Scientists battling the water hyacinth in Lake Victoria have been criticised for failing to adopt more practical strategies to combat the weed.
Speaking yesterday during an inspection tour of the Kisumu port, Opposition leader Raila Odinga said scientists were dwelling too much on theoretical ideas.“At this rate, we will not get anywhere.
On a site visit to the Kisumu Pier where work on removal of the water hyacinth and rejuvenation of the Lake Victoria ecosystem is underway. pic.twitter.com/B81FrzqKRi— Raila Odinga (@RailaOdinga) February 18, 2019
The scientists will give us theories yet the weed is here and their theories do not help,” Raila said.His sentiments were echoed by two Cabinet secretaries – Keriako Tobiko (Environment) and Raphael Tuju (without portfolio).
The fight against the hyacinth is being led by scientists from the Lake Victoria Environmental Programme (LVEP).
Raila said the Sh76 million that was allocated to purchase the equipment being used to eradicate the weed was exaggerated.He argued that better equipment with a higher output capacity could have been purchased for Sh5 million.
The equipment was bought three years ago.The former prime minister said the researchers should stop blaming procurement processes for slowing down the elimination of the weed and do more to address the problem.
He added that the lake has been clogged from Homa Bay to Asembo Bay.
Raila said there was a need to create a canal in the lake – eight metres wide and 63 kilometres deep – and that such a plan could only be carried out if the weed was eliminated.
“We want to construct a jetty so that the Ugandans can access oil through this area, but this cannot happen because the place is covered by water hyacinth,” Raila said.
Mr Tobiko asked the researchers to come up with an immediate solution before trying to figure out long-term plans.
“The weed needs a huge investment to be eradicated and the funding from the World Bank is like a token,” he said, and appealed to the national government to prioritise the fight against the weed.