Kabale district has lifted a ban on pork and the transportation of pigs despite new swine fever infections being reported in the district.
The ban was lifted on Thursday by the Kabale district chief administrative officer, Frank Ntaho, following increased pressure from farmers, pork Joint Operators and the consumers.
Ntaho, however, says the lifting of the ban, which has been in force for over seven months, comes with tough conditions which limit the free movement of unattended to pigs as well as the buying and selling of pigs from other districts.
This comes a few days after farmers and port joint operators started defying the ban on grounds that the district authorities were not sure of what they were doing after failing to provide measures to check the spread of swine fever.
Since September 2011, African swine fever has killed over 1250 pigs and new infections are said to have been detected in the sub counties of Hamurwa and Bufundi.
Medard Twakire, a farmer from Bufundi told URN reporter that the district instead delayed to lift the ban and failed to help the farmers contain the deadly disease.
He said that he expected the authorities to move in quickly and help farmers treat their animals but was disappointed after the district started telling them that the only solution to the fever was killing and burying the animals which were affected.
Phoebe Muhaise, is another piggery farmer from Hamurwa sub county who says that they decided to defy the ban on the consumption of pork after the district kept a deaf ear to their concerns.
She says that they had received pigs under the NAADS program and time to pay back had come, a factor that forced them to slaughter the pigs before the ban was lifted.
Mutesigensi Paul, a pork joint operator says the district has not lifted the ban but has instead succumbed to pressure from the locals. He also criticized the authorities for rushing to lift the ban when they are not yet sure that African swine fever has been wiped out.
Kabale district acting veterinary officer, Dr Bernard Kabagambe, says that the fever has no cure and that lifting the ban is a temporally measure to enable farmers sell off their pigs. He claims that the spread of the decease has now slowed down though they are not yet sure whether the fever has been wiped out as no drugs have been given out to the farmers.
