OPINION: BWIRE - Floods are natural but how to handle them requires tact

While the floods are natural happenings, when it rains it pours and Lake Victoria back flows seem routine things, it's unusual that nothing can be done help the situation.

Human suffering can not be that normalised and pegged on availability of public resources. It has already been established and proven that the presence of the National Youth Service (NYS) in these regions was a very efficient way of handling the flood situations in these areas- why even with politics, they removed them from Budalangi is surprising.

Evidently, the level of preparedness to deal with the disaster in some of these counties is very wanting and the national government should move in otherwise the destruction has extended to more services, both devolved and national.

Roads, police facilities, power lines and related critical infrastructure that are being destroyed are beyond counties, and with proper leadership, even the private sector and individuals are willing to come in a big way.

In counties such as Busia and Tana River, leaders and public agencies seem to rarely be bothered by the havoc caused by these uncontrolled waters to the residents, it’s embarrassing that even with very elaborate early warnings and prior information from the weather people, relevant people from the counties still use very traditional approaches to dealing with such disasters.

There is a disaster, send teams to the ground for fact finding, compile a team, make a money request from the county- which money is rarely there- establish that even the single tractor in the county that can do trenches has no fuel, and wait- and when money comes purchase food items, mosquito nets and related- very traditional old school way.

The private sector, business people and individuals if mobilided are very critical players in disaster manager- and believing that only public institutions will lead in such interventions is misplaced. Government budgets are never enough.

For example, the current waters that are causing havoc in parts of Budalangi and Bwiri Ward in Funyula, are largely not because of River Nzoia overflow, but largely because of the Lake Victoria backflow and rain water- which requires dyke improvement, digging of trenches and by extension moving of people- like the Bwiri flooding problem requires trenches and directing the waters to move towards particular direction not moving people or buying them food items.

The destruction of the Ruambwa and Mudembi rice irigation schemes in Bunyala North in Budalangi Constituency and parts of Bwiri Ward in Funyula Constituency just show how uncaring our leaders are.

The areas around the lake are yet to recover from the Lake Victoria backflows of 2020- that happened when the spill gateways in the Uganda based dams saw increased back flows in the rivers draining into Lake Victoria including Kenya based rivers such as Suo, Nzoia, Yala with anticipated negative impact on human activities in the areas.

The back flows and increased water levels, led to beaches along the lake being submerged while lowlands are experiencing floods that have seriously affected the region.

It's important that plans are shared on how in addition to moving the affected people to dry areas, which in many cases has been difficulty, how the national and county governments plan to assist in opening drainage and water pathways to allow movement of water from homes, provision of temporary moveable toilets, supply of water treatment chemicals, supply of livestock medication and quick maturing seeds to the community coupled with public education to dealing with Corona virus is going to help the community in coping with the situation.

Busia Governor, must as a matter of urgency priorities the finalisation of the County disaster management policy and regulations, and the County Assembly allow the allocation of enough funds to disaster management in the country.

With the history of floods in Busia County, we need the NYS permanently in the county- there is huge government land near Mundere / Siseney Forest and Hakati next to the Army Barracks that is ideal and must be utilided for the benefit of the counties in the county.

With the NYS back and the military in the county, and a sensitive county Assembly that looks at the budget for disaster management - and the Members of the County Assembly from these perennially affected areas must must be aware that the areas are unique - need flood management more that roads or other infrastructure development.

The situation is severe and needs urgent address. For when the floods happen, they destroy any investment - more importantly, depending on the government, both county and national need to reach out to other willing groups and the private sector to assist.