Shops outside the main market area belongs to plot title number Bwaila 4/343 |
A lot of business operators outside the main Area 3 market in Lilongwe have been ordered to vacate the land which they have been operating for many years following the sale of the land to a businessman by the Lilongwe City Council.
A court order has brought
panic to almost 200 business especially those operating in the section of
restaurants, electronics, stationery and shops near the dumpsite for the market.
Business operators have since gone to court for help
as they fear that the vacation order will turn them into street vendors since
the council has not allocated them with a new place to continue doing business.
Court documents indicates that the land adjacent to
the main market is under title number Bwaila 4/343, owned by business man
Pravin Chandrasinh Vansia who possessed it pursuant to the High Court order
dated 7th May 2019.
Vansia obtained a court order forcing all shops and
businesses operating on the place to vacate. Occupants were served with a 30 days’
notice to vacate the land which expired on 30 June 2023.
“IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AND DIRECTED that the person who
is in actual occupation of a land title number Bwaila 4/343 at Area 3, in
Lilongwe City, or he/her servants, or agents or any other person in physical
possession of the said land by authority of the said third party or howsoever
DO VACATE and give possession of land title number Bwaila 4/343 at Area 3, to
the Claimant within 30 days after the date from the date this order has been
served on any person (s) in occupation of the said land.” Reads part of the
order.
Tamara Chafunya, Public Relations Officer (PRO) for the Lilongwe City Council) confirmed in a questionnaire, of the sale of the land but maintained that the plot was not part of the market.
“The plot that was offered to the said developer is
not and has never been part of the market.
Plot 4/343 is a commercial plot adjacent to Area 3 Market.” Said
Chafunya
She explained that the land in question was offered to
the businessman long time ago but was unable to develop it.
“You might also wish to know that the plot in question
was offered to the developer in 1998 and it is not a recent offer as might be
portrayed. The developer was not able to develop the land over the years due to
various reasons.” Added Chafunya
The Lilongwe City Council PRO could not indicate if
the council will allocate a new market area for those to be affected
by the order.
“The market remains intact and
all those plying their
trade therein shall continue doing so.”
Said Chafunya
However, Chairperson for Area 3 Market Davie Katunga,
who sell vegetables in the main market area 1996, faulted the council for its failure
to consult business operators at the market.
Katunga: Through our lawyer, we have applied for a Stay Order |
“The decision by the City Council to sell this market,
was wrong and has affected us and many people. If we are taken out of this
market, where else are we going to do business? They haven’t informed us where
to go after here.” Katunga said
He said everyone in the market learned about the sale
of the land through a 30 days order which they received from sheriffs.
According to Katunga business operators at Area 3 had expected
the Council to call for a roundtable to inform business operators about the land
sale and the new designated market for those to be affected.
He also disclosed that since the court order was
handed to them, city council authorities have been declining to discuss the
matter with the market committee representatives.
“We made another attempt to follow up on the matter
with them but this time the Chief Executive Officer sent our representatives to
the legal counsel for the council. It was during this meeting that the lawyer
told our representatives that the land was sold and there is nothing to stop them
even if we try to seek for help anywhere.” Shared Katunga.
Katunga said their committee has gone to court to seek
intervention which will help over 300 members currently operating restaurants,
grocery shops, stationary, electronics and shoe repairs.
“Through our lawyer, we have applied for a Stay Order.
We hope that by the end of this case, this place should remain with us and not
given to one Indian business man because this market helps many people operating
businesses here and their families.
Many women owning restaurants fear life will be hard
Mai Ngwira, Area 25 resident who operate a restaurant at
Area 3 market fears that failure by the council to allocate a new market, risks
indefinite closure of her business and in turn disturb her loan repayment with
the National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF).
Some of the shops to be affected by the order |
“Where are we going to do business or do they care for
us at all? I got a loan from NEEF. Today they are telling us to leave this
market, now how are we going to pay back the loan? How are we going to pay
school fees for our children? We are being treated like foreigners.” She said
According to Mai Ngwira, Area 3 market has been her
main happy hunting ground as a breadwinner where she sources income which she
use to support her family, parents and relatives.
“If you look around this market, most of those doing
businesses are small scale business women who are trying to get food for the
day. Why chasing small scale business women who rely on a small business of
selling nsima?”
Katunga attending to a customer |
“Government should come to our rescue because it
encourages women to do business and it is very unfortunate that the very same
government is chasing us from the market. What do they think we are going to
do? The city officials needed to tell us where to go to do business.” Added
Ngwira
Mussa Chimwala who has been operating business at the
market since 1989 and is a secretary for the market committee said business
operators feel there is no justice in the way Lilongwe City Council handled the
matter hence their decision to seek court intervention.
“These are not times to infringe people’s rights, we
all have rights. So, the process of vacating us has infringed our rights,
because they can’t just come to tell us that we should leave within 30 days.
That is not on. Many of us have been operating on this market for over 30
years, others over 20 years, some over 10 years, so they can’t just come to
tell us to leave.” He said
He continued; “The right way was for the city
authorities to come here to inform us that now you are being moved to another
place. They can’t just end the market just like that. We have been paying
market fees every day and annual ground rentals so they need to ensure that
they have constructed a new place for us to continue operating our businesses.”
Only shops inside the main market area to be safe |
Mr. Nkhwazi who operates stationary business in the market
said it is high time the city authorities begin to treat Malawians doing
businesses fairy.
“When shall our city council authorities stop treating
us this way? They deliberately create a gap between us and them. We don’t like
clashes with city council, but these clashes happen because of their conduct.
We could have moved out of this place peacefully if they had allocated a new
place for us.” He said
Nkhwazi said business operators would like better
relations with the council and that they demonstrate this warmth through
payment of daily market fees to the council. He therefore said, they had
expected the city council to reciprocate by approaching business persons as
partners rather than through court order.
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