President Edgar Lungu has directed all the three wings of the Defence Force to join the Ministry of Health and Lusaka City Council in escalated efforts to contain the spread of cholera in the city.
This morning the President reviewed the ongoing interventions led by the Ministry of Health and Lusaka City Council and came to the conclusion that emergency steps needed to be taken to stem the tide of the epidemic which has now spread to new areas outside the zones where the deadly waterborne disease broke out in October this year.
Government declared an outbreak of cholera in Lusaka district on 6th October, 2017 after confirming two cases that were presented to Chipata First Level Hospital, in Lusaka.
The outbreak has so far affected over 80 residential areas of Lusaka district with most cases from coming Chipata, Garden, Kanyama, Chawama, Matero, Kabanana, Garden house, Mazyopa, Chazanga, Misisi, Bauleni, Mandevu, N’gombe, Mtendere and John Laing.
More recently the outbreak has spread to low-density areas including Rhodespark, Woodlands, Balastone, Chelstone, Silverest, Chamba Valley and Ibex Meanwood among others.
Despite the commendable efforts and interventions instituted by multisectoral teams at all levels, the outbreak has continued with 1,550 cases recorded cumulatively with 168 undergoing treatment as at 06:00AM on 29th December 2017.
Lusaka has been recording an average of 60 new cases every day. The President notes with great sadness that a total of 41 people have died of the disease since its outbreak.
The outbreak was initially linked to contaminated water from shallow wells and unsanitary conditions in the residential and public areas affected. But we now note that the spread of cholera is being propagated through contaminated food as evidenced by the recent analysis of food samples such as mangoes, apples, fish, meats, and chicken obtained from various markets and street.
Among the cases recorded so far, the majority of those affected are traders, street vendors and people who have consumed raw and ready-to-eat food from the streets and some markets.
Analysis of food samples from restaurants and food handlers in Soweto market and some street vendors revealed contamination with feacal matter and vibrio cholerae, the bacteria that causes cholera.
In the last two weeks, three traders from Soweto market have died from cholera and 18 are currently under admission in Cholera Treatment Centers.
In view of the aforementioned, the President is deeply concerned at the rampaging advance of the outbreak and he has therefore called in the Defense Forces to join other stakeholders to work with MoH and thoroughly clean up Lusaka.
Affected areas such as Soweto market will be closed from tomorrow to allow for thorough cleaning. In order to facilitate the escalation of the response, all ministries are directed to work closely under the leadership of the Ministry of Health to bring the situation under control.
The measures to be prescribed by the Minister of Health from time to time may include the suspension of street vending in identified areas in order to allow for thorough cleaning, garbage collection and unblocking of drainages widespread decontamination.
There will be broad restrictions in the sale of raw and ready-to-eat foods including fruits, vegetables, meats, chicken, and fish on the streets and trading areas with unsanitary conditions.
The President expects the Defense Forces to work with Ministry of Health, Line ministries to report to him on daily basis on the progress they must make in the coming hours and days.
The President expects traders and the general public to cooperate fully with authorities when the order the closure of Soweto and other markets identified as the epicentre of the epidemic.
The Ministry of Health is also directed to immediately mobilize and deploy health staff to all affected and at-risk areas, to ensure adequate numbers are available to enhance our response and avert any more deaths.
All markets, bars, restaurants and other public places that do not meet the required public health standards and sanitary conditions and pose a risk to further cholera transmission will be closed until they satisfy the required hygiene standards.
The public is strongly urged to avoid and stop buying raw and ready to eat foods from the street and markets in affected areas.
The community deaths recorded since the outbreak was declared is very worrisome and therefore everyone is urged to ensure that those who develop diarrhea, vomiting or indeed not feeling well report to the nearest health facility immediately.
Citizens are further urged to adhere and comply with all the measures as stipulated in the Statutory Instrument Number 79 of 2017 on the control measures designed to arrest the spread of cholera.
The President has this afternoon communicated all these measures and other control interventions to the leadership of the Zambian Military accordingly.
Fake news or real news?
Not easy to tell any more.. nayishupa sana shosho media.
Whatever happened to prevention? Now, it is the army and guns going after the notorious fugitive – cholera!
Another reason president Lungu is the right man at the helm.
Awesome news. Cholera will be contained people.
Thanks
BB2014,2016
NO shame at all wearing a branded Football Jersey at State House!!
Lusaka times is for real news…for fake news read ZWD Zambian observer The Eagle kwacha news…..
