Araweelo News Network.
“Others will be dead in the hours and days ahead. The situation in the area is critical” District Commissioner
Hargeisa (ANN) The death of Khadija Hassan, an elderly woman who died of thirst and starvation on the outskirts of Doqoshay, about 2 kilometres away from the village, has been confirmed by District Commissioner Ahmed Mohamed Warsame, speaking to Araweelo News Network by phone.
The area is in dire straits, with alarm bells ringing in drought-stricken areas of Eastern Somaliland in recent months, but the Somaliland government has turned a blind eye, and this is the second person to die of thirst and hunger in the East in even less than three weeks, as far as is known.
“Khadija is no longer alive. Others will be dead in the hours and days ahead. The situation appears to be dire in the area. The government and residents have not yet responded. The situation in the area is critical. “It hasn’t rained in the last two years,” Dr. Ahmed said.
The situation is deteriorating, according to the Commissioner of Dhoqoshay, who added that 150 families have received food aid assistance so far, including 1,500 families in the Togdheer region.
There is no water because the main well is submerged. “However, they are not suitable for drink. But The animals are given, “he added, explaining the drought situation.
Asked about the rig that was supposed to bring Water from the area, he said that it had been supplied twice, but that it was not possible and that the rigs that were brought in were camping and that during the 2017 election campaign, by government were demanding votes from locals, But The finished Somaliland presidency election was restored, with no wells drilled in the area. He added.
There are no still aid agencies, but a group claiming to be from Islamic organizations, they’re assessing the situation, they saddened by what they saw, they returned, according to the district Commissioner.
“We are waiting for a water emergency from a tanker on coming from Burao town, which is 150 km away. There are 7 villages in Dhoqoshay, so you can imagine the situation I am talking about is not easy.” he said.
A mother in a drought-stricken area in Western Somaliland, Araweelo News Network, August 2015, image fileDespite this situation, he said, the nature of the people in the East did not want such a problem to be propagated, citing the lifestyle and behavior of the nomadic pastoralists in the East, who see it as scandalous and shameful. He cited the example of the family of Khadija Hassan, who died about 2 km from the city, but whose condition was unknown.
“Three families were living 2 km from the city. A man came to us and said, ‘This woman is taking me to a clinic. He didn’t tell us about the problem.’ so we came to the rescue, another woman told us the situation, but unfortunately the old woman died when we brought her to the city.”
The district commissioner added that when he heard about the incident, many people contacted him, who reacted incorrectly, and wanted to keep the death of the woman not disclosure and the real situation in the area as he said most people had left, without rain for two years.
He called for immediate action in drought, thirst and famine in the region, saying that unless immediate action was taken, more than one or two people would be killed, and the situation would be “out of the question”.
Somaliland President Muse Bihi Abdi recently appointed a drought relief committee, but the committee appears to have yet to come up with a clear plan to respond to the recurring drought situation, led by Vice President Abdirahman Saylici
The Vice President Abdirahman Saylici, who is currently chairing the committee, but our committee has not been trained in accountability and clear planning. who are unfamiliar with accountability and a clear plan to deal with the problems in these situations.
There were tankers that were sold by the government at the time for drought relief and water trucking, and their whereabouts are unknown, as are the resources that have always been used to manage such situations and donations have not really reached the right people, so many people are frustrated with the way this commission is handling the situation.
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By Arraale M Jama Freelance Journalist and Human Rights activist.
Araweelo News Network.
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