NEWS- The Prime Minister Rt Hon Robinah Nabbanja who is camping in Bugisu Sub region to oversee immediate relocation of the people in disaster prone areas has issued a two weeks ultimatum to all the people living in landslide prone areas of Mt Elgon to vacate or else face forceful eviction by government.
This follows rampant landslide disasters with the latest claiming 36 people, many missing and scores injured in Bulambuli District and Rt Hon Nabbanja spent part of yesterday in Bududa District in Eastern Uganda part of the landslide prone areas.
Before she embarked on climbing the hill and slopes of the mountain, Rt Hon Nabbanja met area leaders to brief them about President Museveni’s message of immediate relocation of the people in the region to safe places.
The Prime Minister was taken to the areas that developed a huge crack but with some people still on the hill close to the areas waiting for compensation from government and according to local leaders the crack covers over 70 kilometre stretching to Kapchorwa District.
According to Rt Hon Nabbanja, the current relocation phase features a new cash transfer policy, which provides each household with Ugx 17 million part of which is from development partner GiveDirectly along with two acres of land in Bunambutye.
“This policy aims to empower families to build their own homes compared to the previous model of providing fully constructed houses” Rt. Hon. Nabbanja said.
Bududa District is one of the places prone to landslides in the region due to its location near Mount Elgon volcano and the geology of the area and some of the most destructive landslides in the district include the March 1st 2010 landslide that buried three villages, killing 400 people and displacing 5,000.
Other devastating incidents include the 2012 landslide that killed 450 people and displaced many others, the October 2018 landslide and flooding that killed 42 people, displaced more than 500 and destroyed roads and bridges, the December 2019, heavy rainfall caused landslides that killed people destroyed houses and crops and the 2020 landslides permanently displaced more than 850 people.
