on the Kitwe-Ndola Road.
PRESIDENT Michael Sata is greatly saddened and disturbed by the high death toll in the Kitwe road traffic accident which occurred last Tuesday.
The President said in his message of condolences delivered by Copperbelt Minister Mwenya Musenge, that he was extremely saddened by the loss of many lives especially through increased road accidents, which were now becoming a serious concern to Government.
He said there was urgent need for drastic measures to curb road carnage to prevent loss of lives on the highways and has since sent a message for condolences to the bereaved families.
Mr Sata said he was greatly affected especially that the Kitwe road traffic accident happened at the backdrop of another fatal accident involving a Hiace minibus traveling to Mpongwe, which overturned and killed seven people.
He said the high number of people dying through road accidents was a great loss to Government and the national as a whole.
Twelve people died on the spot while three others died later at hospital where they were rushed to when a commuter Rosa minibus, registration number ACP 5143, heading to Ndola with passengers on board collided with a truck laden with bags of mealie meal.
The accident, which left many others injured, happened at Kamfinsa Stream on the stretch where one side of the dual carriageway has been closed to facilitate maintenance.
And Mr Musenge who yesterday visited the Kitwe accident victims admitted at Kitwe Central Hospital before going to the funeral homes for some of the people who died in the accident said he had summoned the Road Development Agency (RDA) and the contractor rehabilitating the Kitwe-Ndola dual carriageway for a meeting next week on Monday.
He said he intended to have an audience with officials from RDA and the contract over the on-going road works, which were contributing to a number of accidents on the highway.
“We have experienced a lot of fatal accidents since rehabilitation works started and we feel this is one thing that RDA and the contractor should look at and so I have called for a meeting this coming Monday,” Mr Musenge said.
And Kitwe District Commissioner Elias Kamanga said Government had provided logistic support towards funeral and burial of the accident victims.
Mr Kamanga told Mr Musenge when he paid a courtesy call on him before proceeding to the funeral homes for some of the people who died in the accident that Government through the district Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) had moved in to procure foodstuff and coffins.
He said Government had arranged a mass burial programme tentatively set for today at Chingola Road cemetery.
“So far, 14 out of the 15 people who died in the accident have been identified and burial has been set for tomorrow (today). We have put in place all necessary arrangements,” he said. Among the deceased are three female nurses.
Bet you are Chumbu Munshololwa. The last I checked your own health survived on spilled blood for the sacrificed citizens.
I strongly doubt you do ever sleep with all these Ghosts haunting you.
@ old rugs
you will be better off if your envy could just choke you to death.
Gen – Envy who, No way. At my age I have acquired and achieved 100 times more that what Chumbu did at this age.
Chumbu should stop sacrifising our people. Honestly doubt he ever really sleeps with all these ghosts. I can attest his gone mad, what with all these bizarre actions.
Please do not Blame the contractor or RDA on this one. It says part of the road was closed for maintenance. so people should use caution and reduce speed in the contraction areas. How do you go over speed limit in the contraction zone? Over speeding is the only logical explanation to such high fatalities. In the U.S its double fine to over speed in contraction zones; maybe we should do the same than thinking of the Sata ‘sacrifice’ nonsense.
Yesterday when my boss informed me I had to visit a client in Kitwe, I wasn’t too thrilled. The musonko on my vehicle is not really up-to-date so had to use a bus. As I sat in the bus ku KMB waiting for it to fill on my way back, I felt a deep sorrow as I pictured the people that died that day also seated waiting for the bus to fill, calling people, telling them they would be in Ndola soon, others buying drinks and crisps from the endless vendors at the bus windows while others had earphones on listening to music. Little did these people know that in a few minutes they would be dead. I felt a physical pain in my heart for these departed ones and i feel these talks of sacrifice are nonsense. It was a horrible accident, pure and simple.
@Ba Dude, wow wow, now you start mourning people.
But I wish Sata could have gone to Kitwe and deliver message himself, and not Mwenya Musenge who made statement to leak Sata’s dirty ass
Stoolpid OldRugsOUT
Whoever authors presidential statements must examine his conscience. I guess Chellah did not obtain permission to issue presidential concens over people dying in Zambia. This particular President has no heart to feel sorry for the dead. His absence at FTJ Chiluba’s and Mandela’s funerals speaks volumes.
I used that stretch of Ndola-Kitwe road in question when I was in Zambia not long ago, and I have to say I was struck by the absence of road signs to keep the drivers from both directions in check along that stretch that it is temporarily NOT a dual carriage way. Instead of cones and speed-limit signs at reasonable intervals, (or alternatively re-marking centre lines to warn driver when not to overtake i.e continuous white line etc…) there are simply none. Drivers have to rely on memory. As such all it takes is a drive to momentarily lapse into a dual-carriage mode for an accident to happen along that stretch, and it is a long stretch one can easily forget. So, the contractor has to answer for that.
how can he be saddened when he actually is the one sacrificing our people?