FLOODS: Mpererwe residents abandon homes

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | More than 100 families in Mpererwe Kikuubo zone in Kawempe Division have abandoned their homes due to heavy rains that flood their houses. They have resorted to renting in other villages they have shifted to.

In the zone, you are welcomed by empty houses that look abandoned by the owners, while others are flooded with water with no people in them. Although the area has more than 100 families, the area has been abandoned.

A large amount of water from the Nakamiro channel fings its way into the houses. The 16 meter wide and 11km long Nakamiro channel is one of Kampala’s secondary channels with about eight tertiary channels that feed it directly from the communities of Kazo, Bwaise, Kawempe, Kalerwe and Kyebando among others.

One of the residents, Simon Mukasa, says that they always have sleepless nights whenever it rains because their houses get flooded with water and their properties get destroyed. This has forced many to shift to other areas.

Mukasa says that they need the concerned authorities to help them so that they can get back into their houses with their families.

Joweria Nassolo, a landlord in the area says that three tenants of his five houses were abandoned by the tenants when the heavy rains started. She says that whenever it rains they cannot sleep.

According to Nassolo, they have appealed to KCCA to improve the drainage system in the area.

“The tenants told me about the problem of the floods some time back and I promised them that KCCA is yet to do proper drainage of the channels,” Nassolo states.

Uthman Kaye another landlord blames Kawempe Division officials for failing to come to their rescue despite many complaints raised to the division offices.

He also says that some of the people who have residential houses have abandoned them and sought to rent in different places due to floods.

Maurine Nanyonga a resident says that dirty water enters their make-shift houses, which are on the verge of collapsing. She says that whenever it rains heavily, rubbish piles up and blocks water in the channel, water then diverts into people’s houses.

Lawrence Bakirabye the LC1 chairperson Mpererwe- Kikuubo zone wants KCCA to improve the physical plans in the area by promoting proper housing and drainage in the area to curb the effects that come with stormwater.  Apart from the channel being small, he says they also have accumulated large amounts of sand and garbage.

Daniel NuwaAbaine, the spokesperson of KCCA says that they are plans to de-silt most of the drainage channels in Kampala to curb flooding.

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