Leaders in the Busoga sub-region have decided not to follow President Museveni’s order to remove people who are living in or using wetlands and lakes.
President Museveni warned about the dangers of destroying wetlands during the Tarehe Sita celebrations in Bugweri District in February 2024. He said that damaging wetlands is not good for making money and is bad for the global climate.
But during the launch of Isenda Hill and Bisira Hill as new tourist spots in Busoga, Uganda’s First Deputy Prime Minister, Ms. Rebecca Kadaga, said it’s not easy to separate the Basoga people from the water. She talked about how wetlands are important to the people in Busoga.
She said, “Everywhere I go, I tell the leaders including the President that Busoga is a great lake. Anything concerning the lake also concerns Busoga, and wetlands are also in the Busoga sub-region.”
Ms. Kadaga, who is also the Minister for East African Community Affairs, wondered about what will happen to the Basoga people after the President’s order to remove people from the water areas.
She said, “They first removed us from the lakes and wetlands. Now, they have banned fishing silverfish. The prices of sugarcane are very low, and farmers are losing money. Where do you expect Basoga to go?”
Ms. Kadaga suggested that the government should teach people how to live with wetlands instead of forcing them to leave.
The Prime Minister of Busoga Kingdom and Executive Director of the National Planning Authority, Mr. Joseph Muvawala, said the Basoga people can’t survive without the lake.
He said, “The lake is what keeps the Basoga people alive. Illegal fishing nets are not brought into the country by Basoga but by government officials. The President should first arrest those officials so that people can’t access them.”
The Member of Parliament for Jinja North Constituency, Mr. David Aga Isabirye, said people are being forced to leave the wetlands even though they depend on them for money.
“The people most affected are from Kaliro and Namatumba districts. People have been growing rice in these wetlands to make money,” he said.
The Vice Chairperson for the Eastern Region of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), Ms. Proscovia Salaam Musumba, said the government shouldn’t take away the wetlands from the Basoga people because they need them to survive.
“Busoga is mostly wetland. We are between River Nile and Mpologoma, Lake Kyoga and Victoria, and we are mostly wetland. You can take away the hills, but you can’t take away the wetlands from us. This is what we have, what makes us, where we live, and survive,” she said.
