“They are in Dire Need of Food Assistance”, Says Fr. Mark the Parish Priest
“They are in Dire Need of Food Assistance”, Says Fr. Mark the Parish Priest
By Baraka John
The Parish priest of St Mary Parish in Tambura, Fr. Mark Kumbonyeki stated that the internally displaced persons who were sheltering within the Church compound have finally left for their homes but are in dire need of food assistance.
In 2021 hundreds of people in Tambura County were reported to have fled their homes to the Catholic Church in Tambura after a communal fight erupted.
The displaced have stayed in the church compound for close to two years, living in a temporary shelter.
Speaking to the Rurugene Online newsletter on Saturday, 18th March, Rev. Fr. Mark Kumbonyeki, said the IDPs had voluntarily left the church compound and decided to go and settle in their original homes, but now faced it hard to get food,
“There is no organization that is supporting them (IDPs) with basic necessities, especially food. For the first time in my life seeing children and grown-up people eating small raw mangoes which are still green because of hunger, I haven’t seen this in my life span, this shows that hunger is too much”, Fr. Kumbonyeki narrated.
He added that many of humanitarian organizations went to Tambura to carry assessments based on the need of the displaced and returning communities to their homes, but since then no assistance has been given to the needy.
He further said that as the IDPs return home they need immediate humanitarian assistance which includes temporary shelters because their local grass-made houses were burnt down at the time of the conflict in the then hot spot town.
Civilians who deserted their homes due to the conflict that had displaced almost 3 quarter of the population in the County have now begun to return to their homes as relative peace continues to prevail in the area.
Tambura County was engulfed with conflict that resulted in the killing of hundreds of civilians and displacement of nearly 100,000 civil populations to neighboring Counties and Wau town of Western Bahar El Ghazal State, Yambio, Ezo, Nzara, Source Yubu, and other places.
