In 2007 a few weeks to CHOGM, I was sent by Fountain Publishers to Nairobi Kenya to deliver CDs, which had books to be printed. These books were for CHOGM related business. My flight was KQ which departure was 3am. It was my first time to enter a commercial aircraft, so I did not want to miss this opportunity. Check in was starting at midnight. Around 11pm, heavy rain started and by that time, I was in wandegeya waiting for the cabman to drop me at Entebbe international airport. 11:30 found us in namasuba, bata bata had flooded and the driver had to bet whether to risk and drive through the flooding area or go back for for alternative route. He chose to drive through because I put him on pressure. Luckily we maneuvered and went through.
15 years after, the same point floods every time a drop of rain touches the ground. Between then and now, Uganda has had a number of ministers of transport and works and none has endeavored to fix this mess. To make it worse, cabinet ministers use this same road every Monday they dash to statehouse Entebbe for cabinet meeting.
I am so sure that both KCCA technical and political teams use this same road for their day-to-day business. This place doesn’t only flood but it has become a hygiene threat to the surrounding environment especially the schools and other business around.
Bata bata itself
Entebbe road is the only free road that leads to the only commissioned and active airport in Uganda. Whereas there are other roads like munyonyo bypass, busega express, bunamwaya Lweza new road, these act as other alternatives. The known road and commonly used is the old Entebbe road. Bata Bata is known for fruticulture business of which this business has been affected adversely by these continuous floods. These small-scale carpenters are low-income earners any loss to their furniture and merchandise directly affect their incomes, and standard of living.
Ministry of Works & Transport
In some serious countries, the Bata bata flooding would have costed some senior officers both political and technical their jobs at MOWT. How do you turn into those beautiful chairs, seat in boardrooms, driver expensive government cars when water is cutting off people from accessing their destinations. A week ago, it took me three hours to move from najjanakumbi to seguku because of bata bata flooding. Every rain season , we that Entebbe road residents know that somedays, it will be hard to either leave home or go back. Commercial drivers risk lives of passengers, school vans carriying hundreds of school going children also gamble and drive through these floods. Why all this? Is a hard call to make? MOWT you have two choices infront of you, either fix bata bata or hung the boots. If it was in Rwanda, the ministry with its entire team would be home watching TV.
UNRA
The lead urgency on behalf of government is UNRA. Whats your say on this? 15 years of bata bata flooding is not good on your score card. I know there is some justification for this, maybe budget, so on so forth. This is your monkey. The public wants to see a motorable road in all weathers. Why construct kihihi, moroto, gulu, hoima , tourism roads when the real road is here crumbling. Get your priorities right.
NEMA
Why are you in this equation? Flag this matter red. Bata bata is a high-risk point. Whip the responsible agencies. Close the road if you cannot get the right traction.
MPs
I saw an MP of the area raising this matter on floor of parliament, this is not good enough. The committee on physical infrastructure sermon MOWT to explain the route cause of this flooding, the remedy with timelines. Or else withdraw funding for UNRA and the ministry. Its only in Uganda where such serious matters are handled in lukewarm way.
Current road works on Entebbe road.
The current road works on Entebbe road seem not good enough to address this challenge. Bata bata point has had civil works redone three times without getting right. Every time the road becomes bumpy after a final surface. Reworks as commonly called are costly in terms of time, resources and inconveniences to road users. The business around this point have incurred unbearable losses. Total petrol station, shops, solons, fruticulture shops name them. Who will compensate them?
Prime Minister
Dear Hon Nabbajja, close this gap. The public has hopes in you. Fix bata bata for the last time. The shame that this point has caused our government is enough. A problem that has not been solved in 15 years becomes cancerous. It’s a shame that we always get some things wrong as a country. Some occurrences are un defendable. Why can’t Bata Bata flooding be fixed?
Finally, the bata bata flooding is a reflection of our priorities as a country. Residents of budduda, kasese,elgon region are blamed for the severe flooding in their respective areas, because they have tampered with environment, who will be blamed for bata bata floods that occur year in year out?
Stakeholders in this Bata bata circus, get off your offices, hold a meeting at bata bata, agree on the way forward, attach timelines, have the work commence, update the public, close the flooding issue because we are all winners if this flooding cancer is settled. Or elase, the shame is on you, on me and and Uganda as a whole.
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