Shop owners defy painting directive

SOME shop owners in the central business district (CBD) and Kamwala shopping centre have defied Lusaka City Council’s (LCC) directive to have their shops painted and to pave their corridors.

A check by Daily Nation found that most of the shops in CBD and Kamwala were not painted and their corridors were still not paved.

In an interview, Mr Abraham Sadar one of the shop owners expressed disappointment that despite the local authority’s directive for shop owners to paint most had not done so.

Mr Sadar regretted that the directive from government had been ignored and urged the local authority to penalise those that had defied the order.

He said painting of shops and paving were among the keep Zambia clean campaign initiatives aimed at keeping the city clean and healthy.

Another shop owner Mr Abel Chanda urged the local authority to enhance garbage collection to keep the city clean adding that there was need to bring sanity to trading places.

He observed that trading in undesignated places was the major contributor to the dirty and rapid accumulation of waste, especially in the CBD.

Meanwhile, Lusaka Town Clerk Alex Mwansa says shop owners must ensure that buildings were painted in light colours which look neat and “not unsightly crazy” colours.

Mr Mwansa said the Council had directed all shop owners in Kamwala and CBD to paint their shops and shop owners who wish to brand their buildings must ensure that logos and other writings were done in smaller print without covering the entire wall. Mr Mwansa said, directed all shop owners in Kamwala and CBD to paint their shops and shop owners who wish to brand their buildings must ensure that logos and other writings were done in smaller print without covering the entire wall.