Someone must be held responsible for Kiteezi disaster – Wakiso RDC

Mr Frank Kyazze, the Deputy Resident District Commissioner (RDC) in charge of Kasangati Town Council in Wakiso District, has said some government officials must be held responsible for the Kiteezi landfill tragedy that has so far claimed more than 35 lives.

Without mentioning individuals, Mr Kyazze said the Kiteezi landfill tragedy was not an accident but a man-made disaster, which could have been avoided.

“I strongly believe this wasn't an accident. If it was, then it was a man-made accident; so someone must be held responsible for whatever happened because this is the landfill that KCC [now KCCA] has used for the past 20 years,” he said.

He stressed the importance of addressing the root cause of the problem.

“And one could really see that this has been a disaster in waiting for a very long time. And what hurts is that even a week after it has happened, there is a possibility of even happening again, because heaps of garbage are still at that height, they told so, really, something must be wrong, somehow, somewhere. And if you are to leave things to go the way they are going, No, I don't think we shall be heading in the right direction,” he added.

The Deputy RDC was speaking at Kiteezi landfill in Kasangati Town Council, Wakiso District, on Friday as he witnessed the handover of food items such as posho and rice to 700 people who have been displaced by the landfill collapse.

The food items were handed over by Kiteezi Samaritan, a non-governmental organisation that has been helping workers at the landfill by equipping them with entrepreneurship skills and supporting the education of their children.

Mr Kyazze dismissed claims that the government has not done enough to help the victims of the tragedy.

“Nobody had prepared for it. I think the government is doing whatever it can. I have never seen the President calling an RDC six times a day. He has called me six times to find out exactly what is happening in details, to give him information, to give him my recommendations and the suggestions He has sent teams here. He has sent police here, and other organisations. He has called them. So really, for one to say that the government is not doing enough, is not fair,” he added.

Mr Kyazze expressed gratitude towards Kiteezi Samaritan for their response and support towards the victims of the landfill collapse.

The Executive Director of Kiteezi Samaritan, Mr David Kafambe, stressed the immediate needs of people affected by the landfill collapse.

“As International Samaritan in other countries and in Uganda, we are supporting several workers who are working at the dump sites, but also supporting people in this community. We decided to do something, and our interventions are in three different levels,” he said.

“The first level is immediate needs. And that's why we are here, distributing food relief to all the people who have been working at the dumpsite. We have over 1,000 people working at the dump site, but our focus today is around 700 people that we think are the most critical,” he said.

Mr Kafambe said the next intervention is focused on skilling the people and ensuring that they have alternative livelihood.

“What else can they do to make sure they can sustain themselves? And that's something we've now started at our centre to offer some kind of skills and support to start their own businesses. But in the long run, we also want to see this community heal, because most of the people have lost their loved ones. So how are they able to heal and then they are able to move forward and they develop? That's what we are doing as International Samaritan,” he said.

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