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Police yesterday dispersed Makerere University medical degree holders protesting the Ministry of Health’s failure to deploy them for internship.

The protesters said they are disappointed because only 1,263 out of 2,541-degree holders waiting for internships have been deployed, leaving out 1,278 of them. However, the Health ministry said they’re financially constrained and that the health facilities receiving the interns can handle limited numbers.

The 12-month internship, which is expected to start next month, should be undertaken as a requirement for the new medical degree holders to get their permanent practising licence from their respective professional councils.

Mr Joseph Odongo, one of the affected persons coordinating the degree holders, questioned the transparency in the deployment. Mr Odongo, who completed a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at Makerere University this year, emphasised that the government should find ways to deploy them next month.

“Last month, the Ministry of Health told all the pre-medical interns across the country to go and register with their respective [professional] councils as we await deployment. And later, they invited us for an induction, but they didn’t release the official list of deployment for reasons we don’t know but they kept on telling us not to worry,” he narrated to our reporter yesterday.

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