The Zambia Electricity Supply Company (ZESCO) says power supply will be restored in Solwezi district and other parts of North Western Province that have been affected by power cut within 48 hours.

ZESCO Public Relations Manager, Henry Kapata told Zambia News and Information Service (ZANIS) in Solwezi today in a telephone interview that yesterday around 17: 00 hours, ZESCO experienced a shock at Solwezi main substation on the 11KV panel board thereby causing power cut to Solwezi, Kasempa and Lowana.

Mr. Kapata however said ZESCO has mobilized a mobile Substation from Lusaka which is on its way to Solwezi to help restore power to the rest of the areas that are still affected.

He said alternatives have been provided to the hospital and several other critical institutions.

Mr. Kapata said critical institutions like the hospital are supposed to alternatives such as generators to use when hydro power is withdrawn.

“Yesterday we experienced a shock at our Solwezi Main substation on the 11KV panel board…and so we have since been able to restored supply to Kasempa, Lowano…Solwezi-Chingola Road customers are back on course as a result of the alternatives that have been put in place”

“We have also mobilized a mobile substation from Lusaka to feed the rest of the places that were affected,” he said.

Mr. Kapata said power will be restored in the affected areas within 48 hours.

Central Province Minister, Credo Nanjuwa is saddened by the behaviour of directors of some mining companies in Mkushi District who run away from government officials that visit their firms.

Mr. Nanjuwa says government dignitaries should be accorded the respect that they deserve by investors especially that they are there to serve the interest of the people.

Speaking when he met directors of some mining firms from Mkushi at his office in Kabwe, Mr. Nanjuwa explained that government dignitaries that visit the mining firms do so on behalf of the president who wants to know the welfare of the people in various areas.

He said the licenses that the mining firms acquire have conditions on them and that it is the duty of government officials to see to it that the guidelines are being adhered to.

And True stone Mineral Processing Limited Director, Mathews Sikanyika has commended government for its efforts in trying to dialogue and find solutions to the challenges that mining firms are going through.

Mr. Sikanyika said the major challenge that mining firms in Mkushi are facing is the delay by Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) in approving permits for companies.

Mr. Sikanyika said the delay by ZEMA to approve permits creates anxiety and room for people to start operating illegally.

He appealed to government to quickly intervene by cutting the bureaucracy that is at ZEMA so that work is expedited.

Meanwhile, Director of Datong Industry, Alex Lee appealed to government through ZEMA to standardize the design of wash plants in the mining firms.

Mr. Lee complained that when one applies for construction of the wash plant, ZEMA would approve it, then after the projects advance and sometime when it is near completion ZEMA would come for inspections and direct that the construction should be erased because it is wrong.

He said the work attitude at ZEMA should be revised so that it benefits both the government and the investors.

The Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) has come to the aid of the 1, 200 Main Masala Kapalala market fire victims by providing them with a 25kg bag of Mealie meal, 5kg Rice, 5 kg Beans and K1, 000 each.

ZANIS Ndola reports that DMMU Director of Operations Mr Paul Lupunga who delivered the relief items at the district administration said the Vice President Mrs Mutale Nalumango had fulfilled the promise that she made when she visited the victims at Kapalala market of sending them relief.

Mr Lupunga emphasised that the items were not compensation but rather relief to help lessen the burden that has befallen them as they are going through the trying moment.

And Ndola District Commissioner Joseph Phiri said the district was elated to receive the relief that the Vice President had promised.

Mr Phiri said the fire that burnt the market had not only affected Kabushi residents but rather the entire district because the market in question houses marketeers from all over the district.

“It’s not only Kabushi residents that have been affected, that market houses people from Chipulukusu, Chifubu, Kawama and many other areas, so that fire has affected the entire district,” he said.

Ndola Mayor Jones Kalyati thanked the Vice President through the DMMU for quickly responding to the victims and further encouraged the victims to be positive and refrain from negative confessions.

The Mayor has further warned those that want to take advantage of the situation that had befallen their friends, by pretending to be victims as well to stop the pretence and let the rightful victims benefit from the relief.

