RCC orders closure of Forest Mall, Shoprite over SOPs
Forest Mall in Lugogo, Kampala. The facility has been closed for reportedly violating SOPs. photos/ABUBAKER LUBOWA.
What you need to know:
- For the facilities to be reopened, management will first ensure adherence to the SOPs to avoid the spread of Covid-19 virus.
The Nakawa deputy Resident City Commissioner (RCC), Mr Herbert Anderson Burora, on Tuesday closed Forest Mall and Shoprite at Lugogo in Kampala over violation of Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs).
In a July 13 letter addressed to the management of the two business facilities, a copy of which Daily Monitor has seen, Mr Burora said he was disappointed that management of both businesses were violating the SOPs.
“…this is to, therefore, direct you to communicate these restrictions to the tenants that will take effect as indicated above,” Mr Burora’s letter reads in part.
Forest Mall is a commercial hub that houses a consortium of high-end businesses including banks, restaurants, boutiques, and banks while Shoprite is a shopping and retail business centre.
For the facilities to be reopened, management will first ensure adherence to the SOPs to avoid the spread of Covid-19 virus.
“All financial institutions that operate within shall prove that they have provided transport to their workers and put in place all the SOPs as guided by the President and Ministry of Health, private cars shall not be allowed into the premises apart from those that identify with essential services provided within the premises,” he wrote.
Issue
Mr Burora also noted that all restaurants operating within the mall should enforce social distancing measures and that pharmacies will only be allowed to operate after proper identification.
The letter was also copied to the National Covid-19 Taskforce and the Kampala RCC, Mr Hussein Hood.
We were unable to speak to management of the two facilities. The guards we found at the facilities also declined to speak to us.
By press time yesterday, both Forest Mall and Shoprite hadn’t communicated the closure on their social media pages.
The President imposed a second lockdown on the country on June 18 following a surge in the Covid-19 cases.
However, he directed that shopping malls, pharmacies, private hospitals, and shops selling food stuff should continue operating while observing SOPs.
