Sat, 10 Dec 2016 12:04:47 +0000
RESIDENTS of Mindolo North in Kitwe have complained bitterly over the 31 houses which were on Monday demolished by the Kitwe City Council because they were allegedly built on illegal land.
Speaking on behalf of the residents, Mr Peter Chansa said that the residents were surprised to see that their houses were being demolished at the onset of the rainy season.
Mr Chansa confirmed to the Daily Nation that the residents were sold the plots by former councillors but could not be given tittle deeds for their plots.
Mr Chanda however said the known former councillors had assured the residents that they would be given title deeds but to their surprise the Kitwe City Council (KCC) decided to pull down their structures without notice.
He explained that the former councillors who sold them the plots had assured the residents that the land allocated to them was going to be legalised and should therefore not worry about the harassing them.
Mr Chansa said during the campaigns for the last general elections, some politicians had assured them that their plots, although illegal, would be normalised and that no resident was going to have their property demolished.
He explained that the residents whose houses had been demolished had been camped at Hellen Kaunda Secondary School but complained that even those who acquired the plots through the normal procedure have had their homes smashed.
Mr Chansa said that it was unfortunate that the residents who had remained in Mindolo North had continued building after they were assured by the previous civic leaders in the area that the land would be legalized.
He said it was inhuman for the KCC to have decided to demolish the houses soon after the start of the rainy season and that the residents had lost a lot of property and valuables.
Mr Chansa said the affected families were displaced in an inhuman manner and were finding it difficult to find alternative accommodation as it was not easy to secure shelter during the rainy season.
The residents have appealed to the Disaster Management and Mitigating Unit (DMMU) to look into their plight.
However, Kitwe City Council public relations manager Dorothy Sampa said the council had in the recent past advised the illegal settlers not to build in Mindolo North because the land was not fit for human habitation.
Ms Sampa said the land which the residents of Mindolo North had illegally occupied was given to the local authority by Mopani Copper Mines three years ago to be used as a dump site.
Ms Sampa said some unknown group of people calling themselves the Luyando community have been illegally allocating land to unsuspecting citizens, claiming to be representatives of the local authority when in fact not.