In her vote of thanks one of the victims, whose merchandise was burnt in the inferno, Esther Ngoma thanked the Vice President for honouring her promise in the shortest possible time.

Ms Ngoma said the relief food will help the affected families a lot as they had nowhere to turn to. She added that the K1, 000. cash would help her order some tomatoes to start with, so that she can revamp her business.

Ndola’s Main Masala Kapalala market was on Tuesday night burnt leaving about 1, 200 marketeers’ affected.

Meanwhile, all marketeers who lost their merchandise in the fire that recently swept through Riverside market and those whose restaurants were burnt at Kapiri-Mposhi Bus Stop in April this year have received relief emergency grants from the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) under the Vice President’s Office.

This is in fulfilment of Republican Vice President Mutale Nalumango’s pronouncement yesterday, when she toured the gutted market, that government through DMMU will provide each affected marketeer monetary relief of K 1000, a 25 KG bag of mealie meal and 10 kg bags of rice and beans respectively.

The relief package is meant to cushion the impact of the loss of their businesses.

And speaking when he witnessed the payment of the traders at his office yesterday Kapiri-Mposhi District Commissioner, Francis Hasalama stated that government released K 80,000 to pay all the affected marketeers.

Mr Hasalama says further assistance inform of reconstruction of market stands will be provided to affected marketeers.

” These marketeers have come to get what the Vice President assured them of yesterday regarding their merchandise lost in fires recently at Riverside Market and earlier in April at Kapiri-Mposhi Bus Stop,” Mr Hasalama said.

And DMMU Central Province regional Coordinator, Mwansa Subulwa says the affected marketeers will also soon receive food relief packs.

Beneficiary marketeers have commended government through the DMMU for swiftly coming to their aid.

Getrude Mutambo who lost over K 17,500 worth of merchandise in form of bags of dry Kapenta says even if the money she has received is not as much as she lost in the inferno, it will give her something to restart her Business.

Ms Mutambo says she will use the money as start up capital for her business at the trading site.

” I order a bag of Kapenta at K 3000. So, I will just look for a top-up to order a bag and I will get by slowly,” Ms. Mutambo said.

Over K 615,000 worth of merchandise were destroyed Monday this week after fire swept through a storage house and about 27 shops at Riverside Market in Kapiri-Mposhi district.

Government through the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) under the Vice President’s Office has come to the aid of 69 marketeers who lost their merchandise in an inferno which recently swept through Riverside Market in Kapiri Mposhi district.

And a further seven traders who lost their goods in a fire that gutted their restaurants and shops at Kapiri Mposhi Bus Stop in April this year have also been provided with relief.

Vice President, Mutale Nalumango disclosed the development in Kapiri Mposhi yesterday when she addressed the affected traders after touring part of the burnt down Riverside Market.

Mrs Nalumango stressed that President Hakainde Hichilema and his government do not take lightly any stumbling block to efforts being made by any Zambian to better their livelihoods.

” Government was deeply saddened about the fire incident and has provided this little support to commiserate with you. Receive this little support as you find ground to get back your livelihoods after the tragedy that struck you,” Mrs Nalumango said.

Meanwhile, Mrs Nalumango has described as evil if the burning down of the market was intentional as a lot of families subsist from the trading site.

The Vice President urged marketeers to be cautious and not to leave fire in their stands to prevent similar calamities in future.

” This is not good… it is evil if this is a form of sabotage by some individual of which we are not saying it is because it could also be accidental. But marketeers should ensure they protect the markets and they don’t leave fire in their shops to prevent similar accidents,” Ms Nalumango said.

Ms Nalumango explained that each affected marketeer will be provided with monetary relief of K 1000, a 25 KG bag of mealie meal and 10 kg bags of rice and beans respectively.

K 615,000 worth of merchandise were destroyed Monday this week after fire swept through a storage house and about 27 shops at Riverside Market in Kapiri Mposhi district.

The merchandise includes bales of second-hand clothes, grains, groceries and farm produce belonging to marketeers at the trading site which has been burnt to ashes.

The infernal whose cause has not been established yet is believed to have started around 03:00 hours.

