Who will tame Kasese river floods?

Residents of Kyarumba in Kasese District cross River Nyamugasani using a makeshift bridge after the May 2014 floods swept away the main bridge. Photo by Enid Ninsiima 

By  ENID NINSIIMA & FELIX BASIIME
Posted  Sunday, July 12  2015 at  01:00 http://www.monitor.co.ug/SpecialReports/Who-will-tame-Kasese-river-floods/-/688342/2783754/-/syrstnz/-/index.html

KASESE-River Nyamwamba in Kasese District burst its banks again for the fourth time in three years over a week ago and left many families in tears and villages in ruins.

River Nyamwamba flooded into Kilembe Hospital, leaving devastating impact.

In the last three years, rivers Nyamwamba, Mubuku, Sebwe, Rwimi, Nyamugasani, Kitakena and Maliba have burst their banks and destroyed human life, property, infrastructure, crops and livestock. 
The rivers flooded on May 1, 2013, May 8, 2014, May 7, 2015 and July 1, 2015.

One of the key causes of the flooding is the silting of the rivers. However, no deliberate effort has been made by government to de-silt the rivers.

Silting narrows the river course and the surging water volumes burst the bank or change the course line.

Since 2013, the central government has repaired bridges that were washed away in the previous floods but has not done the de-silting, which is the root cause of the flooding.

Floods swept away Katiri Bridge and damaged Kilembe Road immediately after construction.

“I think the rehabilitation of Kasese is solely the responsibility of the central government but it has not been serious with the flood problem.

Ministry of Works and Transport should have brought on board other stakeholders like the Ministry of Water and Environment to assess the problem before wasting money on bridges whose lifespan hangs in balance,” the Kasese District Assistant Chief Administrative Officer, Mr Johnson Mutungwanda, said on July 1, when River Nyamwamba burst its banks and flooded into Kilembe Mines Hospital and the neighbourhood.

Mr Mutungwanda grew up in Kilembe valley and knows a bit of the history of River Nyamwamba since 1970s when Kilembe Mines ceased operations.
“It would not take a month before a bulldozer could de-silt the river and rechanneled the water.

But over 40 years to date, nothing similar has ever been done and water now floods into the riverside. The actors must come on ground and work out a lasting solution,” he said.

Kasese District environment officer, Mr Augustine Kooli, said after last year’s flooding, a comprehensive district recovery plan of at least Shs50 billion was presented to government for action.

This is the fourth consecutive time River Nyamwamba has burst its banks since May 2013. The July 1 floods left patients and health workers at Kilembe Mines Hospital in shock.
Water gushed into the hospital wards, the generator house and the incinerator before it split Kasese-Fort Portal road into two at Nyakasanga bridge, paralysing traffic on either side of the highway for hours.

The district secretary for social services, Mr Richard Bomera, said critically sick patients were evacuated to other health centres but the rest remained at the facility.

The Kasese District Police Commander, Mr Bob Kagarura, said no death had been reported.
The floods again washed away the gabions (holding walls) that had been erected at both Kayanjuki and Nyamwamba bridges last year.
Mr Michael Musinguzi, a resident, sensed danger and warned other locals downstream to evacuate immediately.

“I saw five coffins floating on the water and I knew the water had exhumed some bodies upstream in Nyamwamba forest where people bury their dead. Then I warned people before the water volumes increased,” said Musinguzi, a boda boda rider.

Kasese has been hit by floods every year since 2010, leading to loss of lives and property, but the magnitude of the damage has escalated since May 1, 2013.

In May, 2013 government said it needed Shs30 billion to de-silt River Nyamwamba. 
Environmental and hydrological experts say floods are likely to persist for years.

“The climate change phenomenon is always after a long period like 10 years. The challenges are expected to be around for more years,” said Mr Jeconious Musingwiire, the western region public awareness officer for the National Environment Management Authority.

“The challenges are trans-boundary since some spill over from the Democratic Republic of Congo because the Rwenzori ranges span across the border,” Mr Musingwiire added.

Solution 
Mr Musingwiire called for integrated water resources management through enhancement of natural vegetation cover by planting trees, reforesting bare grounds, restoring critical river line wetlands and promotion of soil and water conservation systems in the cultivable areas.

He called on people to observe the 30-metre buffer zone along rivers to allow stabilisation of the banks and natural vegetation infiltration to slow the water speed.

River Nyamwamba has flooded over years destroying buildings at Bulembia School and head offices of Kilembe Mines Ltd and other properties downstream.

In 2014 Cabinet directed ministry of Finance to provide Shs39 billion for resettlement of people in all areas considered highly prone to floods and landslides following the May 1, 2013 flooding in Kasese that left many homes in ruins.

The district administration has crafted a disaster recovery plan 2014/2015 which contains the recovery mechanism for the affected areas and measures to reduce vulnerability to floods and disasters of a similar nature.

Rwenzori region

Rivers Nyamwamba, Rwimi, Mobuku, Ssebore, Lhubiriha, Mpanga, Nyamugasani and several streams flow from Mount Rwenzori and most of them empty into Lake George.

