DEMOCRATIC Party DP president Harry Kalaba has lamented government’s failure to fix the drainage system in Lusaka’s Kanyama Compound.

Speaking to Kanyama residents during a tour, Thursday, Kalaba said the people of Kanyama deserved better.

“This is the rain season but no government officials cares to come and see what is happening here. When I saw this on TV, what’s happening here, I said I have to go and see for myself what is happening in Kanyama. This Kanyama has a history. In 1978, there was a Kanyama disaster, where thousands of people were killed. We have not learnt our lessons in order to ensure that we begin to look after our people aggressively. Honesty, 56 years after independence, we can keep our people like this? Look at our children, they are wadding in water, it is not good,” Kalaba said.

“When Cholera breaks out, you will wonder where has Cholera come from? Because this is the beginning of Cholera, it starts with things like this; stagnant water, it is like a river here and then now you have Cholera breeding, you are exalting death; during sickness where were you? People begin dying and there is nothing happening. Well I have come to see for myself because I just don’t like talking the talk, I like walking the talk and that is why I came here. The people of Kanyama deserve better than this.”

Kalaba said it was unfortunate that government was prioritizing funds for politics rather than fixing drainages systems in the Lusaka.

“I can tell you that when I become President, it is areas which are water logged like Kanyama, Kaunda Square, Misisi Compound and all these surrounding compounds where water is a perennial problem, these ones will have to be interrogated thoroughly when we come into office. Because we need to open the water ways here, the drainages here, there are no drainages here. That is what has been happening here. When I become President, honestly I can tell you I will do this thing, it will be worked on immediately I assume office. Because money is there but money is going to buying jets, money is going to unscrupulous projects. We need to help our people because these are the same people who vote for us everyday. When we form government as DP, I can assure that this challenge will be dealt with,” said Kalaba.

“I was deputy minister in the office of the Vice-President, I used to come to Kanyama and we begun opening drainages everywhere in Kanyama here. But from the time I left, nothing has been happening because they just like talking the talk. This problem has been a perennial problem not that they don’t know that this will happen again next year. But they look the other way and they are not interested, all they care about is politics after politics, we have to stop this and we will stop it now.”