Residents of Pader Town Council who have no pit latrines in their homes will face substantial fines when a by-law on health and sanitation comes into effect next month.
The Pader Town Council authorities says the draft ordinance intended to enforce good sanitation in homes is one say of fighting Hepatitis E disease, which has ravaged districts in Northern Uganda. Seven people in Pader have been killed in the Hepatitis E epidemic in recent months.
Moses Ogwang, the Health Assistant of Pader Town Council says homeowners without pit latrines will be required to pay fines of between 1,000 and 5,000 shillings. He says the plan is to increase toilet coverage from the current paltry 49 percent.
Ogwang says his office is coordinating with counterparts in Kitgum district where a similar by-law has improved hygiene in homes.
Patrick Okot Lumumba, LC3 chairperson of Pader Town Council, says the town residents have a poor attitude towards hygiene, which could only be helped by the by-law.
Richard Ogang, a landlord in the town says the low latrine coverage means most people are unable to properly dispose off waste. He says the waste is left to scatter all over the town council, putting others at risk of contracting hygiene-related viral diseases.
