Now they have tasked government to better roads such as the Bunamubi - Bushiyi road that connects to Bushibuya trading center, Kuushu- Nyende road leading to Nyende trading center, Shilayi-Bundesi road leading to Bundesi trading center, Bumayoka Bufuma road leading to Bufuma health center III and Bulatse trading centre among others. They also want the government to fulfill its promise of rehabilitating the Bududa Circular road which is the main link to the Markets in Kenya and Mbale City.
Mutanje said they were lacking jobs as taxi drivers but currently the Bududa- Kampala bound taxi has employed some of them adding that if they clear the debt and finish it, they are hopeful that they will buy another taxi to add on the one they have now.
Fred Wambewo, a driver on the Mbale-Bududa route, says that most roads in the district need to be rehabilitated to make them motorable. He said initially it used to take them 40 minutes to drive from Mbale to Bududa but it now takes more than 2 hours because of poor roads.
In 2017, over 150 teachers from Bududa district borrowed loans from Bududa Teachers Sacco at an interest of 8% per annum and a repayment period of two years. However, only 170 Million Shillings has been recovered from 100 teachers.
Tom Shibale, the Engineer Nangako Town Council, says that they expect to complete the project within two years. He says that they have received half of the amount expected to complete the work and expect to deliver the first phase of the project this month.
The motorists in Bududu have said police is simply fining motorists at their own rates instead of giving them official recipients as communicated by the president.
The price for one head of cabbage has risen from 500 to 1000 and a sukuma wiki bundle which used to cost 200 Shillings now goes for at least 700 Shillings.
The roads complained about include the 3.5km Bumayoka community access road in Bumayoka Sub County and the 3km Buwanabisi- Bumasa community access road.
Michel Walandama a trader said he has always sold his bunches at a give away price because they are very cheap in the market. He said a bunch which is bought from the farmer at 10,000 is sold at 8000 in the market, something that is continuing to harden their business.
The implicated Boda boda riders are fined between Shillings 300,000 and 600,000 to recover and register their impounded motorcycles. According to URA, there is an estimated 2000 Kenyan registered motorcycles operating illegally in Busia town alone.
Abasa Watuwa, the Bubiita Sub-County LC III Chairperson, says the plants ran on generator power for four years, which became unsustainable. He says that they have applied for power from Umeme, which has taken long to come.
A hen that previously cost Shillings 20,000 now costs Shillings 30000. Emma Namondo, a resident says the prices of most of the essential food commodities have increased. According to Namondo, he didn’t expect the prices to increase given the time people have spent in the lockdown without making money.
Sam Wakoko the chairperson of the group says he has failed to mobilize members to pay 10,000 each as some of them are telling him they do not have anything to feed their families, forcing them to quit. He says this problem affects other groups as well.
Moses Luka, a trader condemned police for beating and arresting them, saying that the police cells where they are taking them are equally not safe in this period.
Bilali Shilanga, a trader in Bushiyi Sub County, says the road has been in a sorry state for the past five years, adding that their pleas to their District authorities to rehabilitate the road seem to have fallen on deaf ear yet Bushiyi is one of the food baskets to several sub counties with in and out of the district.
Issa Ngati Bukoma, the Bududa District Water Engineer, says the Water Pump Station, which used to serve the hospital since it was built in 1960s become idle due to the low water level in River Tsutsu,
Anthony Wakooli Kutosi, the Bududa District Water Engineer, wonders why the contractor abandoned the work yet the Water Ministry paid them Shillings 11 billion.
According to John Baptist Nambeshe, the Bududa District LC V chairman, Kusolo created a list of ghost workers whose salaries he has drawn of the last five years. He allegedly used names of people recruited by the district service Commission in 2009 to work in Bududa District Hospital but failed to take up the jobs.