You have lots of boreholes and septic tanks everywhere and you wonder where cholera is coming from?
Is Amos Chanda in charge of ministers now?
What a mess.
Shambles indeed, President Special assistant Amos Chanda chairing the meeting a civil servant in the presence of the Health Minister!!!
Mulusa told us to build a new capital city. Lusaka is too FILTHY!!
George Wear just won the elections and is inviting all friends to attend his inauguration.
Why is a spokesperson so powerful that he even chairs cabinet meetings?
One Zambia One Nation:Mwale, Chilufya, Chanda, Chomba, Malama!
This picture is replicated throughout the various Ministries in Zambia.
Army and Cholera? What is the link? Shoot all cholera victims? Cholera is a disease of filth. Get rid of filth=no cholera.
Cholera balemwipaya!!!
You do know that the Army has special divisions right? Though national service should be the ones handling this.
Filthy government. Filthy country.
It does not need to take the intervention of the President to stop this shameful epidemic. Stop street vending which is the source of garbage which the council is failing to collect. By the way where do all those vendors answer the call of nature?
It’s dununa reverse. We thought Zambia has eradicated cholera in the past years before the Koswe goverment. The last time we had such a serious outbreak was 1992 during the change over from UNIP. The great PF has taken us back that far. The populists policies of disorganized street vending is the cause of this out break. So shame to the PF. Cholera means filthy and that’s what PF cabinet is. Instead of praising chulufya for starting to fight cholera a normal president like mangufuli would fire chulufya this scandals.
#4 I agree with you, only if you clean up the cabbage produced by sellers if course allowed by the same government to operate and create filthy and disease, the cholera germs will be laughing and will still be with us.
-Step one, clean up
-step 2 provide sellers clean and conducive area to do their business.
-step 3 cabbage containers and collection must be a must.
– Bathrooms and toilets to have soap so people wash hands after toilet visits and eating.
– Step 4, we have won the battle against germs then we can go back and tell the opposition how hardworking a government we are.?
Comment:how can a large population of chilenje go for months with out water and expect things to be normal. now during holidays Lusaka water workers go for holidays and leave water pipes open. there is no longer water shortages, NO. It’s
done deliberately to close water. You can’t get water coming out in a high land, but go down the slope there is no water.
Garbage not cabbage boss
When I am in Zambia, I only ever eat at my mother’s house. I travel all day on the bus without eating anything. Beware of the little monsters. I suppose we should all worry less – the army is on the case, shooting the little blighters down! Lol.
Look at that useless Bishop crook wearing a Football Jersey on official govt duty …what a bunch of Kaponyas!!
Pf have borrowed close to $800 million, at different times , in The name of Lusaka water and sanitation…..what are the results ??
If you are officially a member of UPND, automatically, you suffer from a condition called Hahatred Hajelousy. It is manifested by failure to sleep at night, nightmares, vomiting insolence, delusions, hallucinations, lies, immaturity and fear of the unknown.
@victor kwata amano
Just tell us how you intend to keep us safe from cholera instead of diverting us.
This cadre bishop is Lungus choice and we can be sure Lungu would not notice any problem in his dressing even in a statehouse meeting. That is the mediocrity we have acquired through PF.
Its a real shame in England that Bishop would never be allowed in a nite club or some bars….in Zambia under Lazy Lungu he is the best dressed that’s what it come to. I remember back in the day under KK’s, FTJ, Mwanawasa rule,ministers wore ties when they were going to State House today its just a bar!!
Wasted Years!!
This is embarrassing, after 53 years of independence, we are still straggling with cholera due to lack of proper amenities and sanitation.
If anything, this should be the basic priority of any government, the infrastructure priority should be shifted from building roads to improving sanitation Chipata, Garden, Kanyama, Chawama, Matero, Kabanana, Garden house, Mazyopa, Chazanga, Misisi, Bauleni, Mandevu, N’gombe, Mtendere and John Laing.
I wonder if the newly planned 3-storey City Market will take in most of those street vendors, are those planning this market also considering the street vendors?
That’s wishful thinking …they will not even afford the rent, you can not have 20 people selling rape competing for same footfall!!
*….r*pe…
Cholera is a concocted catastrophe, one conceived by the ineptitude of our leaders – their inability and disability to think beyond conjecture. They are reactionaries who pick their direction based on which direction the wind is blowing.
Embarrassing and shameful indeed! To think we can have a spread of this preventable waterborne disease in this day and age in the supposedly modern city is beyond comprehension. They are failing at providing basic duty and services.
