LCC face court action
THE Ministry of Local Government and Lusaka City Council (LCC) risk being dragged to court by Kalundu residents after failing to halt the construction of a mall in the area after a 24-hour ultimatum given by the residents’ legal team was ignored.
In a letter dated January 4, 2017 addressed to the Town Clerk and copied to, among other institutions, Ministry of Local Government, the lawyers had given a 24-hour ultimatum to halt construction by Shumeite Holdings Limited because it had not complied with most of the conditions set out by ZEMA. The lawyers said further to the continuation of the judicial review over the matter, their clients did not agree to any Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to be signed among the council, the developer and residents. They also demanded that if the local authority failed to adhere to the residents’ concerns within the stipulated time, they had been given full instructions to sue as attempts to legalise a structure would never be condoned. “We confirm that we have now received our client’s full instructions. Our instructions are that the Judicial Review proceedings commenced by our clients against the council will not be withdrawn and will proceed until this matter is fully determined. Our further instructions are that our client did not agree to any MoU to be signed between the council, the developer and our clients. “Our instructions are that you comply with your statutory responsibility and request that any developments should stop forthwith. Should we not have a response within the next 24 hours, our client’s fully reserve their legal rights against the Ministry of Local Government and the council for purportedly authorising continuation of the project without due regard to the law and the pending Judicial review proceedings,” the letter reads in part. Meanwhile, one of the immediate neighbours, Mutale Mulenga, has written to ZEMA regional manager, chronicling the conditions that Shumeite had abrogated with impunity and asked for the agency’s immediate intervention. “Consent has not been given by immediate neighbours nor have we been in any discussion to grant approval while the proximity of the building to adjacent neighbours’ wall is less than the 3 metres stipulated. Our wall has been damaged/ dropped by the contractor as a result. “The extreme noise pollution has disturbed our guest house business thus we have incurred losses to generate revenue. My immediate family and infant son are under constant duress disturbing our sleep patterns and we are experiencing headaches because of excessive noise,” reads Mr. Mulenga’s letter in part. But a check by the Daily Nation at the premises yesterday found construction had continued with the project now reaching the third floor.