By Michael Atwakiire
Sheema: Residents of Rwaabuza ward, Shuuku town council, in Sheema District are facing a severe health catastrophe due to lack of water and have threatened to stage protests against what they term as neglect by the government, because of refusing to give them water, to the extent that they now share stagnant water, full of Schistosomiasis, also known as snail fever and bilharzia with animals.
The angry residents say they had a water spring in their area which used to serve almost five villages which include; Rwaabuza cell, Kigarama, Rwaabuza trading Centre, Kamweeru and Rwabuza primary school but that two years back, it got blocked.
The spring needs proper construction but the residents say they have pleaded with their political leaders to lobby for funds to construction the well in vain.
The situation has since forced them to start sharing water from a pond with their cattle and goats, something that exposes them to deadly waterborne diseases.
“It takes 8-11 minutes to fill a jerrycan. Remember it is only one well in all five villages, whereby when you reach here at 5:00Am to get clean water, automatically you fetch like at 8:00 or 9:00Am because people wake up very early in morning to get fetch water. What did we do to this government to deserve this punishment,” the residents who preferred anonymity said.
They added that among their leaders, they only know Hon. Jacklet Atuhaire Rwabukurukuru, the Sheema district Woman Member of Parliament, whom they said gave them bags of cement to construct a new water spring, although they still lack sand and stones.
They pleaded with MP Atuhaire to further her bid to rescue them by forwarding their issues to President’s Office, such that they can considered and helped.
When this reporter talked to Hon. Atuhaire, she said that she didn’t know that they needed other building materials, reason why she gave them what they asked for. But she pledged to help them out of the danger they are currently facing, the way she rescued people of Bwayegamba parish in Kigarama Sub county Sheema District, where she constructed a water dam that is used by almost the entire parish.