I have been hearing millions of dollars either donated or borrowed to improve water and sanitation systems since time immemorial. Where does all that money go to? It ends up enriching these thieving monkeys. I have never seen such looting and incompetence all combined by one political grouping.
And it’s a national crisis, why is the supreme humble leader not showing up to address the media and the nation, instead sending his vuvuzela mouthpiece. And this mouthpiece is supposed to be junior to all those ministers but look he is acting like he is their…
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And this mouthpiece is supposed to be junior to all those ministers but look he is acting like he is their boss. This is the time Lungu was supposed to show leadership and tour the affected areas instead of hiding under a rock. It was time a state of emergency was warranted.
Once it spreads to other provinces it will be hard to contain. In fact all those shanties affected, it will remarkable efforts to contain it. They will need to start quarantining people. And what will be the exact mission assignment for the defence forces?
The monkeys in the maize field
The president is an idi0t. The job of defense forces is not to clean drainages and filth but to defend territorial integrity of Zambia. People of Zambia are also responsible for not setting even the least acceptable standards of cleanliness and simple principles of hygiene in and around their homes. Why did we fight for independence when we cannot perform even the least intellectual tasks like generating clean drinking water?
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And this mouthpiece is supposed to be junior to all those ministers but look he is acting like he is their boss. This is the time Lungu was supposed to show leadership and tour the affected areas instead of hiding under a rock. It was time a state of emergency was warranted.
Once it spreads to other provinces it will be hard to contain. In fact all those shanties affected, it will remarkable efforts to contain it. They will need to start quarantining people. And what will be the exact mission assignment for the defence forces?
No country in the world deserves such a useless leader like ecl.
Cholera is homemade. It is a disease of our own creation. How ironical we must summon the army to come, shoot and kill it.
When it comes to President Lungu we are very selective: Favoring him.
Some of us for saw this when he was consuming the mango in a street. People around him call him a man of the people, Now look at the Side effects.
Get another $42,oooooooooooooooo loan from wherever… Zambians live in embarrassingly dirty environs.
Solution:build 42o dump sites buy 4,2oo refuse trucks + install 42o,oooo wilybins everywhr and employ 42o.ooo cleaners…zambia shall b clean, live clean b happy.dance hapelete.
I said it back in July that instead of unblocking and digging new drainages whilst its dry we are waiting for cholera, no planning no leadership!!
Zambia has had cholera every rainy season and you keep telling the people the same old stories. What happened to the disaster recovery team set up to deal with outbreaks such as Ebola and cholera? Is long-term planning such a difficult thing in Zambia? This is beyond childish.
The irony is the koswe rats have just indebted Zambia to the tune of $17 billion on roads that are being washed way and forgot about the toilet systems…..now cholera is comming to bite them….that happens with stolen things…..
The irony of the matter is that no demon shall ever rule Zambia!
Mate, you are preoccupied with who rules, rather than who is capable of providing services. For all I care even aliens from Mars can rule so long as they are able to deliver. Aren’t you really ashamed that your capital city is inflicted with cholera in 2017/18. You are the kind who is taking this country backwards to the stone age period. You really need to to check your conscience, whether you are a beneficiary of the looting or not.
With your seemingly big mouth, cholera will get rid of you soon.
Iwe chi lungu defense wings are already employed,why not capitalize on the large unemployed youths on a keep your city clean not every one can be traders iwe just that is a big employment opportunity.
A fraction of savings from putting your but on the chair can start a refuse collection company, and unblock drainage.
We are starting a new airline to bring tourists and foreign exchange to zambia , the real,africa.
I can see the slogan, come to zambia catch cholera
@#11, general Kanene, you are right! After so many years UPND is “STRAGGLING” with Hazaivotela Heve Heka to put him into power! He too is STRAGGLING with bu Under Five mentality like his angry supporters. He should issue a decree to all madonkis to begin kissing grounds wherever they live.
The PF allowed street vending in 2011 to gain votes , so its the PF that brought cholera.
Ban street vending completely. At least suspend it during rainy season. Let the lazy chaps enjoying sitting around on the streets go farming during rainy season. Security officers should catch whoever is vending in the street and send them to forced labour camps on farms. I assure you, the streets will be clean in no time.
Opportunity to ban street trading in town Centre for good. All street vendors to be jailed for 2 days, all illegal structures to be removed at night….bring order and sanity to the city….shishita ya mu suba.
