By Precious Ankunda and Desire Ayebaziibwe,
NATIONAL
The Inter Religious Council of Uganda (IRCU) has asked religious leaders not to hold prayers for anybody with signs and symptoms of Ebola disease following a directive by president Museveni suspending the same.
CoU Archbishop Samuel Steven Kazimba Mugalu also the chairperson of the council appeals to leaders in different religious dominions to comply with guidelines by the ministry of health in execution of their pastoral works.
“As religious leaders we have slot of influence and responsibility to fight the spread of ebola disease,” Kazimba said
The second deputy Mufti of Uganda, Sheikh Muhammad Ali Wasswa also warned muslims on the ritual of rinsing the dead bodies saying that they may get infected with the virus.
In the Islamic faith, the body of a deceased person is rinsed three times with lukewarm water, simple soap mixed with sidr as a form of ablution to cleanse it from impurities and showing respect to the dead.
Sheikh Ali Wasswa warms that during this ebola epidemic, the ritual that a few people partake in is harmful to their health calling on muslims to follow health workers guidelines.
However, Pastor Dr. Joseph Sserwadda, the leader of the Born Again Faith Federation Uganda and lead pastor at Victory Church in Ndeeba Kampala suburb accuses the government of using religious leaders as an execuse to the spread of ebola virus.
“Government has failed to trace its patients and they should not accuse religious leaders. People come to places of worship to seek for God,” Dr. Sserwadda said
In a presidential address on the status of ebola disease last night, Museveni also banned traditional healing of sick persons by traditionalists and herbalists in their clinics. This was after one of the victims escaped from a quarantine in Mubende to seek for a witch doctor in Luweero and later died in a Kampala hospital.
In response to the presidential directive, Maama Fiina known by her name as Sophia Namutebi Sylvia, the president of traditional healers in Uganda welcomed the directive stressing that its good the president recognizes their faith and that they will comply to the guidelines put in place by the health ministry to fight the spread of ebola.
