KUDOS TO BLANTYRE CITY COUNCIL

By Russell Chimbayo

Following the desolation of the two bridges that connects Chilobwe Township to the world due to heavy remains that fell in December 2019, the Blantyre City Council with support from the National Roads Authority-NRA hired constructors rebuild the bridges.

Chilobwe is an area where most families are economically marginalised, it lacks entertainment or exciting events. A visit to a few homes in the area will make you notice that only a few homes in the area own a TV set, paid television, sound system, video or computer games.

However, the extreme wreckage of the two bridges has worked strange magic towards giving the residents of the area free entertainment.

Throughout the past 6 weeks the construction exercise was being executed. Both the young and old have been spending hours at the construction site to watch heavy duty machines and vehicles being used in the building exercise.

Such moments have been very joyous for children of the school going age especially this week. They had more time to spend at the site following the national wide sit in by government school teachers over unpaid December salaries and allowances.

The strike offered them an opportunity to watch drivers of the construction vehicles demonstrate skills in operating the machines at the site. A thing which mesmerised them leading to cheering and jumping out of excitement because of the novelty they were seeing.

While most of the older generation has been weeping and stressing because the two important bridges were in ruins, the kids and some unemployed men in Chilobwe have been accessing scarce and free entertainment.

Furthermore, some children who have been earnestly watching the construction works, have surely been motivated to pursue careers in construction. All this courtesy of fateful rains that ruined the two bridges.

Now that construction works of the bridges will concluded a few hours from now as earlier communicated by the Blantyre City Council in a statement. Children of this area will miss the fun that came with the construction works, and all ears will now turn to the frequent mobile advertising vehicles that move at night calling on residents of the area to attend unending night of prayers that are allegedly power packed with breakthroughs, healing and deliverance.