TAX CHARCOAL, FIREWOOD, STATE TOLD

Sat, 23 Sep 2017 10:44:42 +0000

By Rogers Kalero

A MALAWIAN union leader is shocked that Kitwe City Council (KCC) has allowed the European Union (EU) funded multi-million Nakadoli market in Chimwemwe Township to become a white elephant.

Malawian Union for Informal Sector (MUFIS) organising secretary Getrude Witikan said it was surprising that after the government lobbied for the construction of such a beautiful infrastructure, the council had failed to negotiate with marketeers on how best it could be used to generate income for the local authority.

Ms Witikan was speaking on Wednesday afternoon when she toured the multi-million market in the company of Association of Vendors and Marketeers (AVEMA) general secretary Eliud Ponde, national treasurer Dorothy Chisanga and information and publicity secretary Francis Mwaba.

“I’m impressed with this piece of infrastructure, but I’m shocked that such a beautiful infrastructure has been turned into a ‘white elephant’. The council has to reorganise itself and put it to good use.

“If this building is put to good use by having a lot of marketeers, then the council will make money for itself,” Ms Witikan pointed out.

During the tour, Ms Witikan was informed that marketeers were shunning the market because of exorbitant rentals charged by the council.

Presently, only few vendors are occupying shops and stalls in the market amid complaints that there is no business in the market.

They claim they are reportedly being made to foot rental bills accrued by people who rented the shops before them.

After touring the market, Ms Witikan said the council should have negotiated with the marketeers and agreed on something affordable, instead of turning the infrastructure into a white elephant.

“Well, when things are difficult, you negotiate to meet each other half-way, instead of losing out completely. After the market was constructed, the council could have started charging affordable rentals and then start increasing gradually as things get better.

“If the rentals were affordable from the beginning, the market would not have become a white elephant. But it is now because the council wanted to get all the milk from the cow from the beginning.

“If the council wants to continue getting rentals from the marketeers, they should not charge exorbitant rentals,” Ms Witikan advised.

She urged the council and the market associations to reorganise themselves and ensure that the multi-million market infrastructure was put to good use because a lot of money was spent on the construction of the market.

And AVEMA Nakadoli market branch Daniel Chanda said business was bad and that marketeers were not selling, but literally guarding the market infrastructure.

“Because of no business, we have been reduced to mere guards. There is no business here,” Mr Chanda said.