At least 57 casual laborer’s have been arrested and detained in Pakwach for travelling beyond curfew time.
The group includes men who were recruited from Koboko, Yumbe, Terego and Arua districts to work in Kinyara Sugarcane plantation in Masindi district.
They were intercepted at 2 a.m. last night at Pakwach check-point while travelling in a Nile Coach Bus which was hired to take off for Kampala from Arua after midnight.
The Ugandan government has maintained a nighttime
curfew running between 9 p.m. and 5: 30 a.m, as one of the measures to control
movement and contain COVID-19.
Pakwach Resident District Commissioner Swaib Toko questioned why the group
decided to travel at such an awkward time.
According to Toko, the two men in charge of the recruitment and transportation of the casual workers who remained in Arua were summoned and travelled to Pakwach for questioning. Mr. Swaib speaking;….
Every year, plantation companies in Kakira and Kinyara recruit casual labourers from West Nile and transport them to the plantations to work for at least one year before they are allowed to return home after achieving their targets. End.
