Mon, 25 Sep 2017 14:21:51 +0000
By Mukosela Kasalwe
THE Millennium Challenge Account water reticulation programme has finally been rolled to Mandevu’s Justin Kabwe Ward and this mov,e which has elated resident,s will increase sewer usage and reduce water leakages, says Patriotic Front councillor Teddy Mwaba.
Mr Mwaba said he was happy that the Millennium Challenge Account water reticulation programme had finally been rolled to Justin Kabwe Ward as the development would tackle water challenges.
He said the aim of the project was to improve water reticulation and increase sewer usage as well as reduce on leakages.
Mr Mwaba said the water project was worth commending and a plus to the expanding community. He said the ruling Patriotic Front had well-meaning intentions to uplift the living standard of its citizens and the people of Justin Kabwe Ward.
“The water project will improve water reticulation and increase sewer usage and reduce on leakages,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Mwaba said as councillor he was taken aback in the manner the contractor engaged had side-lined the local people in terms of offering them jobs but instead came with expatriates.
He said President Edgar Lungu has been emphasising the need for local people to benefit from such projects but that this was not the case with the ongoing water project.
Mr Mwaba said the excuse given to him by the contractor was that they had trained and specialised personnel but he noted that the contractor could have trained the youth and equipped them to take up responsibility before the excavation works.
And Mr Mwaba has appealed to the Ministry of Health to speed up the process of issuing mosquito nets to the area. He said recently Health personnel carried out a registration exercise to capture households and people who needed mosquito nets.
He said the two schools namely, Mutambe and Justine Kabwe and the two police posts were not having it easy to go about lessons and duties well.
Mr Mwaba said toilets and classrooms were pest-ridden with mosquitoes and that he did not want to see a situation where pupils abscond lessons due to mosquito bites as they were approaching examinations and that suspects in custody could equally suffer from malaria ailments.
