Garry, Mambo’s position commendable, but power still rests with vendors

By Daily Revelation Editor

Local Government permanent secretary Mambo Hamaundu is warning street vendors, vowing that his ministry will not relent in enforcing the law aimed at keeping away vendors from the streets of Lusaka and any other town.

He warned that all those who defying the order to keep away from the order to keep away from the streets are risking their freedom, capital and business.

We firmly support the decision by Local Government minister Garry Nkombo to remove the vendors from the Central Business District to their designated trading places. We say Garry Nkombo and not the UPND government per se and their ruling party by extension, because that decision was heavily fought against from the very inception he tried to do that.

However, commendable as that decision may seem, including the arguments from Mambo and insistence that the Ministry will stay on the guard, whether vendors creep back into the streets or not is not entirely in their hands.

You see, in this country political expedience mainly drives the agenda and is the main arbiter in any given situation. When the political risks of keeping vendors away from the streets far outweighs keeping them on it, the vendors will return and sit back comfortably in the streets of Cairo road and other places.

One only needs to go back a few years down memory lane when then president Edgar Lungu undertook an ambitious cleaning drive in the Lusaka Central Business District (CBD), and even went an extra mile by placing soldiers around town to ensure there was compliance in terms of sanity. However, all that effort was rendered worthless the moment the vendors supported by some party functionaries started raising noises.

There are already clear signs that this is already beginning to happen. Just take a walk through town centre especially around weekends, you will easily have proof. May be such write-ups may lead to a few cover ups here and there.

To sustain such a commendable position despite inside and outside opposition will be a very big toll order for Garry to hold on to.

We extremely sympathise with our brothers and sisters trying to make a life by selling their merchandise on the streets, and to do so from the most opportune locations, in this case the CBD, however, there is also a reason for spending taxpayers money to build designated trading areas. If all our brothers were to stay in allotted trading areas, the customers will surely follow them into the markets and other designated trading places.

We certainly wish Garry and Mambo all the best in their worthy endeavor, but seriously doubt the sustainability of their desires.