Priority to conjugal duties is making some mothers in polygamous marriages to abstain from attending to outreach child health care services for growth monitoring in Katete District.

This is according to a Plan International Zambia report presented to the District Nutrition Coordinating Committee (DNCC) yesterday.

The report, which highlights the organisation’s third quarter nutrition activities in Katete, states that some mothers preferred attending to their marital needs than the health of their children.

“Some of the reasons advanced by some caregivers in polygamous marriages were that it was their turn to enjoy conjugal rights and that while attending a growth monitoring programme, another wife would attend to the husband,” the report reads in part.

The report has cited communities like Undi to have exhibited high levels of resistance to nutrition programmes such as growth monitoring outreach programmes.

The report says a child suffering from Edema, a severe malnutrition condition, recently died because the mother refused advise to take the baby to the health centre.

Further, the District Public Health Officer Chaonza Banda added that there was a village under Undi Community that had stopped attending any health activities.

Mr Banda added that another Village under Mzime had also stopped attending health activities that had been taken to the area.

According to Mr Banda some women have received threats that they will be banished from the village if the dare attend mother and child care health outreach activities.

He said this was especially observed during the last child health week, when the country recorded a lot of Covid-19 cases.

He added that one of the contributing factors to this was the rumor that there was a vaccine that was created and would be first tested on the African continent.

In reaction, the headmen instructed their people to refuse health services for fear of being injected with the Corona virus.

“And because of this, it affected the turn out and most parents, because of such a rumor, they would rather have their child die from home than being taken for injection which they were told was a Corona Virus injection,” he said.

The Committee hence agreed to engage the traditional leadership on these matters in order to come to array their fears and make them understand that health and nutrition programmes were meant for their own good.

The Committee also agreed to involve the District Child Protection Committee to enforce some laws, as denying children access to health services and nutrition services was infringing on the children rights to health, which is a form of child abuse.

Vice President Inonge Wina says Government will not create new boundaries for chiefdoms in the country.

The Vice President said this yesterday at Emusa Day Secondary School during a meeting with headmen and indunas of Senior Chief Magodi and Chief Phikamalaza in Chasefu District in Eastern Province.

Speaking on behalf over 100 indunas and headmen, Induna Enyegweni, Jacob Ndhlovu, told the Vice President that Government must help clear the boundary problems in the area.

“Now that you are here, there are problems from the two chiefs here. We want Government to be cleared over the chiefdom boundaries,” the Induna said.

The Induna also appealed to the Vice President to look into the water problem that people of Chasefu are facing.

“Because farming is a business, we depend on farming, we keep animals and we need dams and deep tanks,” he said

Induna Enyegweni lamented that people were using untreated water for drinking and other household needs.

In response, the Vice President clarified that the creation of new districts does not affect the boundaries of chiefdoms established in 1958.

“In the creation of new districts, Government cannot change the chiefs’ boundaries. Currently Government is still using the 1958 chiefs’ boundaries map. All these things that we are touching constituencies, wards and polling stations, there is nothing to do with chiefs boundaries,” Mrs Wina said.

However, Mrs Wina says Government is alive to the fact that the 1958 colonial maps do not take care of the increase in population and Government would consult chiefs to revisit the maps.

“We need to engage the chiefs once again because the population has increased and the boundary map we are using is from the colonial days,” she said.

The Vice President, who retained to Lusaka yesterday, says the new Minister for Water and Sanitation will soon visit Chasefu to appreciate the water problems in the distric

Mwinilunga District in North Western Province has been hit by a shortage of fuel forcing motorists to access the commodity on the black market at exorbitant prices.

The only filling station in the district has had no fuel for close to a week now forcing motorists to buy petrol as high as K40 and diesel at K35 per litre, compared to the official prices of K17.62 for petrol and K15.59 for diesel respectively.

Mwinilunga District Commissioner, Anort Mapulanga has confirmed the development to ZANIS in the district today.

Mr Mapulanga said his office has engaged management at the filling station and advised them to urgently resolve the fuel challenge.

And Bilex Kananda, a taxi driver complained that they are risking the safety of their vehicles because of using fuel from the black market whose quality is not guaranteed.

Mr Kananda said the situation has forced them to hike taxi fares within local routes due to the high prices at which they are buying fuel.

“We have no choice, but to increase the taxi fares because we are buying the fuel at exorbitant prices. Fuel prices keep increasing every day,” he said.

Another taxi driver, Mark Malichanga said business has become difficult because customers are not booking their taxis due to the hiked fares.

Mr Malichanga said the district is expanding and has a lot of economic activities, hence the need to have a reliable filling station to service the area.

Commuters are now paying as high as K50 on local routes which they have been paying K30 to K40.

The motorists have since called on oil marketing companies to consider investing in the fuel sector in the district.

Meanwhile, Mwinilunga Filling Station Manager, Tranex Lupinda attributed the fuel shortage to the long holiday, saying his company could not load fuel from Ndola because the fuel depots do not operate during holidays.

Mr Lupinda assured that the filling station is expected to receive fuel supplies within this week.

President Edgar Lungu says he will engage the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit(DMMU) to change the strategy in the distribution of relief support to areas which were affected by floods.

And President Lungu says he will work with Vice president, Inonge Wina and the Minister in her Office to consider increasing the food relief quantities in areas that were affected by the floods.

He cited the Chilubi swamps in Chilubi Island as one of the places which needs to have its relief food allocation and distribution increased due to the hunger situation which was caused by floods.

“I will urge DMMU to quicken the process and improve the quantities of food relief until you are food secure, I will sit down with the Vice President and the Minister in her office to see if we can change the strategy of delivery relief to our people so that we don’t have anyone dying of hunger,” he stressed.

Meanwhile, President Lungu said government will continue to engage traditional leaders in the delivery of development across the country, stating that chiefs have proved to be key partners in the developmental agenda of the country.

He explained that when late President Michael Sata formed the Patriotic Front party he had a vision of improving the wellbeing of vulnerable people especially in areas where chiefs are the custodians.

” All came from the village, all the Ministers, MPs, DCs and everyone else and you people our royal highness you take care of our needs, this is why as government we will work closely with you to ensure that development is taken to the people in your chiefdoms in order to improve their lives,” he said.

President Lungu added that chiefs also play a vital role in the promotion of peace and unity in the country for the benefit of the people.

And responding to the concerns that were raised by the traditional leaders, President Lungu said he will engage the area Member of Parliament, District Commissioner and the one who will be elected Council Chairperson to expedite all the development projects taking place in the district.

He cited the construction of schools, health facilities and roads among others as some of the key infrastructure that government will deliver to the people before 2021.

“I have taken note of all the challenges you have highlighted, I will work with your DC, MP and the Council Chairperson to ensure that the delivery of development is quickened,” he noted.

And a representative of the traditional leaders, Mulenga Fumbe thanked President Lungu for being the first Head of State to visit the area since independence.

Headman Fumbe said the traditional leaders in the area have resolved to support President Lungu who is visiting the area for the second time in his quest to bring development to the district.

” From the time we got independence, you are the first President who has visited us in Chilubi swamps, this place was not known which caused it to be underdeveloped, but now things are changing of which we are happy,” he said.

He also appealed to President Lungu to engage DMMU on the food distribution exercise, adding that people are starving and are in need of food assistance.