It looked like drama for two days (10th and 11th, September, 2009) when police was battling with the violent riots in Kampala City and other parts of Buganda. This was a head of Kabaka Leonard Mutebi’s visit to Kayunga to preside over the Kingdom youth’s day. As a way of expressing their anger towards the refusal of Kabaka’s constitutional right to visit a part of his kingdom (Kayunga), the angry riots engaged the police in a running battle. They barricaded roads with logs, huge boulders and vehicle tyres and lit bonfires. In Kampala suburb of Nateete, a police post and vehicles were set a blaze. To dispatch the angry mob, police and the army applied teargas in addition to firing in air.
35 people lost their lives, 300+ hospitalized and more than 700 people are in custody. It was chaos as many people were crying for help in vain. Students and pupils who were leaving schools in the afternoon and evening became victims of the riot. Most affected places included Kampala city centre, Nateete, Kasubi, Bwaise, Kawempe, Nakulabye, Busega, Kyengera, Masaka, Kayunga
However, the immediate impacts of the riot are less when compared to the impacts of air pollution resulting from burning of various and dangerous materials like tyres. This was even worsened by the large quantities of teargas sprayed during those two days of riot. Remember, climate change does not happen in isolation. It interacts with existing problems and challenges-notably deforestation, soil degradation to mention but a few. As a result, Uganda will continue experiencing several severe environment conditions.
I therefore call upon everybody to “stop harming and start helping because good environment is good health and good future.
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