Friday, March 29, 2024

Council Police Pounce on Livingstone Vendors

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Livingstone city council police yesterday swung into action grabbing merchandise from street vendors operating in the town after giving them a one week ultimate in which to relocate to designated areas.

Acting town clerk, Clement Chisanga disclosed that the council wants to find a lasting solution to the problem of street vending that he termed as difficult to deal with.

Mr.Chisanga wondered why the vendors always want to be pushed out of the town when they know that trading along the shop corridors is wrong.

“You know these people always want to be policed and so we will be doing just that, am sure within this week we will start operation because yes we have also seen that this thing has gone out of hand,” he explained “But you see we need to find a lasting solution to this problem not just short term.”

And acting director of administration, John Kapumpa said the vendors have a negative perception that money is in town and hence they tend to shun the markets.

“There are a lot of empty markets around, there is Dambwa market, Linda market, and other small markets all these are trading areas but people think in town that is were there is money and so they come to town and conduct business along corridors,” he said.

He has since asked these vendors to go and do business in designated areas such as the markets.

However some vendors spoken to dispute that they were not given any prior notification and that they do not know of empty market to do business from.

One vendor who sort anonymity said that the council only cares about themselves and do not consider the plight of other people because they are doing fine financially.

“They don’t know the problems we go through, most of us on the streets are widows and we have children to feed and send
to school so we don’t just do it for the sake,” She said in vernacular.

When asked if she did not think that their way of conducting business compromised tourists’ perception of the tourist capital, she said there is nothing wrong because tourists even buy their products.

Another trader who sells fish along the corridors said a lot of tourists buy her fish because of easy access instead of them going to the market.

Street vendors who intensified their operation along corridors of most shops in town are deemed to be a stumbling block in the council’s operation of the ‘keep Livingstone clean campaign’ that was kick started in 2007 following the introduction of the ‘Keep Zambia Clean Campaign’ that was pioneered by late President Levy Mwanawasa.

ENDS/AS/PK/ZANIS

17 COMMENTS

    • Yep but imagine buying displayed on the corridors.The cities we ‘ve now come to had to put certain regulations in place that is why they are clean.

    • Ba Jack …
      Bad idea,
      Once you have designated areas for merchandise, buyers will follow you.You are making buyers lazy to go to the markets which are made for such.
      Though I still do not blame them trying to fend for themselves instead of stealing and ukabova.. Govt should register them all and find a place to do their selling….after all these guys and dolls are trying to alleviate poverty with their own means without help from the govt.

  1. Well create jobs not allow people onto the streets jobless. They end up daring the authorities. Street vending is an eye sore, makes our small town centre look dirty. We need to find collective solution. Lusaka town centre was clean in the midst of cholera again street vending has come back. local authorities just issue warnings without action.

  2. Please nywebo ka Lstone council whats up, You act illeteratly. You are shameful as discribed by one of my friend tourist when we came to Vic/Falls. How do you chase like Tom and Jerry. Exactly, what happened in Kabwe a month ago, shame again.

  3. Mina batu, muswanela kuyo lekisezanga lika za mina kwa makomboni, ising’i mwa corridors ya ma sitolo. Muno utwa!

    Good, the council is doing a good job. If all are chased to the compounds, the buyers of the merchandize will also foloow to those locations. Lets develop in mind for once.

  4. Carry ou the excerise so as to keep the city clean and bring sanity but not because you think that is what will impress tourists. Tourists have a perceptiont that Africa, Zambia included are very dirty so will not be discouraged by finding street vendors. They consider it as part of the African experience to come and see such disorderliness and chaos in Africa, Zambia nd Livingstone inclusive. They would not be at all impressed to find a squeaky clean city as that is what they are already used to. My point is thought it is commendable that you carry out the operation to keep the city clean, do not be driven by the wrong motivation of cleaning up for the tourists as they wouldnt care less.

  5. You have to rid vendors of their mentality that city centres and their dwellers have large disposable incomes which they can lavishly spend on cheaply and poorly produced goods. The national government, local governments and all NGOs should develop some sort of courses to train people to produce decent goods which will allow them to make a worthwhile living.

    For years now the national government has been paying lip service about developing agriculture, but withour skills this will end up as a futile venture.

  6. These street vendors should not be subjected to this terrible ridicule.
    These are the people who are ready to be self reliant and not be slaves of poverty.
    Govt needs to listen to these people and give them designated areas to sell their merchandise.

    Mulefwaya baleiba???

  7. On second thought….
    If according to this story and you have built them designated areas, then just ‘PUSH THEM OFF’ the streets and tell them to go to markets. If they resist just arrest them.

    They are the ones on the wrong.

    These buyers in the streets are being made lazy by the street vendors..

  8. Linda and Libuyu market is full of empty stands. These vendors should be relocated there and buyers will have no option but to follow were there are goods. We do not need congetion in towns. We need free movements so please council workers do your job and have the streets cleaned.

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