Sun, 05 Mar 2017 09:46:01 +0000
By ROGERS KALERO
POLICE in Kitwe yesterday arrested and detained 35 Salaula street vendors for riotous behaviour when they tried to return to the city corridors after the council had removed them almost two months ago.
Copperbelt Police Chief Charity Katanga confirmed the arrest of the vendors and said they have been detained at Kitwe Central Police Station.
Ms Katanga said, out the 35 vendors arrested and detained, 25 were women and the rest were men.
“Around 11.00hours, a marketeer identified as Bana Mpundu went into Chisokone market and told the vendors that she had received information from Lusaka that the vendors had been allowed to go back to the city corridors, “When council police tried to remove them from the city corridors, the vendors resisted until the State Police moved in. So 35 vendors have been arrested and detained at Kitwe Central Police Station,” Ms Katanga said.
Earlier police and salaula street vendors fought running battles after the vendors attempted to return to the city corridors but were met with force from a combined team of State and council police who moved them back to Chisokone market.
The Police were forced to fire teargas canisters after some vendors started to throw stones at the council police whom they insulted and called all sorts of names.
And Kitwe Mayor Christopher Kang’ombe vowed that the Kitwe City Council (KCC) would not allow street vending and those who wanted to dare the local authority would face unpleasant consequences.
But, when State Police arrived on the scene, the vendors scampered in various directions, while others started throwing stones at State and Council Police.
But their efforts to fight the combined force of State and Council Police fizzled out as they had no support of the marketeers at Chisokone market and members of the public.
The marketeers at Chisokone market and members of the public rubbished the unruly behaviour of the vendors, saying they were also in full support of the council’s decision to remove
vendors from the city corridors.
One of the vendors, Sylvester Bwalya advised his colleagues to stop waging battles with the police over street vending because the issue of vending was a closed chapter.
“Vending Yalipwa Kulaba ko fye. Elo ifi ifya kulalwa na ba police filaletelela meaning street vending is a closed chapter and so those vendors who want to wage battles with the police, they may just cause problems on themselves,” Bwalya said.
When contacted for a comment over the confusion created by street vendors who wanted to return to the city corridors, Mr Kang’ombe said the council would not allow vendors to
return to the city corridors.
