Pupils stranded as water cut off road in Kyotera
Some of the pupils crossing a flooded section of Lukulavvu Road ,Mutukula Town Council IN Kyotera District on April 23, 2024. PHOTO/GERTRUDE MUTYABA
What you need to know:
- Mr Richard Musoke, a resident of Lukulavu Village partly blames the problem on the ongoing oil palm growing in the area, where trenches were dug to protect the crops.
Residents using Lukulavu Road in Mutukula Town Council, Kyotera District are stranded after water cuts off the road.
Also affected are learners of Umar Education Centre who use the same road to connect to their school.
According to Mr Muhammad Jjemba, the head teacher of Umar Education Centre, most of the learners are no longer attending lessons due to impassable roads in the area.
“This problem has persisted since the rainy season started two months ago and this has greatly affected our normal operations as a school. We petitioned the district officials before the situation deteriorated and we are yet to get a response,” he said in an interview on April 23.
According to the learners who were found wading through the flooded road, they are forced by their parents and guardians to go to school even when the water levels are high.
Some of the pupils crossing a flooded section of Lukulavu Road, Mutukula Town Council in Kyotera District on April 23, 2024. PHOTO/GERTRUDE MUTYABA
“We have nothing to do, but the only option is to remove our shoes, wade through the water and go to school,” Mariam Nakimuli , a Primary Five pupil at the school said.
As they struggle to cross the flooded road, Nakimuli said they sometimes fall in the water and their books get soaked. Other learners affected by the flooded road attend Kyarugaba Primary School, a short distance from Umar Education Centre .
Residents of Lukulavvu Village crossing a flooded section of the road on April 23, 2024. PHOTO/GERTRUDE MUTYABA
Mr Richard Musoke, a resident of Lukulavu Village partly blames the problem on the ongoing oil palm growing in the area, where trenches were dug to protect the crops.
“We were not experiencing floods along that road until the oil palm project was introduced ,they dug trenches to shield the crops from floods ,but the same water is submerging the road,” he said.
Mr Lawrence Ssekyondwa, the Kyotera District Education Officer blamed the school administration for failing to inform his office in time.
“If I knew this was the situation, I would task the district engineer to find a solution for our learners to get access to schools without going through those hurdles. This is very dangerous and we are going to quickly address that issue,” Mr Ssekyondwa said.
