‘My friend died in Kiteezi rubbish dump’ | Global News Avenue

Fighting back tears, 22-year-old garbage collector Okuku Prince recalled the moment his best friend’s lifeless body was found in a huge garbage dump in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.

Last August, a landslide in Kiteezi dump killed 30 people, including his friend Sanya Kezia.

“I think some people are still under the trash,” he told the BBC.

Many of them make a living by washing and selling whatever waste they find still valuable – from fishing nets to components of plastic bottles, glass jars and old electronics.

After the fatal collapse, a game of blame broke out, with Kampala City Council and the central government accusing each other of negligence, while some of the dead remained in trouble under the garbage without the dignity of burial.

The 21-year-old was injured when the government tractor finally excavated Kizia’s body.

It was frightening to see his friend shrouded in stinking, rotting waste.

“We are not safe here. Unless they (fix) it (maybe for that level. People are not safe,” Mr. Prince said.

His family was unable to pay for tuition after financially instability, and his daily work is now far from libraries and lecture halls.

Youth unemployment is at a crisis level in Uganda, and many people like Mr. Prince often take health risks and give up their dreams just to make a living.

“I came here in the morning to go to the dump, collect polyethylene bags, take them to wash and sell,” Mr Prince said. “I make shillings 10,000 a day (equivalent to $2.70 or £2.10).

The collapse put him in a bigger financial woes as he used to live next to a dump – but had to move due to concerns about safety.

During the rescue operation, other houses were also destroyed.

Local authorities have admitted to the BBC that the compensation has been paid to the families of the dead, but have not given the loss of homes to about 200 people.

Dr. Sarah Karen Zalwango, the new head of public health and environment for the Kampala Capital Authority (KCCA), said officials are “waiting for valuation and budget allocation.”

Some people believe that since basic common sense is ignored, it is inevitable to fly a kite.

“You can’t take up four million people, eliminate all the waste – mixed – biodegradable and non-degradable – and then take it to a dump. No, that’s not the way we (should) do it. But we’ve been doing it for over 20 years,” Kampala-based Urban Planner Frank Muramuzi told the BBC.

The Kiteezi landfill was built in 1996 and financed by the World Bank, providing a major depository for solid waste generated in Kampala.

As Kampala grows, so does its biggest trash.

On the northern edge of the city, it now covers an area of ​​15 hectares (37 acres) – over 22 football fields in size – and the odor spreads further.

Raptors can be seen flying overhead.

The city’s residents and businesses are estimated to incur an estimated 2,500 tons of waste per day, with half of which ending up in dumps throughout the city – the largest being Kiteezi.

But the problem is that Kiteezi lacks the on-site recycling, sorting and incineration facilities that landfills should have.

“As each layer of garbage accumulates, the underlying layer becomes weaker, especially as the organic waste decays and decomposes, the temperature increases.”

“Without ventilation, methane and other gases are still trapped at the bottom, further breeding the fragility of the loose structure.”

He added that as long as the government is committed to regularly monitoring and auditing environmental, social and economic needs, this is easy to address.

If it is in place, he said, “the destruction that took place in Katez will be avoided.”

So, if the solution is simple, why hasn’t it happened yet?

The answer seems to be a combination of power struggle and financial mismanagement.

The ultimate responsibility of the KCCA lies with the KCCA, but Mayor Erias Lukwago, from the opposition forum against the Democratic Change Party, said his office lacks the necessary power to implement the change.

KCCA said it has repeatedly proposed plans to retire Kites, but said the funds needed to do so exceeded the city’s budget, which the central government has not provided.

The mayor of Kampala recently said: “All the support we receive is provided by donors from Bill and Melinda Gates, Giz and Watt’s aid. But their capabilities are very limited.”

“If we get enough funds from the central government, we will be very far away now.”

The government has no news on whether it will allocate funds for Kampala’s largest dump.

It did pay $1,350 per family of the deceased, saying that any further money would only emerge if the government agency was found to be responsible.

A month later, a report from the country’s police and crime investigation department led to President Yoweri Museveni, a prominent political opponent of Kampala Mayor, fired three senior KCCA officials, including the authorities’ executive officer and public health director.

James Bond Kunobere, a solid waste management official in Kampala, acknowledged that last year’s fatal collapse was a much-needed wake-up call.

Currently, authorities in the Uganda capital are drafting plans to turn organic waste into compost and reduce “unnecessary waste” entering cities.

But they hope that the public will also take some responsibility. Currently, people collect garbage from one of the seven private waste companies running in Kampala, all tied together, and recycling is hardly thought of.

“We have not changed the way residents think,” Mr Kunobere told the BBC.

“If you sort, the waste has different destinations. If you mix together, everything will become one – landfill.”

Experts say such moves are important, but do not address Kiteezi’s larger structural deficiencies.

Too late for those who have been crushed by recent events.

“They assured us of compensation, but I haven’t received anything yet – almost everyone complained, too,” Mr Prince told the BBC.

“We lost friends. Everything that happened in the process was sad.”

Other reports from Natasha Booty.