UGANDA: Cardinal Wamala and Uganda Martyrs University VC to participate in a marathon to raise funds for Hospital
His Eminence Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala and the Vice Chancellor (VC) of Uganda Martyrs University, Rev. John Chrysostom Maviiri, PhD, are among participants in the Nkozi Hospital Marathon, which has been organized to raise funds for the construction of accident emergency unit.
“Cardinal Wamala is the chief runner in this Marathon set to take place on Saturday 18 June,” says Prof. Maviiri who is the chairman of Friends of Nkozi Hospital.
Nkozi Hospital, which is owned by the Archdiocese of Kampala, will be celebrating 75 years of existence next year.
In an interview with AMECEA Online News, Prof. Maviiri who is the former Vice Chancellor for the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA), said that as a monument to mark the 75 year platinum Jubilee, the hospital management decided to set up an accident emergency ward. “The management decided that this will be the noble monument to mark the 75years of the hospital existence.”
Chairman Friends of
Nkozi Hospital
Prof. Maviiri further explained that the marathon has been organized by the hospital management together with friends of Nkozi Hospital because there is a high need of an emergency ward with good facilities to handle emergency cases arising from numerous road accidents along the busy Kampala-Masaka Highway.
“Nkozi hospital is the only health facility along the busy Kampala-Masaka highway, a road which passes through Mbarara and Kabale, going to Kigali Rwanda and Congo DRC,” Prof. Maviiri said adding that the highway is characterized with a lot of accidents, ranging from 10-20 cases every week yet there is no any other health facilities between Masaka and Kampala. “All the victims are usually taken to Nkozi Hospital as their first treatment point but the hospital does not have enough space and resources to handle all the cases efficiently therefore resulting to loss of lives.”
The Marathon is set to be flagged off by the governor of the central Bank of Uganda Prof. Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile at 7:00am, East Africa time.
“I am a runner in this marathon and I have already warmed up for the 6kilometers we are planning to cover tomorrow”, says
Governor Central Bank Uganda
Prof. Maviiri. The total cost of building and equipping an emergency ward is estimated at US Dollars 194, 324 (650million Ugandan shillings). The marathon is the first event towards raising money for the project and the management hopes to raise at least US Dollars 29,896 (100million shillings) from the marathon. The cardinal being a high profile personality has attracted a lot of attention, many other high profile personalities like politicians and local artists will be joining the marathon.
By, Sr. Immaculate Tusingwire, MMS, AMECEA Online News
