Fri, 06 Oct 2017 13:22:06 +0000
By Siabana Kelvin
BWANA Mkubwa Member of Parliament Dr. Jonas Chanda says the Patriotic Front (PF) government will not allow any investor or rich urban elite to evict the over 5,000 residents of Old Regiment settlement in Ndola without following the due process of the Law.
Addressing hundreds of residents at Old Regiment settlement in Bwana Mkubwa Constituency yesterday, Dr Chanda said the illegal sale of Old Regiment, which had been in existence since 1963 to an oil marketing company called Inter Africa Petroleum was shrouded in corruption and secrecy.
The resident are supposed to be evicted from the settlement on September 30, 2017.
But Dr Chanda said no one would be evicted from old regiment because people had been living in the place for more than half a century and is the only area they knew as their home.
“In the case of this oil marketing company, I want to warn them and everyone to know that oil is not thicker than blood People are more important than petroleum,” Dr Chanda said.
The parliamentarian emphasised that no one would be displaced from the land they had occupied and developed for many years without a social survey being conducted.
Dr Chanda said the social survey would enable settlers to say how much they wanted to be compensated before they could be moved and compensation for the affected people should be agreed upon by both parties.
He has further called on Ndola City Council to legalise the informal settlements that have been in existence for so many years including Old Regiment, McKenzie commonly known as Makense, Kantolomba, Kaloko, Mwenye and Chichele.
Legalisation would mean re-planning and redesigning of these settlements in line with the PF Manifesto which talks about upgrading of informal settlements,” Dr Chanda said.
Dr Chanda has also warned gullible companies who wanted to buy the land occupied by settlers to read the laws of the land and consult government to avoid being swindled by corrupt officials.
The MP told the residents that anyone who wanted to displace them illegally should be reported to the police so that they could be arrested and prosecuted immediately.
