GOVERNMENT has told the more than 3,000 squatters of Lukusuzi National Park in Lundazi District before October 10th this year to vacate the area.
Eastern Province Minister Malozo Sichone said when he addressed the squatters in Lundazi yesterday that the people must leave the area to allow the Government to start restocking the wildlife in the park.
He said the Government secured10 million Euros for the restocking of the wildlife.
The minister said at a meeting attended by provincia deputy permanent secretary Patrick Mwanawasa,Lundazi acting District Commissioner Mukule Banda and Provincial Joint Operation Committee(PJOC) members that there was need for the squatters to leave the park before the restocking exercise starts.
“Please leave the national park because we want to start restocking the wildlife,”he said.
Mr Sichone said there was no national and game park that was closed because the wildlife was generating resources for the country.
He said it was sad that the people were squatting in an area where they were no roads,schools and health infrastructure.
The minister said the people must move out in order for them not to be displaced during the rainy season.
Mr Sichone said the people must go back to their places of origin saying the Government through the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit would give them support during the exercise.
He said those without the place,Mbuluzi scheme was an alternative place for them.
And Samuel Banda who is Headman Chinjoka claimed that the squatters who are in the park have suffered since 2012 saying Zawa burnt their houses last year.
Meanwhile,Chieftainess Mwasemphangwe said the Government must deal with the squatters because the land in question was no longer hers as it was a state land.
The traditional leader said when the minister paid a courtesy call that it was disheartening that some people were trying to use her name in the controversial land.
“The land in question is no longer mine because that is a state land and you must deal with the people in the park,”Chieftainess Mwasemphangwe said.
She said she never allocated people the land in the Lukusuzi National Park because she knew that the land in question was not hers.
Most of the squatters are from Chiefs Kapichila,Zumwanda,Mwasemphangwe and Chikomeni respectively.
There is no such thing as 3,000 ‘squatters’ who live in a National Park – these are the people who the land belongs to.
Just a guess – they have not been paid the value of their land. Another guess, this National Park can look forward to lots of ‘poaching’ in future years.
Paving the way for Chinese “investors”?????
Comment:Animals too needs to live in peace
Ten million Euros,is it another loan? How many loans kanshi imwe guys ba PF? Soon we will hear of a Chinese ‘investor’ in the piece of land