Make formal requests for electricity, Chimwemwe Banda advises as Marep 8 launches in North Malawi

Chief director in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining Chimwemwe Banda has advised communities to make formal requests if they want to be considered for electricity installation.

“Unless people in a particular area make formal request on their electricity requirements through their Member of Parliament government may not be able to provide them with the utility,” said Banda.

Banda gave the advice Saturday in Chitipa during the launch of Northern Region Marep Phase 8 at Lwakwa Primary School, TA Mwaulambiya in the district.

“You have to make formal requests of  electricity through your MPs after sitting down as village and area development committees through your respective district councils.

“When we get the request at the Ministry through your MP who asks Minister of Energy in Parliament during question time, we don’t hesitate to come to assess the viability of your request to establish the need for government to consider you for the supply of electricity,” she explained.

She said once the assessment is done and an approval given by the technical team people in a particular area could be  assured of being connected to electricity.

Banda advised the communities to safeguard electricity infrastructure by among other things avoiding vandalism.

“Electricity infrastructure vandalism is a setback to development because instead of concentrating on new installations we go back to repair those  that have been vandalised and that becomes even more expensive on the part of government,” she said.

She noted that not only does vandalism become expensive to government but it also curtails development of a particular area.

In his remarks Member of Parliament  for Chitipa Central who is also Deputy Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, Clement Mukumbwa committed to ensuring that his constituents do not rally behind in terms of development.

“Chitipa has for a long time rallied behind in terms of social amenities which has forced us to mostly seek the same from the neighbouring Tanzania.

“But now time has come for us to reclaim our dignity by enjoying that which is of our own.

“Let us have our own electric mills, let our women establish salons, let our hospitals be electrified and let our youths establish welding shops and be able to fend for themselves and that is what we call development,” observed Mukumbwa.

Marep phase 8 which aims at electrifying a total of 336 sites by the close of the program at the end of 2018, was officially launched by the State President Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika on April 5, 2017 at Ngolowela Primary School, Traditional Authority Chikumbu in Mulanje.

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