NOEL IYOMBWA writes
IN A bid to help the Lusaka City Council in garbage collection, Luburma Market has established a garbage collection committee, chairperson Mula Mwiya has said.
Mr Mwiya told the Parliamentary Committee on Local Governance, Housing and Chiefs Affairs that the issue of garbage had been a challenge.
The market had therefore come up with the committee which has been using resources from within the market to collect garbage and transport it to the dump site.
Mr Mwiya bemoaned the lack of water reticulation in the market and shortage of stands.
The market can accommodate 10,000 traders but is only 6,000.
He also explained that the market has political stakeholders but that they do not interfere in the running of the markets in regard to revenue collection.
Mr Mwiya said members of the committee are elected by marketeers to ensure it is politically neutral.
There is also a council advisory committee headed by the ward councillor.
Luburma Market Garbage Collection Committee’s chairperson Newton Samakayi said most challenges facing all the markets were the same.
Mr Samakayi said congestions was one of the common challenges and the way traders were charged.
He said the Lusaka City Council (LCC) was not benefitting much from the money collected from markets and bus stations.
Mr Samakayi urged LCC to investigate the matter.
He said political party branches should not be allowed in market places because they interfered with the normal operations of the facility and created confusion.
Mr Samakayi said a market place should embrace all people regardless of their political affiliation.
Mr Samakayi, who is also Mwinilunga Member of Parliament, said there should be no political activities in market places because they were supposed to welcome every citizen.
