Malawi: Citizens from Engalaweni, Mphelembe and Euthini have come to the office of the District Commissioner with a petition. The Mzimba District has been struggling with bad roads.
As such, the citizens from the various communities have approached the District Commissioner’s (DC) office. They are calling for urgent attention to the district’s poor road infrastructure.
The representative and leader for the concerned citizens, Edson Mwila spoke to the media regarding this issue on Wednesday. They have spoken about the condition of the roads in the district.
The concerned citizens have openly stated that the roads are not in a good shape. The situation with the road not only affect business and economy but also affects healthcare.
The bad shape of the roads are putting lives at risk. The citizens have come forward to openly claim that they are not willing to live in a district that has terrible roads.
As such, they are asking the authorities to take steps to rectify the situation and upgrade the road infrastructure.
The residents have said that many roads in the district that are in serious and quick need for construction. The list includes names like:
- The Chikwawa-Mpherembe-Euthini Road
- Edingeni-Engalaweni-Euthini Road
- Edingeni-Katonda-Mzimba Road
- Mtwalo-Mpherembe Road
- Mzimba-Chakazi-Mbalachanda
- Euthini-Kafukule-Mzuzu Road.
These roads become so damaged that they are very difficult, almost impossible to pass during rainy season.
“The poor state of our roads is not only affecting our businesses but also putting our lives at risk as the three named communities are far from hospitals. In addition to that, maternal deaths keep on rising due to poor road conditions,” said Mwila.
Mwila said the people in Mzimba are good farmers who produce different varieties of crops especially tobacco and maize but they do not have good roads to easily access markets.
Receiving the petition, Mzimba DC, Rodney Simwaka, assured the residents that their concerns would be taken seriously.
“We understand the importance of good road infrastructure for the development of our district.
We commend the community members for expressing their concerns and will work closely with relevant authorities to address the concerns and ensure that our roads are upgraded to acceptable standards,” said Simwaka.