Inkosi Mabulabo expels vendors

Newly elevated Senior Chief Mabulabo of Mzimba has banned vendors from buying farm produce in his area.

Last week, the chief confiscated weighing scales from some buyers whom he accuses of ripping off farmers.

Vendors have flooded many rural areas to look for cheap produce.

In an interview on Wednesday, Inkosi Mabulabo said he will not allow the traders in his area unless they adopt prices recommended by government and scales certified by Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS).

The vendors were buying maize at K50 per kilogramme when the recommended minimum price is K170. 

The vendors are taking advantage of poverty and other challenges that farmers face to swindle them,” he said.

The chief accused them of tampering with scales.

  “It pains me a lot as a chief and farmer to see farmers treated this way. They must come with clean hands,” he said.

He asked traditional leaders to join the fight against exploitation of farmers.

MBS spokesperson Moses Gwaza said the chiefs should encourage farmers to demand scales with the bureau’s seal.

“Before embarking on businesses, people should check for the MBS seal. We do not recommend scales that can be opened from the back, but those opened from the front. When the front is opened, the silver seal breaks. That is how you know that it has been tampered with,” he said.