Friday, March 29, 2024

Mutati promises to increase Chief Machiya pontoon capacity

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Works and Supply Minister Felix Mutati says his Ministry will increase the Machiya pontoon capacity in Mpongwe district so as to ease the the delivery of goods and services in the area.

Speaking when he paid a courtesy call on Chief Machiya during his visit to the area Mutati assured the traditional leader that government is aware about the challenges the people in his Chiefdom are facing and that one of the pressing challenges was that of people crossing the Kafue river to access goods and services.

He said he was in the area to familiarise himself with the services of Engineering Services Cooperation in the area which is under his Ministry after being been told about the needs of the people in the area.

He said the pontoon size was a major concern for government as it was hindering economic development to the area as those with heavy farming equipment cannot cross to the other side.

“We also recognise that development is a continuous journey and that there are two outstanding issues that need to be addressed in particular you made reference to the Mpongwe-Machiya road which you have indicated has remained a song for the last 5 years. Your Royal Highness, we take this as a priority from the government perspective.

Even His Excellence has placed a lot of premium on this particular road because of the developmental and economic impact that it will have not only for your Chiefdom but also for Mpongwe in general.

Your royal highness, I will take this matter up within our government system so that we can come to a termination of that song that has been sang for 5 years,” he said.

Mr. Mutati added that “Let’s translate it into productive output. So, through the District Commissioner, we shall be communicating the actions that government is going to take regarding the Mpongwe-Machiya road”.

“The second issue that you referred to is one of the pontoon. As you know under the Ministry of Works and Supply one of the institutions that we have got is called ESCO and we have its Managing Directors here who has been insisting that I visit the pontoon because of your plight, in particular that the pontoon has limited capacity and is unable to support the agricultural produce in the area particularly fertiliser and maize and that it has limitations even to support other forms of agricultural produce in the area.
But equally important he has indicated that the frequency of crossing is also impacting on the school going children to cross the river and as he indicated in some cases we have had our people meeting their fate at the jaws of Crocodiles that are in the river,” Mutati noted

The Minister affirmed that the pontoon issue had already been given attention by ESCO which considered to increase the size of the pontoon and the frequency of crossing the river.

Mutati added that government under the leadership of President Edgar Lungu has embarked on infrastructure development in different parts of the country.

He has since assured Chief Machiya that the hardships of transportation and accessibility faced by residents of Mpongwe, will soon be history.

Earlier Chief Machiya of the Lamba people of Mpongwe made a passionate appeal to the government to help ease problems associated with transportation in the area, by providing the people with a briedge to guarantee.

He complained that the people have found it difficult to undertake their normal daily business activities, as some of them have resorted to the using of boats to conduct their daily activities something he said was a danger to their lives due to the infestation of Crocodiles in the river.

4 COMMENTS

  1. Well it is a good idea to increase the capacity of the pontoon. however, as more toll gates are being constructed, it will be ideal to connect Mumbwa to Mpongwe. from Kafue river to mumbwa it 130 km. this means commercial farmers in Mpongwe would have thse shortest route to reach Lusaka

  2. Pontoon ideas yakale mwebantu. Every other year it will be repairs, repairs and even more repairs of that pontoon. Just ask tuma CHONCHOLI to build a bridge over the entire river, finito…

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