Government yet to acquire land to resettle Buliisa flood vicitms- Minister Onek

The government is yet to acquire land to resettle people affected by floods in Buliisa district two years since their displacement.

In 2020, more than 3,500 families in Buliisa were displaced after floods resulting from the rising water levels of lake Albert submerged their homes and destroyed property worth millions of shillings at various landing sites.

The most affected people are from Wanseko, Katanga, Masaka landing sites in Kigwera Sub- County and Kawaibanda, Butiaba, Boma, Kigangaizi, Tugombili and Walukuba. Others are from Bugoigo, Kamagongoro, Kigungu, Serule, Piida, Waisoki, Triangle and Magali in Butiaba sub-county, Kabolwa and Kigoya landing sites in Buliisa sub-county.

The victims have since been accommodated in churches, schools, and under trees while others have erected makeshift structures where they are squatting in adverse living conditions.

In 2021, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, visited the area to assess the extent of destruction caused by the floods and promised to relocate the victims but to date, nothing has happened.

Now Hilary Onek, the Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees in a telephone interview with our reporter explains that government is yet to acquire land to resettle the victims.

According to Onek, government has instructed the ministries for lands, water and Environment to first carry out a comprehensive survey of the affected areas to ascertain the degree of the destruction and come up with appropriate measures on how the victims could be amicably resettled.

He says after carrying out the survey and compiling data of the affected persons, the government will come up with the initiative of acquiring land to kick start the process of resettling the flood victims.

Onek however does not mention when all these processes will start, adding that the three ministries will first convene and come up with appropriate measures to kick start the entire resettlement plan.

He has called on the affected victims to be patient as government is doing all it can to have them resettled.

Leaders in Buliisa and the affected residents have since 2020 been accusing the government for not speeding up the resettlement process of the flood affected victims.

Last week, Members of Parliament from the Bunyoro sub-region under their umbrella Bunyoro parliamentary caucus tasked the government to explain the delayed resettlement of thousands of people who were affected by floods in Buliisa district.

They explained that even when the government promised to have the victims resettled immediately given the magnitude of destruction suffered, it is now two years without the victims being resettled yet they continue to languish in untold suffering.