Kabwe Municipal Council yesterday swung into action and demolished makeshift tables for vendors at the Green market in a bid to maintain cleanliness in the city centre.
The action was conducted by the department of Public Health between 02:00 hours and 03:00 hours which aimed at cleaning the streets.
Kabwe Municipal Council Public Relations Manager Annie Mumba told ZANIS that the process was on-going and stressed that the Council was mandated to keep the town clean and safe therefore would not allow dirt in town.
Ms. Mumba said that traders were allowed to trade in the streets but not to leave their commodities in places where they sold their merchandise.
She said the demolition only involved marketers who leave their tables and merchandise on the street after knocking off.
Ms. Mumba noted that the tables could cause harm to nearby shops in an event of a fire outbreak and would lit up the whole town adding that removing the merchandise and tables from the streets would give the council ample time to clean the town.
She appealed to members of the general public to help the council by buying from designated places.
“Buyers should stop buying from the streets to encourage the people to start trading in the market seeing that there is enough space for everyone,” Ms. Mumba said.
She further said the Council had carried out an inventory and found out that there was enough space for traders in most markets in Kabwe.
“Findings were that there is ample space for every one, am therefore appealing to the marketers to start trading in the markets,” she said.
Meanwhile, marketers expressed displeasure at the council for demolishing the stalls without notifying them.
One of the marketers spoken to by ZANIS accused the Council of depriving them their right to trade in the streets and also to earn a living.
“We are not thieves…We did not steal those things for them to destroy and bring the police to inconvenience our business,” said Jennifer Mfula.
And United Street Vendors Association Provincial Coordinator Morris Mulenga appealed to the vendors to work hand in hand with the Council in ensuring that the town was clean.
Mr. Mulenga said his executive had a meeting with the department of Public Health and agreed to comply with the Council’s directive.
Well done Kabwe municipality.There must be sanity in our corridors in town.
What an anticlimax the heading of this article is. When I read “swing into action” I thought it was some earth shuttering kind of action. Ati to get rid of street vendors. This is the big accomplishment of that city council??
From what has been written it seems to me that it’s not the vendors that have been removed from the street per se but their tables. The council only demolished tables for those that leave their merchandise overnight because it renders cleaning difficult. Iam persuaded to believe that those that do not use tables but put their merchandise on sacks, for instance, will continue to trade because these can later carry their sacks back home. Can we therefore say that the vendors have been evicted?
And why didnt the Council dialogue with the marketers and make the Councils position known to them before burning them. The Kabwe Municipal Council must be praised for for embarking on the cleaning exercise but this is an advertisement of incoherence of policy – burn the tables but keep the vendors.
Very true,also vendors that operate in car park demarcations are highly inconveniencing not to mention its a danger to their lives.
The street vending issue is symptomatic of Zambian leaders not enforcing laws until it is too late. Police should have stopped the first person setting up an illegal market. After the illegal vendors reached 500 to 1000 it was too late. The number of street vendors outnumbered the police. Therefore it became difficult to enforce the law. In the developed world you have to stop activity and prevent it from growing. When other people planning illegal vending see their comrades being arrested they find other places to do their work. It sounds difficult but it is easy to do when you do it at the beginning.
The issue of street vending could have been resolved a long time ago, but the problem is that politicians have seen it as a way of generating votes, when you look at the way our corridors in town have been invaded, it is very shamefull because instead of moving forward in time (civilisation), we are moving backwards (primitivity).
All this because of politics
Yay, Super Mumba for Mayor! Kabwe is a small town (was when I was at home), and the problems created by those traders would affect the look and feel of the town.
Why would you leave your trading furniture laying around? Streets are not designated trading places. It’s dangerous and must hinder safe walkways for citizens.
More action in all towns please, especially Lusaka, I want to enjoy Lusaka when I come home in a few months. Can’t wait to see all the changes…….!!
This is a good move, This exercise has to be Conducted in Lusaka where Don’t kubeba Market is everywhere, on Police Entrances, Bank Entrances and in Toilets they are Vendors Selling. Where is the Council kansi? Fly over Bridges have been invaded by vendors. I was a vendor in Chiluba Government there was Order Coz Cairo Road was not Allowed to Vend there. Not this time around it’s every where. Next it will be State House Entrance. Shame Shame My Capital City naichula ya Zambia. No order.