Bududa residents cry out over long walk to schools

Residents living in the landslide-prone villages in the sub-counties of Bukalasi, Bundesi and Bulucheke in Bududa District have decried the long distances their children walk to access education.
The residents on Thursday told Daily Monitor that since government closed primary schools in their vicinities in 2010, their children have been going through a lot of difficulties to access education since the nearest schools are 15 kilometres away and in hilly places.
“When the government ordered for the closure of our primary schools in our villages, we thought they had an alternative but now, it is 10 years and nothing has been done to that effect,” Ms Beatrice Nabifo, a resident of Nametsi Village in Nametsi Parish, said.
The government after the 2010 landslides closed Nametsi Health Centre IV and three government-aided primary schools; Nametsi, Tunwutsi and Kitsatsa, declaring that the institutions were in landslide prone area.
The disaster left more than 365 people dead and thousands displaced.
In 2012, government also closed Bumarakha Primary School in Bumarakha Parish in Bulucheke Sub-county after a landslide, which left 18 people dead.
Mr Ronard Musuto, a resident of Bumarakha Parish, said their children rarely complete primary education.
Mr Musuto said if the government cannot reopen schools, it should consider building new ones in nearby safe villages.
Currently pupils go to Shikhusi, Shikholo and Bukalasi primary schools.
Stephen Mutuba, 13, a former pupil of Bumarakha Primary School, said he decided to drop out of school because he could nolonger afford moving such a distance on an empty stomach.
Mr Patrick Muinda, the assistant commissioner Communication and Information management at the Education ministry, on Saturday said government’s priority is to ensure the safety of the children and lives of the people in landslide prone areas.
The State Minister for Disaster Preparedness, Mr Musa Ecweru, could not be reached by press time but he had earlier in an interview with this newspaper insisted that government has no plans of rescinding its decision on closure of said schools.
The district chairperson, Mr Wilson Watila, said they have been pushing for the reopening of schools or finding an alternative in vain.
“As a district, we have tried to write letters to the Office of the Prime Minister .... but we have never got any response,” he said.
Mr Watila added that the district also faces a challenge of absenteeism of teachers since it is a hard-to-reach area.
“If the district had been listed as beneficiary of hard-to-reach allowance, it would reduce on the rate of absenteeism and resignation of civil servants so that we can improve academic performance,” he said.
Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga also expressed shock recently during the thanksgiving ceremony of Mr Godfrey Watenga, the MP for Lutseshe County, over the government’s failure to enrol Bududa as one of the districts entitled to hard-to-reach allowance.
Mr Vincent Matanda, the senior education officer of Bududa, said: “We face numerous challenges which have affected our academic performance but I would advise affected residents to write to the CAO so that their complaints can be pushed for intervention.”
Mr Watenga said government should treat this matter with urgency because it is affecting the literacy levels in the affected communities.

In 2015, the residents after waiting for the government intervention in vain turned the earth- moving equipment that was used in the rescue operations and later abandoned at the site, into a makeshift primary school.
Similarly, Manjiya County MP, Mr John Baptist Nambeshe scoffed at government saying those are signs of a failed state.
“ That is a good sign of failed government. It closed the schools because they were in landslide prone areas but forgot to relocate the people who are also living in same dangerous areas. This is very unfortunate,” he scoffed at government.
Mr Nambeshe said Bududa is one of the districts with the highest number of school drops in the country.
“And most of our children are working as maids and shamble boys in the Kenya because of the difficulties they face at home. They have been condemned to ignorance and poverty,” he said.
On contacting Mr Patrick Muinda, the assistant commissioner, Communication and Information management at the education ministry, said government’s priority is to ensure the safety of the children and lives of the people in landslide prone areas.

“All people in these areas are being relocated and services are being provided where they are being resettled,” he said.
The government has already relocated the first lot of landslide victims to Bunambutye resettlement site in Bulambuli District, where it constructed 101 permanent houses.

Performance

Bududa is among the districts that performed poorly in the Primary Living Examinations (PLE) and Uganda Certificate of Education exams (UCE) in the country last year, with only 22 students in Division One at UCE and 12 pupils at PLE.
Manjiya County MP John Baptist Nambeshe said Bududa is one of the districts with the highest number of school dropouts in the country.