People living on the slopes of the mountain practice poor farming methods, which cause soil erosion and landslides that silt the rivers, causing flooding.
Deforestation is another major problem facing the mountain ranges.

More than 90 per cent of the communities on the mountain slopes depend on firewood for fuel, leading to extensive destruction of the vegetation.

NRM has improved but also has weaknesses, says Col Butime

 

Colonel Tom Butime, former minister and member of the NRM Historical Leader’s Forum. PHOTO BY FELIX BASIIME  

By Felix Basiime & Edison Amanyire

Posted  Sunday, July 5  2015 at  01:00  http://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/PeoplePower/NRM-weaknesses-Col-Butime/-/689844/2774982/-/5pead9/-/index.html

In Summary

Response to a comrade. Col Tom Butime, a former minister and member of the NRM Historical Leader’s Forum, says the Movement is a liberation and revolutionary party that has faced challenges but improved over the last 30 years. Sunday Monitor’s Felix Basiime & Edison Amanyire caught up with him in Kyenjojo District.

What have you been up to colonel?
At a personal level, I have been running small business enterprises; growing tea, planting trees and looking after my cattle, which is a traditional family occupation. One week I stay in Kampala and another week at home, but keeping abreast with political events in the country.

Recently, former premier Amama Mbabazi came out to announce his intention to contest for presidency in 2016. What do you make of the two Bush War comrades battling for the party’s chairmanship?

Mbabazi is not a Bush War comrade of President Museveni, but he has been a political liberation struggle comrade.
He (Mbabazi) was not in the bush. I did not see him. I am a member of the NRM Historical Leader’s Forum, national vice chairman western region; we historicals deliberated on that matter and issued a statement which appeared in the New Vision of June 26, and for those who had an opportunity to read it, those were views of the historicals.
It will be indiscipline to venture into another position of the party to which I belong, it simply says that all NRM party members should follow procedures and to observe the party roadmap.

Mr Mbabazi says he needs to restore the NRM and return it to its roots – a genuine, accountable and democratic movement. Has the NRM digressed?
Those are his personal political views. Who is saying the party is where it was 10 to 20 years ago, that the party has not improved and who is saying there is no weakness?
My view is that the party has improved and also has some weaknesses. Some weakness was detected in the NRM Secretariat and there was an overhaul. I have no doubt that the new leadership at the secretariat will perform.

He also says people in the NRM are fortune seekers. Is that a fair description?
Originally, NRM is a liberation and revolutionary party, if you join it to be famous and to be rich, then you are a fortune seeker. Every NRM member should examine his actions and take a decision and find an answer, even Mbabazi himself. For me, I joined NRA then to bring good governance and to improve the quality of life to Ugandans. Others are peace, democracy and unity and others.

Some people have come out to criticise the NRM Parliamentary Caucus’ move for Mr Museveni’s sole candidature as stifling democracy within the party. What is your take?
I was not in the caucus and therefore I cannot judge the move and the intention at the time.

In December, President Museveni appointed a relatively young team to the top leadership of the ‘new’ ruling party, weeding out the old generation. What do you think about its timing?
The President picked a new team at the NRM Secretariat, but not a top leadership of the ruling party because he did not remove himself, did not remove vice chairman and chairpersons of the party leagues and other leaders in the country. So the issue was in the secretariat.

The Opposition has once again entered an alliance to counter the NRM force in the 2016 general election. Can this alliance produce results?
I cannot answer this question because my knowledge of the inner working of the alliance is very limited, if not non-existent and therefore I do not know what results the alliance will produce.
If there are excellent results, then my party would have lost. So I think that the results will be minimal, that tells us to work hard as a party and win.

In 2007, you turned down President Museveni’s appointment as State minister for Karamoja. What really happened, and do you regret the move?
I wanted to take a leave from being a minister.

What do you think of the Opposition’s call for electoral reforms?
Reforms are good both for government and the Opposition, the country is improving and changing every day and you must cope.

Finally, do you think the NRM has lived up to the goals you set out to achieve when you went to the bush?
I think it has, but it is 30 years now, the challenges of then and now are quite different.
The most important thing is that every leader I have talked to or I have had an opportunity to be in meeting with, including President Museveni last week, is saying there is a qualitative change and improvement.

About Tom Butime
Col Tom Butime (born 1947) was minister of State for communications, having held that post since January 13, 2005.
After the general election in February 2006, he was named minister of State for Karamoja Affairs, a posting from which he resigned. He was the Member of Parliament for Mwenge North up to 2011.
Previously, Butime was the minister of Internal Affairs from July 6, 1996, to July 2001, and he also served as minister of State for Refugees and Disaster Preparedness during that time.
From 2001 until a Cabinet reshuffle in January 2005, Butime served as minister of State for International Cooperation and served as acting Foreign Minister from March 2004 to January 2005.
He is a trained cinematographer. His hobby is soccer, with Manchester United as his favourite Premier league side. He also enjoys farming.