Mon, 24 Apr 2017 10:06:47 +0000
By KALOBWE BWALYA
GOVERNMNTENT will be forced to recommend to President Edgar Lungu to sign a compulsory acquisition of the Katondo building that has been standing uncompleted for many years and has become a danger to the public, says Housing and infrastructure development Ronald Chitotela.
Mr Chitotela said he has written to Lusaka city council over the building and if the owner did not come to claim it by the end of this year he will recommend to President Lungu to sign a compulsory acquisition.
Speaking during the PF Interactive forum in Lusaka yesterday, Mr Chitotela said the building had been standing in the city for many years uncompleted and has become life threatening and making the city look even dirtier.
“That Katondo building has been standing for a longer period of time and if the owner does not show out by the end of this year’s then it will become government property so that we can put a better infrastructure that can add value to the people of Lusaka,” said Mr Chitotela.
Meanwhile Government has released K400, 000 to National Housing Authority (NHA) to clear worker’s arrears who have not been paid for many months.
But Mr Chitotela has since warned NHA that government would not continue supporting them, instead they should find other means of sustaining themselves.
He said it was not fair that NHA should continue to be dependents on government support because it had a lot of commercial properties and houses that were on rent.
He was aware that some people who signed agreements with the authority years back were sub-renting out houses to other people, while NHA was making loses such as on Yumba Yanga houses.
Mr Chitotela wondered why the authority was not making profits despite them owning Fideco and Indeco houses in central business district.
“We have a lot of houses in Nyumba Yanga that are not bringing in any profit to government at all because people have started renting out houses to other tenants at the high price and each time HNA wanted to increase the rentals people organize themselves and resist the increase,” said Mr Chitotela.
Mr Chitotela however intends to engage Private and Public Partnership to ensure that there was transparency in the manner the authority operated.
