This archive report was first published on 27 August 2019.
John Zabazungu, a Ugandan businessman, has passed away after being taken to a bank in a wheelchair to withdraw cash for his hospital bill.
According to his daughter, Molly Nakato, Zabazungu succumbed to an undisclosed illness at Mulago Specialized Women and Neonatal Hospital on Sunday afternoon.
The incident sparked online outrage after a photo of Zabazungu in a wheelchair and connected to nasal cannulas and oxygen mask at an Equity Bank branch in Kampala, Uganda went viral on social media a week ago.
Equity Bank has denied allegations that the bank's actions contributed to Zabazungu's worsening health, stating that the family decided to take him to the bank as the institution worked on how to withdraw cash without his physical presence.
However, the patient's family accused Equity Bank of denying them access to his bank accounts, claiming that the deceased's health status worsened as a result of the bank's action.
“It led him to develop pneumonia and he was admitted in intensive care unit and we have never seen him again, yet his health had improved greatly,” Zabazungu's son Benjamin said.