Meanwhile, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Garry Nkombo says there is need for Riverside Market to be relocated to a safer location away from the railway line to avert impending accidents involving trains and traders.

Mr Nkombo observes that the market is too near to the Zambia Railways line potentially exposing traders to accidents.

” I’m a little bit concerned to see that this market is right near the railway line … I’m afraid a bigger accident can happen here. You are not safe and we need to find a better trading place,” Mr Nkombo said.

” I’m not saying we are chasing you from here but we need to sit down and talk to find a lasting solution,” He added.

And Kapiri Mposhi Constituency Member of Parliament, Stanley Kakubo has thanked both President Hakainde Hichilema and Vice President Mutale Nalumango for taking interest in the burning down of Riverside Market in his area which he said greatly disturbed lives of families of affected marketeers.

Mr Kakubo who is also Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister, explained that the swift response to the tragic event is an indication of how government values it’s people in the district.

The Vice President was also accompanied to Kapiri Mposhi by Minister of Green Economy, Collins Nzobvu, Copperbelt Minister, Elisha Matambo and Central Province Minister Credo Nanjuwa.

And delivering a vote of thanks on behalf of the marketeers, Riverside Compound Chairperson, Musaka Chiboleka commended government for coming to the aid of the traders.

Lukanga Water and Company Limited has come up with an initiative to turn human faecal matter into organic manure to boost the operations revenue for the company.

Director of Engineering, Nyongo Phiri told Water and Sanitation Permanent Secretary, Joe Kalusu during his familiarisation tour in Kabwe that the programme is targeting households not connected to pipe sewerage.

“We have put up a system of emptying on site facilities such as pity latrines and septic tanks and providing treatment for the waste that we collect and after treatment it is good enough and can be used as soil conditioner and manure”, he said.

Mr. Phiri added that the company intends to start selling the product very soon which we will also help to raise some operational revenue for the company.

Meanwhile, Mr. Kalusa said government is concerned that citizens are deprived of safe drinking water because the infrastructure in the sector has outlived its usefulness.

“Part of the things we have observed it that the infrastructure has lived its life as most of it is old making it difficult to provide the service and as government we trying to see on how we can improve it,” he said.

Mr. Kalusa also disclosed that he was also doing the monitoring on the usage of funds meant for water reticulation in the all the districts of the province.

“As you can see here the infrastructure here the pumps are over 30 years old, they have lost the efficiency and they are just gobbling a lot of money when it comes to consuming of Zesco power,” observed Mr. Kalusa.

He added that government has sourced some funds to reconstruct the Mumbwa Dam which was washed away in 2020 as it was the major water source for the people there.

The Lusaka City Council (LCC) working in close collaboration with the African Enterprise Southern African Region (AESAR) and Jesus Care Ministries (JCM) have launched the Serve the City Initiative.

Speaking when she graced the flag off of the ten (10) days clean up exercise called Serve the City Initiative, Lusaka Mayor Chilando Chitangala highlighted that the launch of the clean-up exercise is important as it is going to assist in sensitizing the public on cleanliness and discourage the behaviour of indiscriminate dumping of waste.

Ms Chilando stated that the Lusaka City Council is committed to ensuring that it maintains standards of cleanliness in the city and suburbs through such initiatives such as the one done by the African Enterprise Southern African Region and Jesus Care Ministries.

“It is efforts such as these that will help manage ward off outbreaks such as Cholera and COVID-19, which have ravaged the lives of many people,” Ms Chitangala stated

She added that the Local Authority needs more concerted efforts from stakeholders and citizens to achieve a Clean, Green and Health city.

And speaking at the same event, African Enterprise Southern African Region team leader Dr Lutangu Lubasi encouraged traders operating in the Central Business District (CBD) and the residents of Lusaka to always clean their surroundings, trading places and not to dump garbage anyhow.

“Atleast throw garbage in designated areas,” Dr Lubasi said

Meanwhile, Jesus Care Ministries Executive Director Ms Margret Katayi cited that the exercise that has been launched will be for all Constituencies in Lusaka.

“The cleaning exercise will be coupled with preaching the gospel in accordance to their outreach program,” Ms Katayi noted