Can we talk Mayor Chalamanda?

Can we have a candid talk your Worship the Mayor of Blantyre City, Noel Chalamanda? I have been yearning to say this for some time now.

Let me introduce myself as a citizen of Malawi and a resident of the commercial capital, Blantyre. I have lived here for quite some time.

Do you know that our city stinks, it is dirty and roads in bad state? I appreciate your efforts in making the city clean, but there is still more that needs to be done.

Mudi River remains an eye-sore and stinky, rendering the Central Business District (CBD) reeking. What pains me most is that for sure those who are polluting the river we know them, but somehow you city authorities seem to pay a deliberate blind eye, deaf ear and closed nose.

Companies are dumping their industrial waste in Mudi River with impunity because they know they will never get punished for it. Have you ever had a chat with these companies to establish how they manage their waste? I bet you have, and I expect you to act on it; otherwise, gradually, our city is becoming uninhabitable.

I appreciate the transformed city roundabouts, which are a delight to look at. But, this effort is rendered useless because garbage still remains uncollected in most residential areas and within the CBD. If we have to make Blantyre clean, it can’t be by cleaning one part while forgetting the rest of the city. It’s futile.

Apart from being a smelly city, Blantyre is generally a dark city. I can’t remember the last time street lights were lit, not even Masauko Chipembere Highway is lit. If they are working, then they are never switched on because the highway is usually dark and so are most residential areas. The electricity poles erected in residential areas most of them have broken bulbs that probably do not require much to replace them, but looks like there is no interest to do anything about them.

In terms of development of the city, I haven’t seen much development. Most roads in the city are in bad state and it doesn’t look like they will improve anytime soon. The main road in Namiyango Township is but one example of roads that are a nightmare to the residents.

It is my prayer that you will look into these things and many more and rectify them to make Blantyre the beautiful city we all dream it should be. n