Kalingalinga thefts leave community leader in tears

LINDA SOKO TEMBO writes  A COMMUNITY leader of Lusaka’s Kalingalinga Township, who has a passion to help the vulnerable people in her community, has narrated how thieves tried to open her shop and steal on four occasions. Pastor Lydia Luka said it was sad that thieves wanted to rob one of their own shops, which was a source of her livelihood for her family. Considering that part of the proceeds was what they used to empower women, men, youths and children under the Bukata Empowerment Foundation. The pastor is known throughout her community, following her commitment to be helping the vulnerable because she believes it is not Government alone who are supposed to be helping people but that ordinary community members can make a difference. She narrated to The Sun the discovery that heartless thieves had attempted on several occasions to steal from her. THE SUN: Tell us what happened PASTOR LYDIA: We have one of our shops inside KalingalingaTownship and on four occasions just this month of June thieves have tried to rob us of the salaula cloths we are selling. Thank God they have not managed tamwakakwanishe!   Just this week they came on Monday and Wednesday but they did not manage because we have put tight security, so that they do not manage to open. It is sad that people would want to bring our business down because we help the community through different empowerment programmes to help the community.  On Monday, they almost opened the shop but because there is a lock inside so they felt to open because they could not cut the lock and when we went there in the morning we reinforced our security measures. Just after a day they came back again and tried to open but they failed again and we had to report the matter to the Police and they promised to be patrolling the area were the shop is located too.  What shocked us is that we used to sell expensive shoes in the shop but for the past six months, we have not ordered because the company we used order from stopped making shoes.  We now use the place just to clear old second hand clothes and the clothes are not even worth stealing to sell and make a profit. We are suspecting the people trying to rob us are people who know as well.  It is shocking that some people would want to do such a thing to us. The Sun