We are sorry- KCCA on baby death

KCCA ED empathizes with Ms Madinah Namutebi (second right), mother to the deceased and her family.

What you need to know:

KCCA had given the family a Shs2 million contribution for burial, a sack of rice, a sack of sugar and a 10-litre jerry can of cooking oil which the family rejected

Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive Director Jennifer Musisi has expressed remorse over Tuesday’s accident in which baby Ssemaganda was knocked dead a KCCA car but warned that some wily people were taking advantage of the situation to delay the burial.

Addressing the media yesterday, Ms Musisi said the baby’s mother, Ms Madinah Namutebi, was under police custody when the accident happened and that KCCA was “cooperating” because the accident happened at its premises.

Ms Namutebi was arrested by KCCA law enforcement officials on Monday over illegal vending of bananas. She was taken to Central Police Station where she spent the night before being arraigned at City Hall Court the following day.

On Tuesday, the baby’s grandmother, Ms Grace Nakintu, brought the breast-feeding toddler to court to be attended to by its mother but also hope to use it to win a lenient sentence for the mother. Ms Nakintu, however, says she was barred from handing over the baby to its mother, prompting her to find shelter outside court, where the baby crawled away only to be run over by a reversing KCCA car.

Ms Musisi yesterday, however, challenged the narrative that the baby’s mother was denied the chance to breastfeed the child, saying there was no evidence to that effect. She added that the incident was a lesson for the city authorities.

“What we have to accept is that when someone has died no amount of compensation nor care can heal the wounds. If a person has died there is no price that can be paid,” she said, adding: “We are saddened that the baby died on our premise; it indicates negligence but it was an accident. As KCCA we are growing, and learning every day in our work of delivering services to people and we have picked several lessons from this incident.”

Ms Musisi dismissed claims that they had treated the family coldly, revealing that she had used her personal money to help with burial arrangements.
KCCA had given the family a Shs2 million contribution for burial, a sack of rice, a sack of sugar and a 10-litre jerry can of cooking oil which the family rejected.

Upon hearing the news of the baby’s death, Ms Musisi said she was shaken, and was immediately told by staff to support the bereaved family. She also defended the driver of the car, saying he had a clean record.