Funeral discos alias disco Matanga in Busia have been suspended by the Deputy Busia Resident District Commissioner, Mathew Tusubira over a surge in teenage pregnancies.
The night dances are always organized by bereaved families in Busia to fundraise for funerals.
Residents in the district have formed different village burial groups that specifically mobilize members to gather whenever one of the families loses a loved one to dance and contribute money for the funeral.
Disco Matangas started among the luos in Kenya, and have now become common in Busia, Uganda.
According to Tusubira, disco Matangas contribute 80% to teenage pregnancy and early marriages in the district.
He explains that the dances also contravene the night time curfew and ban on social gatherings as part of the control measures against the spread of coronavirus.
He noted that they will not hesitate to arrest anyone found violating the directive.
The decision has however not gone down well with residents who have called it unfair, because the discos are used to help them raise financial support for bereaved families.
They say that the money from the Disco Matangas replaced the sale of land to raise money for burial expenses.
Residents attribute the increase in teenage pregnancy in the district to negligence by parents, not the discos.
