Barely a day after President Joyce Banda complained of moral decay and high rate of rape and defilement cases at Mtandire in Lilongwe, police have pitched a tent close to where the President said over 70 women and girls are raped every month.
And on Sunday, the police, led by Central Region policing coordinator George Chimayimba, summoned Traditional Authority (T/A) Njewa and his subordinates to a public forum where they were tasked to revamp the community policing structures within a week.
“We are doing this in response to Her Excellency President Madam Joyce Banda’s directive. We called T/A Njewa, his junior chiefs and the subjects so that they support the initiative on community-based policing approach,†he said.
T/A Njewa supported the idea to revamp community policing as well as the setting up of a police unit.
“People here have been asking for this police unit for over 20 years. Fortunately, the President came here and heard about security lapse in this area and ordered the police to open a unit here,†said the chief.
He also said the President was touched when told that due to insecurity in this populous low income area, about 68 girls were raped and infected with HIV, the virus that causes Aids. Currently, the girls are being looked after by a well-wisher.
Mtandire falls under Lingadzi Police whose officer-in-charge Lillian M’ganga said there are around 18 000 people in the area.
The President, who met residents of the area on Thursday last week, said she would ban the sale and buying of alcohol in sachets, arguing it is contributing to moral decay.
