We don’t need a study to fight alcoholism

Jul 18, 2005

When I was appointed assistant district administrator, Katakwi, in 1989, I encountered a problem of alcohol consumption. People could start drinking as early as 5:00a.m. and continue till the next day. Infact it was said some people could not differentiate between Monday from Tuesday. Most offices s

Felix Emojong-Amaitum

When I was appointed assistant district administrator, Katakwi, in 1989, I encountered a problem of alcohol consumption. People could start drinking as early as 5:00a.m. and continue till the next day. Infact it was said some people could not differentiate between Monday from Tuesday. Most offices smelt like breweries. In the countryside the situation was even worse.

Unlike our good old Prime Minister, Prof. Apolo Nsibambi, who, according to The New Vision, July 15, directed the ethics minister to study the problem of alcoholism so as to address the issues raised by the WHO, I formed a district security committee and resolved to stop the rampant drinking, especially during working hours.

We started with the soldiers, then called the NRA. We rounded them up and paraded them in public where they were punished in front of the civilians. We got the co-operation of local councils who used to report the drinking holes of the soldiers. Beer sellers then devised another method.

They would lock the soldiers inside the houses. You could actually find padlocks at the doors and think there were no people inside but on a tip-off from LCs, we could break the padlocks and flush them out. Having dealt very successfully with the soldiers, we turned to civilians.

They were rounded up and, with the involvement of the public, punished openly. Two people who were punished during those days told me recently they had reformed and turned to Christ. Many others embarked on income-generating activities.

We don’t have waste time ‘studying’ the causes of alcoholism unless our the prime minister is living outside Uganda. Call a one-day workshop and invite civil authorities, police, psychologists and other stakeholders. You will get more than what you are looking for.

What is the three months period for? What you get the day’s meeting should be implemented immediately.

There are laws concerning alcohol consumption. The guidelines concerning drinking hours are clear. Nobody, including public officers, is allowed to drink between 8:00a.m. and 12:45p.m. and from 2:00p.m. to 5:00p.m. Bars should close by 10:00p.m. on weekdays and not beyond mid-night. So, what is the problem?

Lack of nationalism and enforcement of the laws. Period. Our neighbours, Kenya, enforces the alcohol laws. Who are we not to fight the menace?

We are taking freedom too far. I wouldn’t be surprised if some politicians started shouting they were being targeted, if the Government started to enforce these laws. What does our Inspector General of Police say about this issue? If the police is not well-equipped, we can form an Operation Wembley — call it Operation Pombe.

The writer is former RDC of Pader

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