Masindi DHO brutally murdered

By Innocent Atuganyira

Masindi: The Acting District Health Officer (DHO) for Masindi, Dr. Jino Abiriga, has been discovered dead near his home in Kijura North Cell Central Division in Masindi Municipality.

Sources say that the deceased was notified in the wee hours of Sunday morning at around 2 a.m. that there was an emergency at Masindi district general hospital.

However, his lifeless body was discovered this morning near his gate.

Simon Peter Kahwa, the LC1 Chairperson of Kijura North, told ugreports.co.ug that one of the residents contacted him and informed him that there was someone killed in his area.

‘’I was at the church when a resident informed me that they had killed someone in my area. When I rushed to the scene, I discovered that it was Dr. Abiriga. His neck was stabbed and nearly cut off; they also stabbed him in the back,’’ he explained.

Kahwa also told our reporter that the deceased didn’t have any problems with anyone in the area; was he either involved in a land-related issue, thus wondering the main cause of his killing?

Moses Kiirya, the Masindi district speaker, disclosed that they were with the deceased last evening at the wedding of their colleague. Kirya said he got a phone call that Abiriga had been discovered dead at his home.

‘’The police have disclosed that he was stabbed in the back and the neck, nearly cutting it off. He was a committed and hardworking man, and it will be hard to replace him,’’ he added.

The politician asked the security agencies to investigate the matter and bring the culprits to book.

Robert Akugizibwe, the councillor representing Western Ward in the municipality, said that the municipality and the district have lost someone who was lovely, committed, and hardworking, stressing that Abiriga is irreplaceable.

Isaac Bongomin, the LC3 Chairperson for Central Dvision asked the security to investigate the issue and arrest the suspects. He noted that Abiriga was a man who was down to earth, and can’t easily be replaced.

Joab Businge, the Member of Parliament representing Masindi Municipality, condemned the act and stressed that such a hardworking and committed medical officer wouldn’t have been killed in such a manner.

‘’It’s of great shame; what are we going to tell our brothers from West Nile? Is this the way we have decided to repay them? It’s of great shame; Abiriga wouldn’t have died in such a manner,’’ he lamented.

Businge eulogized Abiriga as someone who was hardworking and committed to serving the public in all capacities.

The Member of Parliament attributed the incident to the unending conflicts in the district, noting that he was peacefully working at the hospital.

Emmy Ngabirano, the Resident District Commissioner for Masindi, said they have commenced investigations into the murder.

”It’s unfortunate; Abiriga is no more; investigations are ongoing. It should be condemned to the strongest term possible; it’s really a sign of cowardice to kill a doctor who has been helping people, acting as DHO, who has been part of Masindi for years but will do everything to see that the culprits are arrested.’’

What do residents say?

One of Abiriga’s relatives disclosed that his uncle didn’t have any wrangles with anyone, thus questioning the intentions of killing him in such a manner.

‘’I have been depending on him; I don’t know how I’m going to survive; he has been everything to me; he didn’t have any wrangles with anyone, but why kill him?” she decried.

Ms. Lydia Nyakato, a resident, decried that they have lost someone who is irreplaceable, adding that he was a committed man.

‘’He operated on me twice when I failed to deliver; he saved my life, and it’s unfortunate for him to die in such a way; at least they could have warned him,’’ she decried.

Johnbosco Alinaitwe asked the government to provide security to top district officials like the district health officers, stressing that it’s sad to lose such people in such a manner.

By the time we filed this story, the police had not yet released an official statement regarding the incident. The lifeless body of Dr. Jino Abiriga was taken to the Masindi district general hospital pending postmortem.

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