By Charles Katabalwa/Umoja Standard.
Kampala, Uganda: In order people mostly above 50 years are prone to deadliest disease such as prostate cancer, cervical cancer among other diseases.
The minister for Kampala Hajjat Minsa Kabanda made the remarks at city hall grounds when older persons in kampala commemorating their international day
Kabanda says older persons are delicate so their life need to be handled with care, by doing this they must always go for medical check-ups to know their life status.
However on the same event Kabanda has condemned the ongoing immoral degeneration among the youths, noting that youths no longer respect older persons in every category as they respond to them anyhow, they utter vulgar words and the language used is disrespecting.
Representing the Lord Mayor for Kampala Capital City Authority, Deputy Doreen Nyanjura called upon government to increase on money given to older persons through SAGE considering the economic times that the country is going through highlighting that 25000 being given to them every month is too little.
She also wants the age for those who receive this money lowered from 80 years to 75years.
Internationally older persons days is celebrated on 1st October but those in Kampala chose to commemorate their day today under the theme resilience of older persons in a changing world.
Meanwhile the chairman of older persons in Kampala Francis Antony Lubowa has asked government to extend services to nearest places of older persons because they always face difficulties to access them mainly to those who has no helpers.
KCCA Executive Director Dorothy Kisaka stated that they have many programs aimed at uplifting their wellbeing for example they are implementing SAGE, which is giving an average of 1,059 older persons who are 80+ years a monthly stipend of shs25,000.
She added that they are looking at implementing Special Enterprise Grant for Older Persons (SEGO) which is targeting older persons from 70-79 years.
She mentioned that they have an office space at Plot 1 Ssezibwa road that is under refurbishing, to be handed over when finished.
*Note: International Day for Older Persons is always celebrated on 1st, October each year under the Theme “Resilience of older persons to cope in a changing world” but for Kampala it was celebrated today.