HUYE - The Southern province Governor, Fidel Ndayisaba, has said that the demolition of thatched houses, locally known as Nyakatsi, was an effective way of speeding up the implementation of Bye-Bye Nyakatsi progamme.

Addressing a press conference on Friday, Ndayisaba noted that when people are not pushed to execute a decision, many of them tend to ignore or totally refuse to implement them.

The governor remarked that some people were living in thatched houses not because they lacked the means but because they did not care about living in an appropriate environment.

Accommodation, he said, is part of every human’s basic need but some people tend to undervalue it.
Ndayisaba told reporters that people who still live in thatched houses needed more pressure from authorities in order to persuade them to live in an environment that fits habitation.

"People were seemingly happy to stay in their thatched houses and showed no commitment to leave them. But when such houses are demolished, people who have means are encouraged to look for appropriate accommodation in a short period of time while those who have no means are identified and get help”

"It is really a good strategy of accelerating the anti-Nyakatsi drive because when people are temporary accommodated by their neighbours or paying for rent, they quickly build their own houses”.

The provincial authorities have set March as the deadline of eradicating all thatched houses in the region.

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