Kadaga bitter with URA for taxing Albino lotion

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The speaker of Parliament has expressed her disappointment in Uganda Revenue Authority for continuing to levy taxes on the sunscreen lotion.

Sunscreen Lotion helps people living with Albinism against the sun rays that cause cancer.

The speaker was speaking on Friday at a thanksgiving ceremony of the area Member of Parliament of Lutseshe constituency at Bulucheke sub-county headquarters in Bududa district.

Kadaga said that although parliament removed the taxes on the cosmetics, URA is still taxing them.

The speaker sad that she chaired the session that scrapped the taxes on the sun screen Lotion but wondered why URA was still imposing taxes on the lotion.

Kadaga added that Parliament directed government to designate the Lotion as Medicine but as cosmetics and be put under the ministry of health.

She also said she will write to the president and the ministry of Health to speed the process of elevating the facility into a health center III to IV saying that the place is a hard to reach area.

She said that Parliament has been at the fore front for fighting for the visibility of the albinos, I am disappointed that although we removed the taxes on the lotion the albinos are still being charged.

She said that parliament directed government to designate the lotion as a drug not a cosmetic.

Wilson Watira, the Bududa District LCV Chairperson said told the speaker that Bududa is one of the districts with the highest number of Albinos in the country who need to be helped.

He also appealed to the speaker to push for the upgrade of Bulucheke Health center III into Health IV because the entire Constituency has no health facility at the level of Health Center IV.

“The district tried to implement the policy of health center IV but we have no powers of upgrading it unless the ministry authorizes” Watira said.

He also asked the speaker to task government to Consider Bududa for a hard to reach allowances because the district is among the worst performing districts in education because teachers have to trek over 2 kilometers to get to school which affects the performance drastically.

Justine Khainza the Woman MP of Bududa appealed to the Government through the speaker to at least lower the cost of the sun screen lotion to Shs20, 000 or taxes that are levied on such products be reduced so that people living with albinism ailments can be able to afford them.

The lawmaker said, sun screen lotions protect people from the rays that are cancerous.     She re-echoed that cancer is hard to treat even among the rich people but wondered how the poor communities such as those in Bududa can manage such an endemic disease.

She also emphasized on the point of working on the Bubulo-Bududa circular road; the 28 kilometer road which starts from Manafwa and navigates around the district is in the ailing state.

Speaking at the same event, Nabutanyi Watenga, the Member of Parliament for Lutseshe constituency said that the landslide victims who are still in the Camps (IDPCs) are facing the challenge of cholera outbreak that has overwhelmed the health facilities in the district.

He asked Government to expedite the process of resettling the people who were affected because their life is at risk.

In a related development, the legislator donated an assortment of 12 mattresses, Mama Kits that were handed over to Bulucheke Health Center III which were handed over by the Speaker.

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