Omar Khamis Uchwa (R), one of the 300 or so Mbagala bomb victims, receives his compensation cheque from Temeke Municipal cashier Nora Rugemkamu yesterday.

Several Mbagala bomb blast victims yesterday expressed dismay and bitterness at what they described as shockingly low amounts of compensation.

The first victim whose house was reduced to rubble and had his name listed among those eligible for proper compensation to rebuild his house and hoped to receive at least 6m/-, ended up receiving a cheque for 30,000/-, an amount he described as just enough for a pair of shoes.

A Sobbing Kaisi Kaisi who appeared deeply thoughtful, at first refused to utter a word clenching his cheque in shivering hands. Then he broke his silence saying; “This (payment) is more painful than the destruction itself. How on earth could a person whose house was flattened be given 30,000/-?. Some of us here might not be ready to absorb the shock. The ambulances should be deployed to help some of us here,” Kaisi suggested.

The payment carried out at the National Microfinance Bank (NMB) in Temeke district where the first 303 victims from Mbagala Kuu were scheduled for payment did not end without other serious complaints.

Hardly 30 cheques had been handed out to the victims between 8:00am to 1:30pm, said Obedi Samamba who found it difficult to hide his feelings after receiving 1.6m/- out of the anticipated 7m/- at least to rebuild his house.

“Look at all these women here carrying babies on their backs. They are eagerly waiting for unrealistic payments. I cannot imagine what the authorities think when executing their duties. This is a mockery to the victims. I pray that a new assessment team is formed to re-evaluate the damage and destruction endured,” Kaisi suggested.

A quick investigation carried out at the scene by this paper revealed that majority of the recipients complained that they were paid amounts not reflecting the reality. Some vowed to seek intervention from higher authorities.

Another victim Arafa Amani said despite efforts to reach the bank early she was shocked upon reaching the teller’s window to be informed that her name could not be found on the list though it was displayed on the noticeboard outside.

Commenting on the situation, Temeke District Commissioner, Said Mkumbo said it was decided that victims from Mbagala Kuu with the highest population, 2,507 would be the first group to receive cheques.

He said victims who would not be satisfied would be requested to wait until completion of the payment exercise before revisiting of the records.

Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner William Lukuvi announcing the payment dates, said 9259 victims were eligible for compensation adding that the exercise would be supervised by a team of experts from the Treasury, Prime Minister’s Office (Disasters Department), Temeke Municipal Council and the police.

The RC explained that the total payment would be 8.5bn/-, the breakdown being 2.2bn/-, for 235 victims whose houses were flattened, 4.6bn/- for 8,970 whose buildings need minor repairs 906m/- for those whose houses were seriously affected and 52.1m/- to those who lost property in the blasts.

Bombs exploded at the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces armoury in Dar es Salaam’s Mbagala suburb on April 29, leaving 26 people dead and more than 200 injured and destroying or damaging more than 9000 houses.