By Kabuye Ronald
Several civil society organisations have backed up former Minister and Tororo Woman legislator Hon. Sarah Opendi on her move to moot the Alcoholic Drinks Control Bill, 2023.
This bill which seeks to regulate the manufacture, sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks, was presented for its first reading to Parliament last week.
The organisations that unite under Uganda Alcohol Policy Alliance (UAPA) led by its chairperson Juliet Namukasa, say that the bill if passed into law will help the country in the protection of Ugandans and preventing of alcohol use by young people and hence promote development through people economic activities during working hours.
Namukasa wants the bill to focus most on the protection of the children against any form of alcohol harm and lifting the minimum alcohol age from 18 to 21 years since at 18 the brain of the child is still developing and also they need to focus on their academics.
She also wants the bill to focus on harm to others due to use of alcohol like domestic violence and regulating drinking hours to enable people concentrate on economic productive activities.
Kwizera Christopher, the Chief Executive Officer of Uganda Non communicable Diseases Alliance (UNCDA) said that alcohol is one of the major driver of the non-communicable diseases which are responsible for 40% of all deaths in the country.
The non-communicable diseases include cancers, diabetes, heart diseases and chronic respiratory diseases but when road clashes are added on then the total goes up to 46% and thus the need to regulate alcohol use in the country.
Kwizera dismissed arguments that alcohol contributes a lot to the social wellbeing of people and produces a lot of resources in terms of taxes. He says that those who advance that talk forget that much more is spent on treating alcohol related conditions instead.
Emmanuel Mubangizi, the executive director of Serenity center, a facility that rehabilitates and treats individuals that are challenged with alcohol misuse and other related drugs abuses said that its long overdue to have the bill passed into law since there is a need to protect the under age children from primary to university from alcohol use which has ruined the education and the future of many directly and indirectly.
“A number of students especially at the university drink the tuition, accommodation and other related fees and yet a parent goes through a lot to get the money for his or her education. Domestic violence and low productivity is mostly due alcohol misuse hence if we get the law it will help in regulating and protecting those it affects.” Said Mubangizi
Atulinde Mpaire Prudence, The executive secretary for Uganda Girl Guides Association and Josephine Afaayo the head of Afaayo fight drug abuse, want the law to control promotions, sponsorship and advertisement and thus be able to protect the children and have a health generation, socially responsible, productive.
Maik Duennbier, the director of strategy and advocacy at MOVENDI International said alcohol is a very big risk factor for infectious diseases like HIV AIDs, corona virus, Tuberculosis among others thus a need to advance and adopt the alcohol drinks control bill to avoid the spread of such diseases.
Afaayo Josephine, the director of Afaayo Anti-Drug Abuse imitative said that the country needs the alcohol drinks control law to save the future generation since so many youths including those in schools are slowly introduced to alcohol use and in the end they become hardcore drunkards and drug abusers since alcohol is a gate way drug to all other drugs.
Afaayo adds that the law will also help in preventing alcohol access to children by stopping adults from using alcohol in presence of the children and this will enable them know that alcohol is a dangerous drug.
Richard Baguma Tinkasimiira, the head of strategic, communication and advocacy subcommittee for alcohol control initiatives said that there is nothing to be proud of being the number one alcohol consuming country in Africa and the most prolific drinkers in the world. He thus said the country has over delayed, been too mickey and too timid to tackle the alcohol problem that has been perverting the communities, destroying lives of individuals, families and societies thus creating negative consequences for the economy, health and education sector.
Baguma says therefore, it’s very important to very urgently have a strong, resilient and long lasting alcohol control regulation law.
