Kotido District leaders have asked Agago authorities to allow Jie pastoralists to access Longor Dam for water and pasture as severe drought leaves livestock in parts of Kotido struggling for survival.
The request for access to the dam, located along the Agago-Kotido border, was made during a joint meeting involving leaders and security officials from Kotido and Agago and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF).
Kotido leaders said the worsening shortage of water and pasture had made access to Longor Dam increasingly urgent, but Agago leaders said any arrangement must first address concerns over cattle theft and insecurity linked to previous raids.
Kotido District Chairperson Paul Lote Komol appealed to Agago leaders to open the dam to Jie pastoralists, while also offering an unconditional apology for atrocities committed by people from Kotido against communities in Agago. Lote said the apology was intended to help rebuild relations between the two communities and create an environment for peaceful sharing of resources.
Kotido Resident District Commissioner Charles Ichogor also apologised on behalf of the district leadership, acknowledging that people from Kotido had previously infiltrated Agago and contributed to insecurity.
Ichogor proposed that pastoralists seeking access to Longor Dam be organised into clusters and documented so their movements could be monitored. He said leaders responsible for the different clusters should be held accountable for any livestock theft committed by members of their groups.
Agago District Chairperson Wilson Otto, however, said the request could not be treated simply as a matter of providing water and pasture to livestock. He said Agago communities were still dealing with the effects of previous violence, including killings and livestock losses associated with cattle raids.
Otto cited the killing of two people at Omiya Pachwa and said communities needed time to recover before a decision could be made on unrestricted access to the dam. He called for a joint meeting involving leaders from Agago, Kotido, Abim and Kitgum to address the grievances between the communities and agree on measures to prevent renewed conflict. Otto said he would consult affected communities, local leaders and Members of Parliament before Agago gives a final response to Kotido’s request.
UPDF 507 Brigade commander Col. Richard Watmon said security forces would support efforts to recover stolen livestock and help enforce any agreement on access to the dam. He proposed deploying security detachments on both sides of Longor Dam to monitor the movement of pastoralists and prevent livestock theft.
Watmon warned that pastoralists allowed to access the area would have to comply with agreed conditions and could be ordered to leave if they engaged in misconduct.
Agago Resident District Commissioner James Nabinson Kidega said the meeting had already agreed on measures intended to regulate access to the dam. The proposed system requires pastoralists to be documented at parish level and by kraal leaders, with the identities of those accessing the area recorded.
The two districts also agreed to hold joint council and security meetings, while the UPDF is expected to deploy personnel around Longor Dam to secure the corridor. The leaders also proposed repairing the road linking Kotido to Longor Dam and Labwordwong Barracks in Agago, as well as establishing a standard border market to promote trade among communities from Agago, Kotido, Kitgum and Abim.
Kidega said pastoralists coming to the dam would have to follow an organised system, with their movements monitored to ensure that access to water does not trigger fresh insecurity. The proposed arrangement would allow organised groups of livestock keepers from selected areas of Kotido to access Longor Dam, rather than permitting unrestricted movement into Agago.
Agago leaders said the final decision would follow consultations with affected communities and would depend on the implementation of the agreed security measures-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
