KAMPALA, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Ugandans throng places of worship on Sunday after government allowed the reopening of places of worship as it eases the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.
Patrick Onyango, Kampala Metropolitan police spokesperson, told Xinhua that the police deployed officers to ensure the congregants observed the ministry of health Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Onyango said the police officers helped the church security to control numbers, ensure the congregants are wearing face masks, have their body temperatures checked, and wash hands with soap, hand sanitizing and observing social distancing.
"The majority of the mosques and churches have followed the SOPs set by the government. The churches are facing the challenges of (bigger) numbers," said Onyango.
"They have many followers and the church cannot accommodate all of them even if they pray in shifts. We have deployed our officers in most of the churches to help control the number and indeed if we didn't deploy church leaders wouldn't be able to handle them," he said.
President Yoweri Museveni last Sunday announced the reopening of places of worship with a maximum of 70 attendees and strong observance of the ministry of health guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19, amid a recent spike of cases.
Places of worship were closed in March after the country started registering COVID-19 cases. Enditem
