Government sued over ID requirement for Covid-19 jabs
The 100,000 doses of the vaccine at Entebbe International Airport yesterday. PHOTO/ STEPHEN OTAGE
KAMPALA- Government has been sued for listing possession of a national identity card as one of the requirements for its citizens to receive vaccination against Covid-19.
The petitioners, Initiative for Social Economic Rights (ISER) and Unwanted Witness, filed the suit in the High Court on Friday.
They aver that the directive by Health minister Jane Ruth Aceng on March 2 is discriminatory because it will lock out many beneficiaries.
They further contend that even eligible Ugandans like the front-line health workers, teachers, among others, who do not own a national identity card will miss the vaccination.
“An order of prohibition and permanent injunction restraining the respondent (government) or her servant, agents or any health service providers from excluding eligible Ugandans without National Identification Numbers (NINs) from Covid-19 vaccination,” the concerned petitioners state.
They added: “The Covid-19 vaccination should apply to all eligible Ugandans and not discriminate among them on account of lacking a national identity card or National Identification Number (NIN).”
They advise government to use alternative identification documents like driving permits, passports, and voter cards for those who do not have national identity cards.
The Attorney General, who is the sole respondent in the petition, has not been summoned to file the government defence.
