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Displaced Mindolo North squatters thank govt

Kitwe , June 2^nd, 2014, ZANIS —  Mindolo North squatters in Kitwe whose houses were demolished by the Kitwe City Council (KCC) recently have thanked Government for providing them with temporal shelter.

Speaking on behalf of the other squatters, Paulina Kapatiso commended  government through the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit for erecting tents for them.

Ms Kapatiso said the squatters were happy to sleep in the tents unlike sleeping in the cold, a situation they were subjected to when their houses were demolished.

ZANIS reports the displaced  settler said this in an interview, in Kitwe District , today.

Over 287 families have been given tents although there are some people at the who have not been given tents yet and were still sleeping in the cold besides the tents.

However , Ms Kapatiso expressed concern that children were not able to go to school due to the long distance to Mindolo primary school where most of the children attend lessons.

And another affected squatter, James Katanga appealed on government through the council to find alternative land for them where they can construct houses permanently.

Mr Katanga said the squatters were faced with numerous challenges such as transport for school going children and inadequate lavatory facilities which he said were not conducive for children.

A combined team of Kitwe City Council and State police recently demolished more than 600 houses in Mindolo North which were allegedly built on land belonging to Mopani Copper Mines (MCM) and Phoenix materials.

However, the Disaster Management Mitigating Unit (DMMU) under the Vice President’s office offered humanitarian aid to those affected by the demolition exercise by putting up tents at Helen Kaunda Secondary School grounds.