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{
    "id": 369937,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/369937/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 372,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "July 2, 2012 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 36 Hon. Anami",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Thank you, hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I would like to concur with the previous speaker. It is like we had discussed this matter. We lose a lot of lives to floods, landslides and so on. Unfortunately, it does not take us longer than six months before we hear of this calamity or another. We have also lost lives to road accidents, fires, flooding rivers, broken bridges and so on. A lot of these disasters affect communities that are experiencing extreme instances of poverty. It is, therefore, high time that we had a disaster preparedness authority that will mainstream interventions against disaster across all other public institutions. In schools, we need our children to be protected especially when they have to cross flooding rivers. In Shinyalu Constituency, we had as situation where children could not cross over from Senende to Chiswa Primary School. They had to stay home until the waters of the river subsided. The same thing happened between Ishieyu and Koyenyi schools. The bridge connecting the two was swept away by the flooding river and so the children could not go to school. I know this is happening elsewhere across the country. It is important to have an authority that is all the time focused on planning and mitigating factors against these disasters. We have had instances of animal and human- being conflicts. This is an aspect of disaster. We need to have an authority that is all the time sensitive about this and sensitizes communities on what they need to do about these eventualities. If we do not do that then we will pay heavily. We also lose on economic development. Sustainable development is where projects are completed and their benefits realized. When we have buildings collapsing because they were being constructed without proper planning then that is not sustainable development. When we have constructions on wetlands and rivers dry up, that is, indeed, recipe for disaster. All public institutions need to be sensitive about our landscapes and environment. Like our traditional African societies, they need to know where to build their houses and manage the environment. We cannot keep on having landslides washing away families and then we dig bodies from soils. This cannot continue happening. This shows that we do not care about our brothers. We do not care who is building a house where. When you drive along the highways of this country, you are bound to spot families living besides the road. You really wonder what would happen when vehicles lose directions. Those families will be killed! We cannot close our eyes to this and continue preparing and budgeting for bigger disasters without caring for our brothers living in the streets. Every now and then they are killed by stray vehicles. This Motion needs to be taken seriously in terms of what we need to do. We need to put in place this disaster preparedness authority and provide it with resources. We also need to sensitize members of our society through interventions. We could use schools and faith-based organizations. We could also do that through sheer care of each other. Our children are now growing up knowing that nobody cares about them and nobody cares about these disasters. The mitigating factors that they indulge themselves in could be catastrophic. We need to have proactive interventions which are also institutionalized. I like the idea of establishing this authority, but I would like to suggest that the work be mainstreamed through all other development interventions that are carried out by Government Ministries and departments. I beg to support."
}