In a statement, Former ZANASU President Humphrey Milandile observed that it was unfortunate that the campaign to make the country clean has yielded no benefits despite the efforts from civic leaders, government and other stakeholders.
Mr Milandile who is also former Copperbelt University Students Union (COBUSU) president accused the citizenry of failing to take up responsibilities of maintaining their environment hence leading to the campaign’s failure.
“For the past decade there has been consented efforts by successive national governments to make Zambia Clean and health through the “make Zambia clean campaign. Successive governments have fought hard to ensure clean and health environment conducive for living by many Zambian’s.
“Unfortunately the campaigns, calls and hard work of civic leaders and the government to make Zambia clean has yield no benefit in actualising this dream. The problem lies with us the citizens, people are too irresponsible, primitive and careless to protect the environment. The minds of our citizens are clogged and needs thorough cleaning and rehabilitation if we are to achieve a meaningful keep Zambia clean campaign.
“In the pursuit to make the cities clean and health ,the government needs the support of every member of society to take a leading role to clean and safe guard our yards as well as other surroundings,” he said.
He said cleaning the environment should be the responsibility of all well meaning Zambians and not only the local authorities.
He called on the local authorities and schools to come up with deliberate policy to educate communities on the importance and need for a clean environment.
“Cleaning the environment is the duty of every citizen and garbage collection lies in the hands of the local authority. Currently the local authority has been tasked with cleaning and collection of garbage, this is an abnormality which has become normal due to lack of participation and responsibility by citizens.
“I would like to urge the councils, primary and secondary schools to educate citizens the need for a clean and health environment by inculcating a sense of responsibility. There is need for every Zambian to safe guard and clean the environment they are trading, residing and operating from.
“I wish also to urge our beloved citizens to show sense of responsibility, care and love for our environment, uncontrolled disposal of waste is causing a catastrophic chain reaction of environmental degradation resulting into disease outbreak such as typhoid, cholera, malaria and many other diseases,” he said.
He also commended the Kitwe who has continued to take a leading role in ensuring that the city is clean saying government and local communities should complement each other in perusing pursuing a clean Zambia.
“Further; I congratulate the Mayor of Kitwe City Council Christopher Kang’ombe for his relentless efforts to make the city clean and health. There is need for the community and the government to complement each others efforts in the pursuit to make Zambia clean and health.”
Plastic bags are a hazard to a clean environment as it stands now in Zed. A review in policy should be able deal with the menace. “Ban plastic bags and keep Zed clean”.
Yeah, but how on earth can this guy’s personal observation be attributed to COBUSU…!!!?
It is commonly said that ‘charity begins at home’. Indeed we shud introduce cleanliness as a subject matter to all our young from as early as kindergarten. If anything, we shud replace RELIGION as a subject from ALL school curriculums. Its done MORE DAMAGE than good in our society.
We shud seriously consider removing the ministry of RELIGION all together and appoint this young man; Milandile to Minister for RUBBISH COLLECTION with immediate effect. Birds in our forests ‘fly out’ for long hours to find food for their young. They DON’T just sit-by, waiting and expecting GOD to bring them food NO! Similarly, unless we ourselves start collecting RUBBISH, we’re doomed to die from these simple treatable diseases.
What a so called city? Shame!; Lungus has failed & his city council has failed us; how can a president or a leader worthy his or her salt be happy to see such mess?; To christopher I say well done; to Milandile I say thanks.
agony is when you pick a president from Tavern and you expect the streets to miraculously clean itself up.
He’s too busy globe-trotting, enjoying manone of an aeroplane to prioritize solid-waste management.
Milandile, you are spot on. Zambians are grubby people. Just yesterday I was driving behind a woman who was driving an expensive vehicle with her children inside. What I witnessed was appalling. This women was eating something in the car while driving. Then she opened her window and threw some plastic bag and an empty bottle of whatever beverage she was consuming. Now, considering that this woman was driving an expensive vehicle, one would assume that she is very well organized, civil, classy and appreciate cleanliness. For her to throw her garbage in the main road was really disbursing. I was left to wonder what example she was setting to her children. I just honked behind her continuously.
100% correct. Just see how our neighbors dump rubbish in drains. As for KK Airport, I would suggest that you don’t comment if you don’t have useful contributions to make. Your campaign is futile and a waste of bundles.
@Chester
you should have taken note of her vehicle registration number and reported her to the relevant authorities. Hooting continuously was not enough bra. These are the people tarnishing the good image of our country.
We need to learn some basics in Zambia. keep you environment clean by managing your own waste. This is as simple as do not litter and through used packaging material anywhere anyhow. Work hard to be the best that your and your family can be. Set person priorities right and aim to do the right things. It’s no wonder a person can emerge from squatting in a pit latrine, without even washing hands he/she enters in a Mercedes Benz or Jaguar to go and consume some expensive (usually imported) liquor. This is common in Zambia. We have lost it and we need to get back to the basics. Its not only Government’s responsibility to give us a descent life but ours as a people too.
It is interesting to read the views and comments on this timely call by a Mr Milandile. From the comments one can easily conclude that at least its not all Zambians that are primitive and careless with poor toxic mindsets towards the environment. It is true that we need to get to the basics, for me basics will mean building a new sense of responsibility among the citizenry especially the young. It is very unfortunate, that there tangible actions that follow pronouncements from government officials. We simply don’t have concerned leaders as far as waste management is concerned in this country and this is worrying fact. In contributing to correcting the situation I have been running a young organisation aimed at sensitizing the community on proper waste management and people including…
…….government officials will tell me its a good thing that you are doing but are never there for support or indeed compliment the efforts young individuals like us putting in to make Zambia a clean green and healthy country.
I cant agree more with Mr Milandile that making Zambia clean and healthy is everyone’s responsibility and everyone has to be reminded in one way on another. The realization of a clean healthy Zambia lays in the changed mindsets of Zambians towards waste. Sensitization is the way to go. parents have the responsibility of inculcating good environmental practices in their children by doing the right things not just talking but also acting their words.
A clean Zambia begins with you and me. If you can, search Angefe Solid Waste Managers on Facebook and see some…
#Ndanje Khakis, your Edger from Chawama is wasting money glob trotting and arresting the opposition yet he can not inspire Zambians to clean the cities. What kind of a president is he? Can he take his senior dictators to see such filthy? I think KK Airport has a point.
I think we can appoint one president of a party to head the clean up campaign! Let him be a manager! Because he has a degree in economics and there is not much he can steal from here, he can do better! Not State House!
Zambians need to appreciate the benefits of a clean environment. More bins on the roads and improved rubbish collection by Local Authorities will be helpful. Half the problems with health issues arise from the ridiculous amounts of rubbish and DUST.
But it is the mind of the people that will help remove this hazard.