“No one should be happy when a street child dies because they go through a lot.”
By Acipa Doreen
Lira – March 3, 2022: On Saturday, February 26 in the afternoon, a 13-year-old street boy died while taking a bath in a drainage channel between Obote Avenue and Olwol road in Lira city.
According to the chairperson of Lango Ghetto Youth, Martine Odur, after the child’s death, his family members which includes his mother and grandmother came out openly and said the child belongs to them.
Odur has condemned parents who know that their children are roaming on the streets but pretend not to be aware and only to come out when death occurs.
Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, March 1 at the mayor’s garden, Odur expressed his disappointment after realizing that the boy had relatives who could have been taking care of him.
They chose to abandon him on the street, he added.
Odur urges parents who know that their children are on the streets to take them home.
Parents who are aware their children are living on the streets and corridors but want to come out when death occurs will be arrested and prosecuted for child neglect, according to the chairman of Ghetto Youth.
Stephen Odongo aka “code deyoo” blames cultural leaders for not exercising their part to relocate their clan children from the streets.
Odongo who said he is the prime minister of Lango Ghetto Youth added that children who need help are those who were born in the corridors.
Alex Acol is the secretary of Lango Ghetto Youth or street children. He lived in one of the ghetto homes codenamed “Acholpii”.
“No one should be happy when a street child dies because they go through a lot,” he told TND News.
The rich men who are supposed to help the street children in Lira city are the ones using them to execute their dirty jobs, Acol added.
He has asked the government to construct a centre to rehabilitate them and enrol them on vocational training.
In an interview with the Awitong of Arak Ocola Yam-yam clan Joseph Olet Magezi (Mr Build), he called upon the chairperson of Lango Ghetto Youth to get serious.
Mr Build wants the details of all the street children showing their backgrounds, names of their parents, villages, parish, sub-county and districts including their clans collected and submitted to clan leaders.
“If it is true that he wants the clan heads to rehabilitate these children and send them back to their different homes, he should be serious,” he said.
Olet, who is also the chairperson of the business community in Lira city denied the claim that the businessmen are using street children to do dirty jobs.
James Ocen, the Awitong of Okarowok Atar clan said his clan has started registering all their children who are living on the streets to easily rehabilitate them.
“The registration started in, I still don’t have the numbers of my clan children living on the street because my team are still on the ground,” Ocen added.
He wants all the clan leaders to develop structures that will help in reducing the rate of street children.
Emmanuel Ebong Opeto who is the clan chief of Oyima said most children are on the streets due to negligence from their parents and that most children are “truly having most difficult times at homes”.
“How long will you live on the streets?” he asked, replying, “Because you will not remain as a youth, that means you must go home with time.”
According to Ebong, the number of street children keeps increasing because those on the streets go homes for visits with different good things that invite more to join them when coming back.
“Everyone has a responsibility to play starting from the vice-chairperson LC 1 who is the secretary children’s affairs in a particular village.”
The Prime Minister of Lango Cultural Foundation appointed by the Won Nyaci Yosam Odur Ebii, James Robert Ajal told TND News that they will be having a cabinet meeting in two weeks.
“What will be discussed on the table is the process of constructing a rehabilitation centre in Lango,” he said.
According to Ajal, the rehabilitation centre will as well act as a remand centre.
He said this will help them easily identify children, their parents and clans for rehabilitation.
“We already have files with details of some of these children as a cultural institution and we are left with counselling both the children and their parents before we can rehabilitate them to their different homes,” he continued.
Ajal added that street children who don’t have parents or where to go can remain at the rehabilitation home and acquire other training skills.
“Every child on the street has a problem that needs to be addressed by both the government and different stakeholders,” Lango cultural premier noted.
On parents who know that their children are on the streets but has never made any effort to locate and take them back home, Ajal said they will be arrested.
“When they show up with intentions to benefit from the death of such a child, we will arrest them.”