TRANSPORTERS BOYCOTT INPUT DISTRIBUTION

TRANSPORTERin Chipangali have boycotted participation in the distribution of farming inputs under the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) for the 2020/2021 farming season.

They complained that Government still owes them money for transporting seed and fertiliser during the 2019/2020 farming season.

Government has in the past engaged transporters to move seed and fertiliser from the central sheds to cooperative centres.

However, transporters in the distributions of inputs from Mugubudu sheds to cooperatives centres have shunned the exercise this year because they have not been paid for previous season's exercise.

A check at the Mugubudu shed revealed that farmers were organising their own transport to ferry inputs to their destinations.

One of the farmers, Mr James Nkhoma, said transporters complained that they had not been paid for the transportation of inputs last season.

Mr Nkhoma, who is from Chanje East Agricultural block, said that leaders of cooperatives societies were now asking their members to contribute money to facilitate the transportation of inputs to their destinations.

''We have no option but to ask our members to contribute money so that we are able to deliver inputs closer to them," he said.

Meanwhile Mr Nkhoma commended Government for the timely distribution of inputs to farmers, despite the challenge of transport to ferry fertilisers and seed to farmers’ destination. Early this year, a meeting was held in Chipangali where transporters complained that they had not been paid after Government engaged them to transport inputs from Mugubudu shed to different cooperatives.

Some of the transporters said they had to sell some of their assets to buy fuels in order to remain in business because they had not being paid.