Solwezi residents have been called upon to hold duty bearers and their civic leaders accountable.
The call was made by Joint Country Program (JCP) programs officer Felix Ngosa during the church leaders reality visit to Kimakolwe area in Solwezi organized by the Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ).
Mr. Ngosa stated that citizens should maintain the momentum of seeking for answers from their leaders especially where service provision is concerned.
He said it is the duty of every duty bearer as well as civic leader to provide the much needed services to the people because every citizens pays tax.
“Each one of us pay tax in one way or other whether you are employed or not. And that is the same money we should demand for from our leaders so that they provide services.
” It is therefore from this point of view that we should rise up and demand for what belongs to us by holding our leaders accountable,” Mr Ngosa said.
He also asked the residents to speak with one voice as they engage their leaders and other stakeholders.
And CCZ programs officer Andiseni Zulu disclosed that his organization in partnership with JCP has been undertaking a project in Kimakolwe aimed at the provision of clean and safe drinking water and sanitation.
He said from the time the project started, five boreholes have been drilled in the area which only had one water point against a population of over 5000.
“And we happy to announce that these boreholes are still operational as they are being managed by the community itself through the various committees,” he said.
He however stated that his organization was expecting to more boreholes to have been drilled to add up to the already existing ones in order to cushion the increasing population.
Meanwhile, CCZ president Rev Sairos Phaika has recommended that the people in the area should demand for social and economic services from government in order to address the inequalities that exists in the provision of water and sanitation, security, health care, better road and education infrastructure respectively.
He said government should prioritise the drilling of boreholes to accommodate the increasing population.
“We also recommend that community members with help from the local CCZ chapter and faith leaders committee to take up the responsibility of speaking out for the people by engaging local leaders and mining investors in the process of addressing the various challenges faced by the community as it is their responsibility,” he said.
CCZ is currently running two projects namely Kuyangana and Umozi aimed at addressing inequalities and poverty issues affecting communities in partnership with JCP.
