The culprit caught disposing waste on streets cleaned by the Mayor himself
* After arresting a resident found carelessly disposing sugarcane piths in public spaces
* A common irritant habit practised by Malawians throughout the country
By Duncan Mlanjira
Malawians have this tendency of buying food in the streets and eating it as they continue with their business and carelessly throwing away the food’s waste around city streets.
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Mzuzu City Mayor, Chiyembekezo Glyn Moses, who is on a campaign to keep his territory clean, has received profound support after arresting a resident who was found scattering sugarcane piths he had chewed in public spaces after a cleaning exercise.
The Mayor posted on his official Facebook account a day ago that he was on the ground in cleaning exercises at Mzuzu Bus Depot, St. John of God, the city’s market car park and other places.
Along with other volunteers, the Mayor physically cleaned the mentioned areas and issued a warning that anyone found disposing any waste on the streets would be arrested and fined.
It also includes the nuisant habit of men who urinate against walls or city botanic trees that they too would be nabbed if found.
It didn’t take long for a culprit to be identified, who was intercepted chewing sugarcane and nonchalantly discarding the waste piths on the already swept streets.
Mzuzu City Mayor Chiyembekezo Glyn Moses
The Mayor thus shamed the resident by posting pictures of him on his Facebook account after he was arrested and was being taken to be formally charged and fined.
“Sindikudziwa mwina anzanganu…koma nkakhala ine ndufuna Mzuzu wa smart (I don’t know about you, but as for me I want a smart Mzuzu City),” wrote the Mayor.
Residents, while asking the Mayor to provide street waste bins and also public toilets, supported his action, attesting to that careless waste disposal is a crime according to the Bylaws of city councils.
In the defence of the Mayor, Sibo Tiwo enlightened fellow residents that he inculcated a culture of good sanitation on his 5-year-old daughter such that she never anyhow discard any waste, including a sweet wrapper if a street waste bin is not nearby.
He emphasised that the daughter makes sure she keeps such waste in her clothes’ pockets until she reaches a bin or at home to discard.
He observed that people do throw away their waste even when a city council cleaner has just concluded sweeping at a particular spot.
Malawians have the tendency of buying food and instead of sitting down where the service has been provided, they walk away eating it and discard the package right on the roads.
Banned thin plastic bags and other waste were trapped at Mudi River bridgeback in 2021
The thin plastics that are blown by the wind and landing all over the city streets and in residential neighborhoods, are discarded by people who had been served chips in them.
Even the affluent citizenry do throw out the windows of their expensive cars waste — such as food take away packs, juice and water plastic bottles and anything that dirty they wouldn’t want in their vehicles.
Passengers throw trash out of minibuses, even luxury coaches, without any care but polluting other people’s spaces.
One other positive comment to His Worship, the Mayor Chiyembekezo Glyn Moses was: “If all councils could have people of your spirit we can achieve hygiene in our councils, including small markets.”
MBCDigital reported that the Mayor joined the residents and other stakeholders in the city clean-up exercise aimed at promoting cleanliness and improving sanitation.
The exercise started at Mzuzu Main Market and progressed towards the M1 Road, which is part of ongoing efforts by Mzuzu Council to maintain cleanliness in the city, following a similar exercise that was recently conducted.
The exercise also follows the Presidential directive for local authorities and communities to intensify efforts in keeping cities and towns clean, promoting proper waste management and improving sanitation standards.
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