FDC launches campaign against hunger

KAMPALA - The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party has launched a campaign to mobilize food and money for families hit by food shortage in various parts of the country.

The party is understood to have started mobilizing food and money from members here and in the diaspora for the cause.

"A number of people are on the verge of dying in various parts of the country yet the siting government is looking on. We have come out to help and save our fellow Ugandans from dying," said FDC's deputy secretary General Harold Kaija.

He told reporters at the opposition party's weekly meeting in Kampala that the members would deliver the food stuffs and money to the party offices before eventual distribution.

Kaija said FDC has "agreed to transfer all our energies to saving the brothers and sisters who are dying".

The party's move comes after reports that several parts of the country have been hit by shortage of food.

The latest district has been Isingiro, which has for long been water-stressed, with residents suffering heavy losses in the form of animals and crops. Though it has rained in some districts, Isingiro has not had rains this year.

The district has a population of about 325,800 people, with the biggest percentage hardly accessing food and clean water.

Other areas hit by shortage of food include Kalungu district, Karamoja and Teso sub regions.

Kaija also implored government to come out with an official statement on the situation of food shortage in the country.

"People are dying but government is doing nothing about the situation. This should be the time for them to act and save the people of Uganda," he said.

He also told reporters that their party has rolled out a program to review the electoral process countrywide.

"We are going to move in various parts of the country apart from areas where there were by-elections, reviewing the electoral process, engaging our members on the challenges of the past elections and the way forward."

Their argument is that this would be one of the ways to build grassroots structures for the party and also strengthening it.

The program is expected to start mid-next month in Masaka, Hoima before heading to Lango, Karamoja and Bugisu sub regions.