Help stop illegal land sales, Chichele residents told

PEOPLE in Ndola’s Chichele area have been told to help identify and report persons who were illegal selling the recently degazzetted land in the area.

Ndola Mayor, Amon Chisenga, urged people to act as the council’s eyes by reporting individuals masquerading as council employees to the police in order to stop the illegality.

He was speaking during a meeting with the residents in the Chichele area on Thursday in an effort to address the land wrangles that have emerged in the area.

He said Government would not allow indiscipline by party and council employees as it was tarnishing the name of the President.

The Mayor appealed to the ward chairman to immediately dissolve the Ward Development Committee if is discovered that any party leaders were involved in the illegal allocation of land.

He said a list of names of people whose structures were demolished by the council would be submitted to find a way to handle the situation.

Meanwhile, Director of Planning, Thomas Simbule, said the local authority would not demolish the old houses in the Chichele area.

Mr Simbule said the area had been divided in two and that no plots were to be allocated in the recently degazetted area.

Also Town Clerk, Wisdom Bwalya, said it was women and children who mostly suffered during the land wrangles.

Meanwhile, the residents of Chichele Ward said they were extremely infuriated by the council’s decision to demolish their structures.

The residents said they were unhappy about the information that some of their structures would be demolished because over 10 hectors of the land had been sold to a foreign national.

They wondered why foreigners would be given priority over Zambians who were equally human being.

The residents said the party cadres that sold them the land assured them they had clearance from the authorities.

They pledged to help government though to identify the culprits behind the illegal land allocation in the area.