UTM youths clean up Njamba Freedom Park after rally

United Transformation Movement (UTM) youths on Tuesday cleaned up Njamba Freedom Park in Blantyre – venue of last Sunday’s rally that drew a mammoth crowd – to show that they are responsible and patriotic to the country.

The UTM youth is comprised business people, university students, the clergy and other young corporate executives.

The mammoth crowd on Sunday left behind trash such as plastic wrapping papers, food take away containers, empty bottles that were strewn all over the place and to set an example to the youths to take responsibility for whatever service rendered they mobilised themselves to clean up the place.

Mary Chikoko, interim chairperson for Blantyre Youths said it is the responsibility of every Malawi to make their country clean.

“We were taught in our families when we were young that once you have used a place, you should clean up afterwards,” she said. “This is also a way to show that UTM is also geared to take care of our environment. This is also one way of engaging the youths of this country to be active in politics because the future is in our hands.”

Representing university students, Jaston Bulaula said since UTM is advocating transformation it was time they encouraged the spirit of responsibility.

“We made the place ugly and we have to clean up so that others wanting to use the place should find it just as we did.”

Also present was Bishop Trevor Kautsire, who is responsible for mobilising churches, ministries and college students, said they didn’t want to wait for anyone to tell them to clean the place up but as a transformation movement, this is what they are supposed to do.

“Former US President John F. Kennedy once said and I quote ‘Ask not what your country can do for your but rather what you can do for your country’. Thats exactly what this activity is all about — being responsible.

“In SKC (Saulos Klaus Chilima), the youths are waiting for their salvation. They want change and they see it  coming in SKC. The change is in all of us that’s why people came in numbers to show their solidarity on Sunday,” Kautsire said.

After holding rallies in Lilongwe and Blantyre in the central and southern regions respectively, Chilima is this weekend taking the movement to Mzuzu in the Northern Region.