Govt acts to protect state property

ROGERS KALERO GOVERNMENT will put all state property on title to avoid encroachment on its land and ensure maximum protection from vandalism, Works and Supply Minister Sylvia Chalikosa has said. Ms Chalikosa said encroachment on state property had become rampant, hence the need to place state property on title. The Minister was speaking at the weekend in Kitwe after touring the Presidential State Lodge, which was threatened with encroachment. Some councillors were implicated in the illegal sale of land near the facility. Ms Chalikosa said her ministry in collaboration with the Ministry of Lands and that of Local Government would work together to protect state land. ‘’There has been a lot of encroachment cases on state property and in order to stop this encroachment, we will put all State Property on title. This will not only avoid encroachment its land, but also ensure maximum protection from various forms of vandalism,” he said. Recently, Local Government Permanent Secretary Ed Chomba warned that there should be no construction works within 250 metre from the Presidential Lodge. And Kitwe District Commissioner (DC) Chileshe Bweupe said the district was faced with a lot of challenges ranging from shortage of transport to old and leaking infrastructure like offices. Mr Bweupe said while his office has two drivers, it only has one vehicle and the District Administrative Officer (DAO) has no vehicle and only uses initiatives to carry out his duties. ‘’Honourable Minister, you have done well to visit Kitwe so that you can appreciate our challenges. Our challenges range from lack of transport to old infrastructures which has leaking roofs. ‘’Kitwe is second to Lusaka in terms of population and size and we hope that your coming here will change things for the better ,’’ Mr Bweupe said. The Sun