Confusion marks city market re-opening

Tue, 16 Jan 2018 12:15:28 +0000

By KALOBWE BWALYA

AFTER a dry spell of not having money in their pockets, several street vendors yesterday caused commotion at Lusaka’s City Market after they forced their way into the market even before it was sanitized.

But the vendors ended their brief confusion upon seeing army and police officers who kept vigil at the premises.

The confusion follows government’s announcement that all street vendors who had been removed from the Central Business District would be relocated to City Market.

And police yesterday disrupted a planned protest march to State House and Cabinet Office by people believed to be street vendors who wanted to march to State house after they blocked the rowdy crowd and fired teargas canisters.

A check by Daily Nation in the morning at the entrance of city market found traders anxiously waiting to be addressed by market management following a directive from Minister of Local Government Vincent Mwale on Sunday that all vendors who used to trade in CDB would be accommodated in the gutted market as Government was looking for alternative trading space.

In an interview, City market chairman Gift Simusamba said traders would only be allowed after the market is cleaned and ensure that it had safe water and proper sanitation facilities.

Mr Simusamba explained that all the vendors would be accommodated, the priority being marketers who had stands before the market was gutted adding that they would share trading spaces with vendors.

Mr Simusamba said the market is expected to accommodate over 9, 000 marketeers, stating that the market had enough toilets and tap water was not a challenge.

He appealed to the traders to remain calm and allow works to be completed as everyone would be accommodated in the market.

Mr Simusamba said no vendor would be allowed to trade along the corridors as well as outside the market because the measure was temporal and appealed to vendors to report anyone charging them for trading space.

Mr Simusamba however said one person would not be allowed to trade alone on a stand but will share with vendors and no trader would be allowed to sell food in the market.

Meanwhile, police spokesperson Esther Katongo confirmed yesterday that there were a group of people believed to be vendors who gathered with intensions to march to State House, but were blocked by police officers at Kamwala area and where addressed by officials from the local authority.