Wakiso Woman Representative Betty Naluyima has called upon the Ministry of Tourism to compensate over 100 widows whose husbands were killed by hippos on Busi Island in Lake Victoria.
“Rt. Hon. Speaker, my matter concerns compassion for the affected widows and several other people from Busi Island,” Naluyima stated, raising the issue as a matter of national importance in Parliament.
She explained that during her visit to the island over the weekend, she met several widows who lost their husbands to wild animals, particularly hippos. “These women became widows because their husbands were killed by wild animals, especially hippos on Lake Victoria,” Naluyima said.
The widows, along with the chairperson of Busi Sub-county, narrated their plight. They had sought compensation from the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) because over 100 people had been affected. However, when they approached UWA for compensation, they were asked to provide death certificates. The National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) could only issue death certificates for natural deaths, which does not cover deaths caused by wild animals.
The Minister of State for Tourism Martin Mugarra Bahinduka ,responded by acknowledging that some individuals on Busi Island had been compensated by UWA, while numerous claims were rejected due to incomplete documentation.
“What we normally need is a postmortem medical report plus a police report to support a claim for compensation,” the minister noted. “I have taken an interest in the matter and will help my colleague communicate to the affected families so that proper documentation is submitted and compensation can be completed.”
Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Thomas Tayebwa, urged the minister to consider the fact that people who die under such scenarios are often from poor families. “People don’t know about postmortem and won’t even afford the process, so they should rely on the police and audit from the ministry,” he said.
However, Buyaga West Member of Parliament, Barnabas Tinkasimire, strongly countered the minister’s reliance on postmortem reports. He emphasized the realities of rural life, noting that “70% of our people, when their loved one dies, none of them will go for a postmortem.” He highlighted the financial constraints and cultural sensitivities surrounding the practice. Tinkasimire suggested that local security personnel, such as police officers and local defense units, could provide reliable confirmation of deaths caused by wildlife.
“They have the security system on the ground… who can actually confirm that these people were killed by wild animals,” he stressed.
