Masangwi rescues Kanjedza school

A teacher who has been living in an out-of-use toilet at Kanjedza Primary School in Blantyre may soon relocate into decent accommodation following a decision by MP for the area, Noel Masangwi, to construct two houses at the institution.

Masangwi’s intervention comes days after Weekend Nation reported that the teacher had been living in the disused toilet for five months because he could not find a decent and affordable accommodation near the school.

“I have already mobilised resources for the construction of two teachers’ houses at the school following the story,” said Masangwi on Wednesday.

He said the houses would cater mainly for male teachers who are said to be shunning the school due to lack of accommodation.

“I’m told male teachers shun this school because of lack of accommodation. The situation is different with female teachers, most of whom live with their husbands near the school,” he said.

Masangwi said he expects construction work to be through in two months’ time.

The school’s head teacher, Nellie Mkumba, commended the MP for the intervention, saying it would go a long way in addressing the challenges teachers have been facing to access decent accommodation near the school.

“We’re very excited and grateful both to Honourable Masangwi and Weekend Nation for their intervention. We hope to see construction work taking off anytime soon because almost all the preparatory work is done,” said Mkumba.

But she emphasised that more assistance would be required to seal the housing gap, which she said is quite huge for the MP alone to address.

“We’re talking about over 20 teachers currently living outside the campus because the school has no house. Additionally, this school is prone to break-in and thefts because it has no fence. We would wish to see more well-wishers coming in to assist.” n