Prime
Among asks govt to create body to manage disasters
Traffic was yesterday paralysed after a section of the Kabale-Kisoro-Rwanda/ DR Congo road collapsed at Hamurwa Village, Hamurwa Town Council in Rubanda District. The Kabale Uganda National Roads Authority station manager, Ms Alison Abenabo, said traffic was diverted to Katuna-Rubaya Muko road to pave way for rehabilitation of the road. She said the road was destroyed by heavy rainfall that has also damaged several roads in Kigezi Sub-region over the past week. Close to 20 people have died and hundreds others displaced following week-long incessant downpour. PHOTO /ROBERT MUHEREZA
What you need to know:
The Commission has never been established since 1995.
The Speaker of Parliament, Ms Anita Among, has asked the government to create a Commission to manage responses to disasters and emergencies in the country.
The call comes at a time floods and mudslides have hit parts of Rwenzori and Kigezi and claimed 16 lives on Tuesday.
“We need a disaster commission. It is a constitutional requirement but nobody has ever bothered to do this,” she said yesterday.
Ms Among said the government has failed to establish a disaster preparedness and management committee as provided for under Article 249 of the 1995 Constitution.
The Article says the commission, will, among others, deal with both natural and man-made disasters.
“My attention has been drawn to reports of heavy rains, mudslides, and floods that have ravaged parts of Kigezi and Rwenzori, claiming over 16 lives and leaving hundreds homeless. These are common occurrences during rainy seasons, to which adequate disaster early warnings should have been activated,” she said yesterday.
The Speaker added: “I hereby direct the Minister of Relief and Disaster Preparedness and Refugees to update the House on actions so far taken to aid the affected communities and the government’s long term plans to improve disaster management mechanisms.”
Ms Among also urged the government to activate its early warning systems for effective evacuation and relocation of people in disaster-prone areas.
She, however, said this would have been made easier if the government had created the disaster Commission.
Mr David Bahati, the Ndorwa West Member of Parliament, said the death toll has since risen to 18 people, with several houses and property destroyed.
He said roads have also been cut off by landslides, making movement and emergency response difficult.
Mr Bahati, however, said the Office of the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Works and Transport are working very hard to save the situation.
“Upon receiving this information, we have involved the office of the Prime Minister. I have also informed the Minister of Works and we are doing all that we can to make sure that situation at least temporarily improves as we plan for a solution for this,” he told the House yesterday.
The law
Article 249 of the 1995 Constitution provides for the Disaster Preparedness and Management Commission to deal with both natural and man-made disasters.
The same Article states that Parliament shall prescribe the composition, functions and procedure for implementation of the functions of the commission.
