We’re all to blame for litter, say traders

Wed, 26 Apr 2017 12:10:48 +0000

By KALOBWE BWALYA

TRADERS in the central business district of Lusaka have charged that the maintenance and collection of garbage should not be the responsibility of council alone, but their involvements is critical.

In an interview with  the Daily Nation, Samson Kafwaka said there was need for the local authority to carry mass awareness campaign on litter and waste disposal because the council could not work alone in the garbage collection as traders, also needed to share some responsibility.

Mr. Kafwaka said that litter had become a global disaster and many towns and cities were beginning to choke with the scourge and Zambia was not an exception.

He said there was need for concerted efforts from various players and application of new methods to manage litter and garbage.

‘’The issue of garbage in the city is a big concern that needs everyone’s attention if it is to be worked on and become a thing of the past. We cannot have a clean environment if every time we think it is only the responsibility of the council to manage the garbage that we have disposed of as citizens,’’ he said.

Another trader Abel Chalwe said every marketer like any other citizen needed to operate and conduct their businesses in a clean and safe environment.

Mr Chalwe urged fellow traders to take charge of their work places and ensure that they kept them clean at all times.

He said it was not fair that garbage was being accumulated by traders, but traders were always shifting the blame on the local authority, hence the country had an enormous task of changing the negative attitude of citizens towards careless litter and solid waste disposal.

“No matter how small it shall still have a negative effect on society as it is dangerous, unhealthy and if not controlled in time can have devastating effects on the environment which we are seing today,’’ he said.

And Lusaka district commissioner Davies Mulenga said Government was committed to ensuring that Zambia became a litter-free country.

Captain Mulenga said that Government however required the efforts of stakeholders and ordinary citizens to ensure that together they could mitigate and control garbage disposal.

Captain Mulenga said Government was working on strategies that could help recycle garbage into items like bottles and shoes, among many other things, to provide employment for youths and women.

‘’As Government we are dedicated to ensure that our country is clean and safe from diseases that can break out as a result of having uncollected garbage and make the environment safe for all citizens and for this we require that every citizen be responsible and ensure that they dispose of garbage in the designated places at all times,’’ he said.