New Lilongwe mayor pledges transformation
Newly elected Lilongwe City Mayor Richard Banda has promised to sanitise the capital city by improving service delivery.
The Kaliyeka Ward councillor, who was elected on Wednesday, dislodged incumbent and fellow MCP councillor Juliana Kaduya whom he deputised since 2019 after amassing 13 votes against the former mayor’s six votes.
Chimutu Ward councillor Esther Sagawa (MCP) was voted deputy mayor after beating six other contenders for the position.
In an interview after his election, Banda called for unity and promised Lilongwe City residents improved service delivery by sanitising illegal practices such as street vending, illegal settlements and poor waste disposal.
He said: “People in Lilongwe deserve better. We want them to see a big improvement in service delivery which has been missing during the previous leadership or political arm.
“Service delivery was difficult, legal enforcement was poor as people have been doing what they want everywhere. Garbage management [and] illegal settlement has been an issue. We want to see people on the ground happy.”
Banda has since vowed to follow through infrastructure development which remained dormant in the past, for instance the council’s town hall, rest house which he said was not bringing revenue to the city due to negligence.
He said vendors plying in the streets need to be managed and improvement of infrastructure such as roads, buildings and bridges, need to be enhanced.
Kaduya on Wednesday conceded defeat, saying to win or lose is expected in an election following the will of the people. She thanked Lilongwe residents for supporting her during her tenure.
She encouraged the winning team to focus on waste management and deal with illegal developers, as well as continuing with development initiatives that are underway.
During her tenure, Kaduya managed to implement roads infrastructure projects, drainage systems, some on going and street lighting along Area 18’s Chendawaka Road.
In a related development, Luwinga Ward councillor Gift Desire Nyirenda (MCP) was last Friday elected mayor of Mzuzu City after defeating incumbent Kondwani Brian Nyasulu of UTM Party.
Nyirenda, who was Nyasulu’s deputy, got 11 votes against five for Nyasulu.
The mayors and deputies will be in office for two and a half years.
Blantyre City Council is yet to hold elections.
