday, November 14

Nov 14, 2019

Rema Namakula introduced her fiance Dr. Hamza Ssebunnya to her family in Nabbingo.

That's it for today. Live reporting continues tomorrow

6:21 pm | Museveni applauds Scouts

President Yoweri Museveni has applauded the Scouting Movement in Uganda for its efforts to save the environment for development.

He said the environment has been central to the scout movement, which he said plays an important role in connecting people with the natural world, adding that the 50 million scouts in the entire World were a movement and a force that can stir global momentum for the creation of a sustainable future.

The president, who is the patron of the Uganda Scouts Association (USA) pledged his ‘total commitment and that of his government to ensure that scouts movement continues to thrive, blossom and nurture our young people'.

5:31 pm | PICTURES: Rema introduces Ssebunnya

Lawmakers across the political divide have asked the ministry of education to reprimand private school owners who have barred students with fees balance from sitting their final exams.

Gulu Municipality MP, Lyandro Komakech described the actions of some school administrators as "a fundamental breach of the right to education."

"The actions of some school administrators should not go unpunished. You cannot bar students from sitting exams because of school fees balance. It's just inhumane," Komakech said.

Some of the students who were barred from sitting for the exams

3:54 pm | Rema introduces Ssebunnya

3:19 pm | Second Ebola vaccine introduced in DR Congo: MSF charity

Health authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo Thursday began using a second vaccine to fight the deadly Ebola virus in the east of the country, the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) charity said.

It said the new vaccine is aimed at about 50,000 people over a period of four months. More than 250,000 people in the region have already received doses of another anti-Ebola vaccine since August 2018.

2:40 pm | Judiciary ban use of pseudo names on WhatsApp platform

The judiciary has banned its members from using pseudo names on their official WhatsApp platforms. According to an internal memo issued by the judiciary senior communication officer, Solomon Muyita, judicial officers have been given seven days to edit their WhatsApp names back to their official names, lest be removed from the group.

"Reference is made to a January 2019 Annual Judges Conference Resolution prohibiting the use of pseudo names by members of the judiciary on the official WhatsApp groups," the notice reads in part.

The notice further stated, "Please note that the judiciary senior management this week resolved that members who have continued to use pseudo names have seven days from Thursday (November 14, 2019) to edit their WhatsApp names back to their official names."

2:19 pm | Kenzo congratulates Rema on her Kwanjula

1:36 pm | Ugandan wins global award

Catherine Nakalembe, a Ugandan heading the Eastern African hub for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) - an independent agency of the US government - has received a global award.

Nakalembe, an assistant professor at the research-based University of Maryland in the US, heads the NASA Harvest Eastern Africa hub. Nakalembe received the individual excellence award from the Group on Earth Observation (GEO) at an event held in Australia.

The GEO is an intergovernmental partnership of 105 member governments, 127 participating organizations and several individuals and businesses working to improve the availability, access and use of earth observation data for a sustainable planet.

Ruhakana Rugunda, Prime Minister of Uganda (in dark blue) and Musa Ecweru Minister of State for relief, disaster preparedness and refugees (right) presenting a 2019 earth observations for sustainable development goals award to the ministers as Kitutu Mary, Minister of State for Environment (left) Nakalembe Catherine, an assistant research professor at Maryland University and Hillary Onek, Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees (center) look on at the Office of the President in Kampala. PHOTO: Jimmy Outa

11:56 am | Rema Namakula -Dr. Hamza Ssebunnya Kwanjula

11:56 am | Mustafa Kizza's move to the Czech Republic

KCCA FC left-back Mustafa Kizza is staying put after his potential move to Czech Republic's third division outfit MFK Vyskov collapsed. Kizza, who prefers to move to Switzerland and probably FC Zurich in January even if it means undergoing trials just as his teammate Allan Okello did back in June, has called the move to MFK Vyskov as speculation that will not distract him.

10:56 am | World Diabetes Day

Today is World Diabetes Day. World Diabetes Day was launched in 1991 by the IDF and the World Health Organization (WHO) in response to the rapid rise of diabetes around the world. It is held on 14 November each year.

According to the World Health Organisation, by 2014, 422 million people were living with diabetes, and this is projected to rise to 600 million by 2025. The global prevalence of diabetes among adults over 18 years of age has risen by 2014 was at 8.5%.

The prevalence is reported to be rising more rapidly in middle- and low-income countries. In 2016, an estimated 1.6 million deaths were directly caused by diabetes.

Dr. William Lumu, the President of Uganda Diabetes Association, says that in Uganda, the prevalence is between 0.4% and 9%. He said although there are about 400,000 Ugandans living with diabetes, only 100,000 are aware of their status. The youngest person so far to be diagnosed with diabetes was three months old at the time of diagnosis.

He noted that diabetes is the leading cause of blindness, heart disease, kidney failure, stroke and lower limb amputation in Uganda.

Courtesy photo

10:26 am | Disaster preparedness

The Minister of relief for disaster preparedness, Hillary Onek has told Parliament that his ministry has run out of funds to address the many natural disasters occasioned by the unusually heavy rainfall throughout the country. Responding to pleas by lawmakers for his ministry to intervene in their constituencies over a litany of emergencies, Onek was explicit about the financial constraints facing his docket.

"The only money we have left is to relocate 250 families at risk of getting entombed by landslides in Bugisu sub-region," Onek said in response to Rose Mutonyi's (Bubulo West) plea for government to help traders affected by the recent burning down of a market in Manafwa.

Onek revealed that he has written to the ministry of finance for his ministry to be advanced with sh18b to deal with some emerging disasters.

10:26 am | Today in the New Vision

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10:26 am | Today's dose of motivation

Infuse your life with action. Don't wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future. Make your own hope. Make your own love. And whatever your beliefs, honor your creator, not by passively waiting for grace to come down from upon high, but by doing what you can to make grace happen... yourself, right now, right down here on Earth.

Bradley Whitford

10:20 am | Good morning!

A very good morning everyone. Glad you could join us again on this sunny Thursday as we chart our way through the day's major events.