Friday, March 29, 2024

Enact by-laws against street vending- Choma councillors advised

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The just ended workshop on legal enforcement sponsored by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)in Choma, Southern Province has recommended that councillors at the Choma Municipal council should pass a by-law on illegal street vending that will provide for the arrest and prosecution of both the seller and buyer.

The workshop participants who included all the chiefs, councillors and health inspectors noted that illegal vending was being perpetuated by people who are buying from the streets instead of established outlets.

ZANIS reports that they noted that passing a by-law that will provide for the arrest and prosecution of both the seller and buyer will deter people from buying on the street as they would be scared to face the consequences of their action.

The workshop that was also attended by chief Macha who is the chairperson for the district joint monitoring team on sanitation also resolved to step up legal enforcement on public health in order to achieve behavioral change towards areas of sanitation concern.[quote]

Another resolution was that council police should mount regular patrols and arrest all street vendors.

Chief Macha said the patrols must be well timed as street vendors have devised another way of eluding police by conducting their business in the evenings when council police have knocked off.

Meanwhile, the Zambia Consumer Association (ZACA) says practicing legal enforcement in the country is not easy because health inspectors face many challenges.

ZACA Director Michael Musenga told the UNICEF sponsored workshop in Choma on legal enforcement that environmental health technicians find difficulties to execute their duties and have to rely on personal initiatives.

Mr Musenga said lack of transport and support from the ministry of health is making it difficult for environment health technicians to carry out health inspections resulting in compromised public health.

He however called upon health inspectors to continue sacrificing in order to help strengthen public health.

Mr Musenga also noted that most food laws that health inspectors needed to enforce were not known to the people, making it necessary to carry out a sensitisation campaign.

“It is difficult to enforce law when the public are ignorant about it. We must educate the community first on the food laws and other public health laws,” he said.

ZANIS

8 COMMENTS

  1. Not only in Choma, this should be applied countrywide. It is so pathetic and irritating especially in the so called capital city.

  2. The problem is that there is too much politiking where street vending is concerned. As for Lusaka, it has become irritating.

  3. #2 ba Moze, It is true it has become a political issue especially for people who always think by trying to stop the vice GRZ is being insensitive to marketeers’ plight. That is how Chiluba wanted to portray how bad KK was because of not having encouraged black markets. And what did the man do, he created the vendors’ desk. We see the same trend with some politicians who served as ministers then by making political capital out of vendors whenever local authroities move in to remove the vendor off the streets saying “these are our voters”. Tichulelini mazina it is written and a well known fact. So,It is a gridlock which can only be unravelled when we begin to be objective in addressing national issues, especially on the part of politicians.

  4. Which laws. What I know is that Councils have by laws concerning vending and hawking. You need a licence to engage in these two endevours. All is needed is to enforce them- political will is lacking-

  5. In my own analysis UPND under HH and group/team have been politically consumed by PF and King Cobra. Where is HH going to base his basis for being adopted by the Pact to be floated as Presidentail material? Lack on political maturity, Chimbwe no plan. All PF needs from HH is support from say 5 to 6 constituences or more than 50,000 votesSouthern, 25,000 Western, 15,000 Central and 20,000 N/Western then the man will carry the day. What action plan to HH & UPND to visit PF strongholds or PF to visit UPND strongholds and campaign there. HH is does not take advice infact he is a Dictator in the making. As long as he finances the Party he listens to nobody. Infact the chap is efficiently with his hands destroying UPND. He should stand as MP in 2011 president in 2016. He runs a Party like coy

  6. HH does not and will never accept constructive critisism. He hates those who tell him the truth. He listens to the likes of Charlie K and Rich K. For unknown reasons or power hungry the man managed to fight his way to the top position. He was never known in the lower organs of the Party. This is the Zambian way of doing politics. Let him kip his dirty wealth away from politics. we need clean hands to run the affairs of this country. Not slippery hands. Was the pact entered into with full comsultation of pipo from the lower organs of the Party or not. Its a pact where King Cobra will be leading the way on a camel with HH at the back seeing thru Sata’s armpits. Ricahard Chizyuka was right in a way but his statement was dismissed. It is better UPND to be consumed by MMD not the other way…

  7. Yes in politics they say there are no parmanent enemies but be mindful that a snake will never change to a lizard neither will a lioness produce a duiker or lechwe. Its not long when King Cobra called HH an under 5 boy. What will make change his language and behaviour when he becomes Republican President? Not long ago his cadres abudacted Mr. Zulu and another man as though they were dangerous crimials in broad day light. What will stop this thuggish behaviour. Bad habits die hard. Let us do leadership search. It will be risky undertaking but there is quality leadership somewhere which we have failed to identify. Coz even HH has joined the politics and leadership of insults. Times are changing and we are lagging behind ocz of fear of the unkown. Let us block dictors from running our affair

  8. #5 MOTOMOTO- Your analysis is good but lets not lose hope so soon. My idea is if the NCC passes the clause on RUNNING MATE VP then the problem will some be solved. Then the 2 can agree on who should be P and VP. But am sure MMD are aware of this and will try to frustrate the progress on this clause. I only pray to those at NCC to put Zambia first and not one POLITICAL PARTY. They must bear in mind that in life the traps that you set for other people will come to haunt you some day in future. FTJ did this to KK ie Citizenship, number of terms etc just to block the old man. We all know what happened and what is happening the man. YOU ARE NOT GOD SO YOU CANNOT DETERMINE THE FATE OF ANOTHER MAN

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