Councils fail to enforce Covid-19 strict preventive measures due to politicians
Councils say are now unable to enforce strict preventive measures on covid-19 due to politicians who hold political rallies without seeking permission.
Lilongwe city council chief executive officer John Chome said the council is helpless as politicians are in the forefront disregarding the strict preventive measures for covid-19 which include public gathering of not more than 100 people at a time.
“We cannot do anything. Most times they just hold their rallies without consulting us, so there is nothing we can do,” said Chome.
The country faces a highly contentious Constitutional Court sanctioned presidential election on July 2 after the May 21, 2019 poll was annulled due to widespread irregularities and anomalies.
Blantyre city council publicist Anthony Kasunda said the council is doing all it can to ensure that the politicians oblige to the covid-19 preventive measures.
Spokesperson for Mzuzu city city Macdonald Gondwe and Zomba city council Mercy Chaluma also said their respective councils are in talks with politicians on the matter.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :
” … there is nothing we can do,” said Chome.”
.
Rubbish! The councils can go to Court for an injunction to stop the large gatherings. They simply have to quote the guidelines – or is it regulations? – issued by the government.
For curiosity’s sake, have those guidelines become laws?
I do not know the answer to your question, that is why I worded my post as I did.
.
I have downloaded PDF documents issued by the Ministry of Health, with titles like “guidelines for this and that”. In the GUIDELINES there are lists, always preceded by the phrase :”The following measures are recommended”. So, nothing there to tell us that the merely- RECOMMENDED measures are backed up in law.