Mbarara grapples with street children

What you need to know:

  • Desperate. It is estimated that there are 100 street children in Mbarara Town who move around homes and business premises to beg.

Mbarara.

The increasing number of homeless children on the streets of Mbarara Town is worrying to both residents and authorities.
The residents have therefore implored government and charity organisations to take, rehabilitate and provide for them to bring sanity back to the town.
Street children are estimated to be more than 100. They move around homes and business premises begging.
Majority of them are said to be drug addicts and have reportedly turned into thieves and rapists. They are a common sight in the central business area, especially near the main roundabout, around High Street and Markhansingh Street.
Mr Alex Kwijuka, a business man on the High Street, says the street children are very aggressive and should be kept away to give people peace.
Mr Hassan Mukasa, another businessman near the main roundabout observes: “There used to be a few of them around here but they are now more than 20. They sniff fuel, gum and smoke marijuana in broad daylight but no one is bothered as if it is all normal.”
Vendors and hawkers who operate at night say street children give them hard time.
Among the vendors is Ms Harriet Asasira, who sells food on Mbarara-Masaka road at night, says: “They demand money and food from women because they know we are weak. If you do not cooperate. you are in trouble. Some of us have resorted to befriending them for safety reasons.”
They are a big network of criminals working hand-in-hand with some prostitutes, according to Mr Aggrey Kizito, a retail trader on Markhansing Street.
“The corridors and bars around here are full of prostitutes at night. They work with street children to rob people who they spot carrying good money,” Mr Kizito says.
He adds that some spend their loot on prostitutes, which exposes them to HIV infection.

Police confirms
The Rwizi region police spokesperson, Mr Samson Kasasira, says they do not have crime statistics because most of the cases involving them remain unreported.
“Street children are a menace; they are raping women and stealing but sometimes the victims do not report these cases to police,” Mr Kasasira says.
He adds that absence of remand homes does not help the matter.
The responsibility of managing street children lies primarily with Mbarara Municipal Council.
The Mbarara mayor, Mr Robert Mugabe Kakyebezi, says without a remand home, managing street children can be a big challenge.
“Recently, we arrested 44 of them, but we could not detain them because we don’t have a remand home. After arrest, some people come claiming for them. For others, we labour to look for their homes and take them but they come back. Without a remand home here, street children will remain a big problem,” Mr Kakyebezi says.
He says they have on several occasions reminded the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development of the urgency for a remand home in vain.
The nearest remand home is in Fort portal, another one is being constructed in Kabale.
“Building remand homes has been a duty of the Central government through the ministry of gender. As Mbarara Municipality, our budget is overstretched. This is an expensive investment and government should take it up. We have to save the future generation,” Mr Mugabe says.
He also blames parents and guardians saying they neglect their children.
Mr Kakyebezi adds: “If a child lost his parents, he cannot fail to have a relative or caretaker. These are majorly to blame for the increase of street children.”
Hajj Abbas Kazibwe, the chairperson of Kakoba Division, says government should offer facilities to rehabilitate these children because wrong elements could use them against citizens.
“These children are not a problem to Mbarara alone. They can be recruited into criminal gangs to carryout terrorist activities in the country. Government should resettle and rehabilitate these children,” Mr Kazibwe says.
Apostle Willy Tumwine, a senior pastor at Holy Spirit Fire Church, who looks after some street children, acknowledges that the number in town keeps increasing.
“I am taking care of more than 20 children. Some are in schools while others are under rehabilitation but you see, the number still growing,” he notes.
He attributes this to poverty in homes, domestic violence, family breakdown and drug abuse.