Compensation for Kampala Bomb Victims Remains Slow

Three months ago, Robert Ssemuju, a carpenter with Silk Events, an events organizer, was severely injured in the bomb blasts that rocked Kyadondo rugby club.



The bomb blast at the Rugby club in Kampala robbed Ssemuju of his working ability. He was admitted and later discharged from hospital after going through multiple operations on his head.



But the compensation promised by Government is proving too far for Ssemuju's reach. He says that he is part of the several other victims that have not been compensated as he struggles to rebuild his life through counseling sessions.



Following the blasts, government through the ministry of disaster preparedness released 500 million shillings to assist the dead and injured victims.



The compensation package processed through the Ministry of Internal Affairs was set at five million shillings for each of the dead persons and three million for those who survived with injuries.



But three months down the road, the internal affairs ministry is stuck with some money meant for the injured. The ministry ran into a dilemma when in the course of the compensation, some unscrupulous people, including boda-boda accident victims admitted to Mulago, also turned up to claim the money.



Last week, Stephen Kagoda the Internal affairs ministry Permanent Secretary, said that he asked the Police Criminal Investigations Department – CID to verify all claims being made by those injured and admitted to health facilities. Kagoda said he could not tell with certainty when the process would be finalized.



Edward Ochom, the CID Director, told URN that his department has not yet stopped receiving complaints. He confirmed that his department had detected about 15 cases of other accident causes registered as bomb blast victims.



In the meantime, Kagoda has declined to declare exactly how much balance from the 500 million shillings is still lying unclaimed in his office. He says the details would be contained in a report he has prepared for the Prime Minister's office.



He however said that compensation for the deceased victims was much easier and done more efficiently, because their records were easy to collect and process.



Ochom says he will continue receiving and verifying the complaints until they are convinced every genuine case has been handled.