Jinja mother recounts forest childbirth ordeal in appeal for better roads
Gwasima said it remains my worst experience welcoming my baby in the forest, yet I was a first-timer; it was my sister who used her personal experience to assist me to deliver. She cut the umbilical cord as we waited for the placenta to come out after 20 minutes
Kizinga residents raise their hands in support of prioritising the construction of their impassable road during a village budget meeting led by district officials, including Nakyeyune, on Friday. (Photo by Jackie Nambogga).
__________________ Kizinga residents listen to Gwasima as she recounts how she gave birth in Ngereka Forest after heavy rains rendered the road impassable, delaying her journey. (Photo by Jackie Nambogga).
When Lydia Gwasima conceived her first child, she adhered to medical guidelines by attending antenatal appointments to monitor the baby's development and prepare for the birth.
Having been advised of the importance of going to hospital as soon as labour pains began, the resident of Kizinga-Buwolero in the then Buwenge subcounty, now Kagoma town council, followed the guidance.
At 3:30 am on June 2, 2009, she developed labour pains, prompting her husband to call a neighbour who was a boda-boda rider to transport her and her attendant to Buwolero Health Centre II, five kilometres away, where she hoped to deliver under the care of medical professionals.
Unfortunately, this was not possible because the road passing through the 1,207-hectare Ngereka Forest Reserve was impassable following heavy rainfall over the previous two days.
During the journey, Gwasima, who was accompanied by her elder sister, repeatedly had to get off the motorcycle to allow the rider to manoeuvre through flooded and pothole-ridden sections. She had to walk through the difficult terrain while enduring severe pain.
When she felt the baby coming, she asked her sister to lay a mat in the forest, where she gave birth at 5:30 am. They later proceeded to the health centre for medical attention for her and the newborn.
"It remains my worst experience welcoming my baby in the forest, yet I was a first-timer; it was my sister who used her personal experience to assist me to deliver. She cut the umbilical cord as we waited for the placenta to come out after 20 minutes," Gwasima said.
Gwasima told the team, led by Jinja district planner Veronica Nakyeyune and finance committee chairperson Zurah Chandiru, that she would have reached the health centre in time if the road had been passable.
“It takes us an hour to reach the main road because of the poor state of our road, and it is my humble prayer on behalf of this meeting that the district prioritise our road,” a kneeling Gwasima pleaded.
Nakyeyune said they were conducting Parish Development Committee (PDC) meetings involving LC1 and LCII leaders and community members across the district to identify pressing needs for consideration in the 2027/2028 budget.
Meanwhile, Kizinga-Buwolero village LC1 chairperson Sharif Muwanga said many mothers had experienced similar ordeals but feared speaking out.
Muwanga said the poor state of the road was making it difficult for residents to access social services, including healthcare and education.
“It looks as if we are in a hard-to-reach area on an island, yet this is a mainland that borders Kamuli district; it is my humble appeal that we also feel the district services,” Muwanga said.
Although the road is gazetted, Buweera parish chief Lasuri Mwidu said Kagoma town council authorities had indicated that they lacked funds to spread murram and install culverts.
Muwanga said pupils in the lower classes stayed home whenever it rained because they could not access the nearby Buweera and Nkondo primary schools, both about five kilometres away.
He also decried rampant criminality, which he attributed to the absence of electricity, saying the forest had become a hideout for wrongdoers.
Muwanga also said he had received two cases of defilement and one of rape, which he reported to Buwenge Police Division this year.
“We don’t have electricity in the area, which has increased criminality because after committing crimes, wrongdoers go into hiding in the forest. We only use torches at night, which are not sufficient,” Muwanga noted.
Similarly, Thomas Maato, the LC1 chairperson of Buwolero-Igombe East, said the forest was a death trap for boda-boda riders.
“Goons waylay boda-boda riders whom they kill while others survive with injuries because of stealing their motorcycles,” Wabwire said.
He called for electricity extension and the installation of CCTV cameras to improve security and boost the area's economic development.
Meanwhile, Buwolero-Mawolero LC1 chairperson Fredrick Katiko said Nkondo Primary School occupies a small piece of land, with its playground and toilets located in the forest reserve.
To address late-coming among teachers, Katiko asked the district to apply for part of the forest land to enable the school to expand and construct teachers' houses.
He also said road accidents were common because of the school's location along the Jinja-Kamuli highway, and appealed to the district to liaise with the Ministry of Works to install speed humps.
Nakyeyune said the team had experienced the poor state of the road first-hand, despite the rain having stopped the previous night, adding that they would not return if they were caught there by rain.