Can you attract investors like this?
Is there Cholera in Syria? No?
Here comes Zimbabwe, take over Harare…the shameful Zambians have failed lamentably
It’s not the street vendors
Its the pit latrines, when last did the lusaka city council fully service plots with proper sewer and clean water systems.The whole underground water reservoir is contaminated no busali just send those soldiers back to the baraks they are not health workers.
Seriously, build markets, filler roads, better police detectives, autonomous wings of government. What is wrong with our government and the opposition?
ENFORCE REGULATIONS CONTROLS AND ADHERENCE TO CITY STANDARDS YOU FCUKERS!
JUST DO IT,
DAMN.
It’s only under pf that cholera has hit kumayadi, i remember the worst cholera epidemic in the 90s in kitwe in riverside we thought the epidemic was on Mars, cholera was synonymous with unplanned settlements. Why have zambians accepted to be reduced to this level? Under fonkofonko zambians would have gone babazonke, under kafupi the same, mwanawasa too, but under pf they have been hypnotised by something lazy evil.
There is no planning at all. You can set up whatever structure you want and sell whatever you want. The mastermind who decided that a minibus station should be set up opposite the SDA church in Libala 4b should be praised! There are no toilets there and people do their business in broad daylight everywhere! Modern Zambia!?! Very far away and will never catch up. And then you wonder where cholera comes from?!?Conclusion? We are a very dirty people.
Which part of Lusaka is clean if I may ask? Everywhere you walk the residents have peed and pooped. Almost all the places in Lusaka smell pee and poop. You have hundreds of vendors on the streets and you have no toilets for these people, they help themselves anywhere they see an opportunity to. The president is clueless and has no idea how to combat Cholera. Let’s just say the govt has no clue what they are supposed to be doing with the cholera issue. Making those directions will not help solve the problem, unless if you are trying to ask them to clean the drainage and build proper toilet and provide clean water everywhere. I hope this time lessons have been learnt and after the rains something will be done to avoid the outbreak next year.
Why has this govt failed the fight against cholera? Because they are too busy enriching themselves. You waited for cholera to be on steroids so that you can ‘effectively’ plunder the DMMU funds. Not so long ago MOH was distributing chlorine and installing water tanks to the supposedly will be affected communities, what happened to this plan, yeah it has failed because you don’t listen to us the people.
Relegating the army to start doing such work (this is not a disaster but an emergency that you let get out of hand) can only mean the people elected and/or appointed have no capacity to serve the nation. Any responsible leader would have the seen effects miles away of street vending(unsanitary trading surroundings), lack of clean running water etc. Maybe you should just arm the…
… expert:- Mr Nkandu Luo, she’ll single handedly deal with Vibrio cholerae. She’s a one man Microbiological commando
How can we have a mayor who talks about free Wi-Fi when he’s doing so little if anything towards the betterment of livliehoods of a people he claims to represent? So many misplaced priorities in this govt.
Do not forget that animals(birds) and fish(fish being a host) can also get cholera and so they will have to be contained. And also what happens if we have floods when our drainage systems suck?
Lastly I would like to take this opportunity to challenge the powers that be, that I can do better than they in serving the nation.
My friends you have made all the televant contributions and I agree that we should handle this easily from the experience we have with cholera. Just ban the fuc.kin street vending and you will have solved half the problem, you spineless politicians.
The only comment I will add is to also check my party, they have demonstrated that they want power at all costs, torching markets, spreading cholera is not beyond their imagination. But then our security wings are sleeping or infiltrated by all manner of politicians including lusambo ati minister!
OUR DIRTY FILTHY CHRISTIAN NATION, LEAD BY OUR HUMBLE SHAME
AMEN.
Lunacy at its best. How can one order the army to handle Cholera when we all know that this outbreak is as a result of poor water and sanitation situation? The army has never been trained to handle outbreaks such as Cholera, but to fight wars. The Cholera issue is best done by the same lunatic in State House by instead of buying fire engines, those funds could have gone to addressing the poor water and sanitation in all the locations that are historically prone to Cholera in Lusaka and across Zambia. The army cannot fire AK-47’s at cholera or lay land mines, or anti-tank rifles! This thug ECL is a dustbin case.
This is very embarrassing. Ministers and you know who should be walking around in shame. How can we have such an outbreak of cholera? This is like killing your own citizens with populist policies aimed at keeping you in power. Please do something with street vending? If you can’t remove them, provide sanitary facilities in the places they are.