The Democratic Party has expressed “intense concern” about the outbreak of famine in the Countryside of Isingiro District that has left many dead.
Isingiro District Veterinary Officer Dr Bruhan Kasozi told ChimpReports the district is currently experiencing what could be its worst dry spell in a decade.
The farmers are being forced to cross their herds into Tanzania to look for pastures and water.
The area residents are starving to death as their gardens did not survive the scorching sun.
DP President Norbert Mao revealed that in Rusasha Sub-county of Kinami Village in Isingiro District a one Florence instead of looking on as her two children starving to death opted to eliminate them.
“Today we have received another report that Mr James Rwamwozo hailing in Mbale Sub-county, Bukanga County in Isingiro District has passed on as result of hunger. And many others are on the verge of death due to hunger,” he added.
The Democratic Party called upon the government “with whom the social contract was made to reign in to the rescue of these people.”
Mao said the fully fledged ministry of Disaster Preparedness shouldn’t look on any longer when the citizens are starving yet such calamities are the very reason of its establishment.
“Their food crops have dried off and cattle died due to prolonged drought. It is also important to note that this region was put into a quarantine to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease outbreak for over 10 years now,” added Mao.
“Consequently, markets were closed; hence farmers are unable to market their cattle. Markets are now a reserve of the rich who have the capacity to access them by transporting cattle to far distant market places. The calamity thus hit the livelihoods of people in Isingiro and they are in dire conditions worth the intervention of all of us.”
Government is yet to be seen doing enough to arrest the situation.
DP said it had launched an appeal to its membership and the general public to gather relief items particularly food items like maize floor, beans among others and bring them to the Party Headquarters to be taken to the people in the disaster-hit region.
“This is not the first time; DP has done it before to the people of Bududa and Kasese when they suffered landslides and floods respectively.”