KARAMOJA DESERVES BETTER. My recent visit to Karamoja (Moroto to be specific) demystifies a lot of statements and theories about the Karamajong people. For those who have nt been there, Karamoja is a beautiful land with a number of things that catch the eye ranging from the imposing figure of Akilek hill to the cultural structure. The Karimajong are a very hospitable and amiable people full of warmth and love, and the meals are a discussion for another day. But this does not mean that all is well in this part of Uganda, there is abject poverty, high illiteracy rates, disease, poor education(low enrollment and poor performance) poor road network, insecurity that normally arises from clashes between the Bokora and Matheniko or either of the two against the Dodoth. We have been made to believe over time that a lot of effort is being put in to improve the livelihoods of the Karamajongs and among such interventions was the disarmament exercise which was conducted in a very inhuman manner that saw some victims loose body parts at the hands of a national army,NUSAF which was intended to improve livelihoods and deployment of a police outfit to maintain security among others. The question that lingers in one’s mind is what impact has been created by all these interventions to help improve livelihoods of the Karamajong people!! Its disheartening to note that there is actually no tangible impact to write home about on the above interventions in Karamoja save for the great works being done by Restless development, VSO, ASCD VOCA, UNFPA among other NGOs working in this area in creating clean water points, organizing people into groups to manage businesses, training people and helping them add value to their produce. Because of the state of affairs in Karamoja sometimes we are forced to think that may be there is a deliberate effort to keep Karamoja underdeveloped in order to allow for the continuous inflow of donor monies that ends up in pockets of individuals in government. A few years after the disarmament, Karamoja is now a shadow of its own self, a land at one time known to be largely pastoralist is struggling to even a few remaining heads of cattle owned by isolated families, yet admired by many, their plight is wanting as there is no impact created at all NUSAF beyond merely putting up sign posts. Their dignity and pride has been eroded; for any one who is not a Karamajong is referred to as ‘government’ in Karamoja. Such is the mindset that has been created government in Karamoja and we can’t let this continue. The Karamajongs are historically known for being fearless and worriers, this has now been replaced with destitute, constant fear, disillusionment and solitude, suffering the pinch of poverty and extreme hunger due to the loss of their cows and the insecurity that comes with the absence of a gun and yet the neighboring communities in northern Kenya and Sudan still have guns. The most painful bit is that even as they struggle to cultivate under very unbearable drought conditions, the roads are in a terrible state and therefore trade is crippled. In my school of thought I want to believe that karamoja is one of the most gifted parts of Uganda in aspects of originality and cultural uniqueness, mineral deposits like gold, marble stones and overflowing sand, the hills of Akileck and mountain Moroto and of course Kidepo National park are some of the natural endowments of this land whose uniqueness stands out. But government has chosen to keep Karamoja unheard off save for the stereotypes of their being chaotic, backward and illiterate, lazy dirty beggars…. Such has greatly corrupted the minds of people to think that there isn’t any good in Karamojo which is a wrong perception; surprisingly this has been taken up by even those who have been to karamoja but suffer from the inability to appreciate nature’s goodness. Just like any other Ugandan these people deserve better and need to see the gains of their sweat, there seems to be a well calculated move to steal land from this mineral rich area and this is raising a lot of concern and discomfort among the elders have been waking up to the shock of graders clearing their land and because they have no guns, they feel so helpless as they can’t do much to stop such theft. The leaders who should be helping their people have chosen to side with the so- called investors to steal the land. Its for this reason that we must go slow on blaming and cursing Karimajongs for loitering on the streets of Kampala, its not because they are lazy or have deliberately chosen this kind of life style but because they are derelicts, they have been deprived of their dignity and source of livelihood and so have to find other means of survival. In fact Karimajongs hate Kampala! Because most of them have just been fooled into coming to Kampala and not that they come willingly. There is need for a lot to be done and this has to come with a change of attitude about the Karamoja and Karamajongs. Government must realize that Karamoja is part of Uganda and therefore consider putting measures in place to make it a better place rather than leaving it to the development partners and the so-called investors. Emphasis ought to be put on improving livelihoods of the people of karamoja, restocking, establishment of more schools, employing the educated karamajongs and being accountable to the people especially when it comes to the NUSAF and other government projects in Karamoja. There should also be a percentage of the proceeds from the Gold and marble mined in Karamoja that goes to the Karamajongs and not just making them casual laborers who are paid peanuts. The land should be acquired through the acceptable channels stipulated in the laws of Uganda and not by use of trickery, help stimulate trade through creating better road networks as well as marketing the area’s treasures to harness its tourism potential. This is the least this government can do for the people of Karamoja. Richard Mpagi.
Posted on: Wed, 02 Oct 2013 10:18:16 +0000
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