Teacher, student drown in Lwengo dam
What you need to know:
According to eyewitnesses, the deceased were asked to dig the dam to remove the grass surrounding the place. This was to ensure the safety of other pupils and students who use the dam
Grief has engulfed residents of Kyetume village in Lwengo rural sub-county in Lwengo District after a teacher and a student drowned in the dam.
The deceased were identified as Samuel Mugerwa, 18 who was in S3 at Hope Integrated Secondary School, and a primary teacher identified as Ivan Mukisa, 35 a teacher at Hope Junior School.
According to eyewitnesses, the deceased were asked to dig the dam to remove the grass surrounding the place. This was to ensure the safety of other pupils and students who use the dam.
Godfrey Kayondo, the LCI chairperson of Kyetume village said that most of the dams around the village are in a poor state and there is a need for district officials to come to their rescue.
"We have lost a lot of people in this dam but nothing has been done by the authorities. There is a need to bring tractors to clean up the dam so that everyone can see where they draw water," said Mr Kayondo.
Mr Tusuubira Jjara, a relative to the late Ivan Mukisa demanded that the school be held accountable for their son's death.
"We sent our son to teach and not to dig. I ask that the school administration be arrested over our son's death," Mr Tusuubira said.
Abel Ssegirinya a relative to the late Mugerwa also asked police to thoroughly investigate the death of their son.
"How could our son be sent to dig while other students remained in class studying? We seek justice for our son," Mr Ssegirinya said.
Julius Musaazi, the officer in charge of the Lwengo police station, asked residents to remain calm as the police conduct their investigations.
He however said that the police are still hunting for the two school heads who are on the run following the incident. The deceased persons' bodies have been taken to Masaka regional referral hospital for postmortem.
