JB relieves families of July 20 victims with K1 million
Families whose breadwinners lost their lives on July 20, 2011 will now have their day-to-day upkeep problems eased after State President Mrs Joyce Banda gave them K1 million on Saturday for them to engage in small scale businesses.
The President made the gesture at Mzuzu State Lodge during a closed-door audience with about 22 relatives of the deceased.
The audience was arranged to comfort the bereaved families and find out problems they are going through following the death of their breadwinners during anti-government demonstrations on July 20 last year (2011).
“The President met the bereaved families to comfort them and find out how they are coping up with life after the death of their relatives who were also their bread-winners during demonstrations last year,” said a representative of the group, Aubrey Nkosi during an interview with Malawi News Agency at the State Lodge.
Nkosi, who lost a 22-year-old cousin on the demonstration day, hailed the State President for her gesture to meet and condole the bereaved families with K1 million, to engage in small scale businesses which will enable them sustain their life economically.
He said when his cousin, late Samson Ngulube died, he had been married for only six months and the wife was four months pregnant. Now she has a child who is four months old.
“Life is tough for the bereaved families because some of them live in rented houses and it is now difficult for the widows to pay rentals and school fees, ” he said.
The CCAP Synod of Livingstonia is sponsoring two children from some of the bereaved families to pursue education at secondary school while political parties like MCP, UDF and DPP also assisted the families with money to ease their problems, according to Nkosi.
About 10 people in Mzuzu City and one in Karonga died during the said demonstrations which also saw various shops belonging to Chinese Nationals being vandalised and looted. Some houses were razed to ashes.
