Usuk County Member of Parliament Michael Oromait is dead.
Oromait died just after 3am this morning at Katakwi Health Centre Four in Katakwi district, where he was rushed after he fell ill while in his constituency.
Serere County MP Alice Alaso told Uganda Radio Network that she and other legislators were with Oromait on Thursday at Parliament and he looked healthy as he mixed with his colleagues. Alaso says the MP never mentioned about being sick and did not appear to be sick.
The 48 year old legislator is said to have driven himself from Jinja, where he stays, to Katakwi on Friday afternoon and proceeded straight to his village in Usuk.
Alaso, who was quoting Oromait’s relatives, said that the deceased MP by-passed a junction that led to his village and when he tried to reverse the car he failed. A cousin with whom the MP was traveling is aid to have helped drive the car and rushed Oromait to Katakwi Health Centre Four where he died later in the night. Alaso did not give the name of the relative.
Lt. Amodoi Cyrus Imalingat, the Toroma County MP said Oromait had just returned for a tour of his constituency when he complained of headache shortly before his admission to the health facility.
Amodoi explained that Oromait’s death has left many people puzzled because it was sudden. He said the body was en route to Mulago hospital for a postmortem to establish the cause of death.
Katakwi district Chairperson John Robert Ekongot, however, says Oromait fell sick while on the way from Kampala and that it is his cousin only identified as Otoka who drove the MP up to Soroti. From Soroti, the deceased drove himself to Katakwi.
According to Alaso, MPs from Teso are to meet at Parliament today to plan for Oromait’s burial. She says a special parliamentary sitting in honour of the departed MP is scheduled for Monday July 23rd.
Oromait began his career as a police officer from 1987 to 1989 before joining Uganda Posts and Telecommunications as a Sales Officer and later Supervisor from 1989 to 2003. He continued working with the telecoms firm even after it was privatized and renamed Uganda Telecoms, going on to serve as a Regional Cashier from 2003 to 2005 and Customer Service Officer from 2005 to 2008.
A holder of a degree in Business Administration from Namasagali University and a host of other diploma certificates, Oromait contested as an Independent in the 2011 Parliamentary elections and won the Usuk seat. He succeeded Charles Ojok Oleny.
