Numerous Zambians are not taking the fight against Covid-19 seriously, Oriental Querries Boxing Promotions (OQBP) Manager Christopher Malunga has observed.

According to Malunga, there are a lot of Zambians on the streets trading daily who are not observing the universal guidelines including social distancing, washing hands regularly and wearing a mask.
He said the inability of those Zambians to understand the gravity of the disease will eventually be a danger in itself.

“You know that we are jokers at times. As Zambians we have taken too much of government has to do it mentality. This is the thing which needs everyone’s responsibility. The other day I was watching marketeers who are insisting that they want to continue selling on the streets. These women and men who are selling on the streets need serious sensitization. So those who understand the gravity of these things should intensify sensitisation campaigns. It’s the responsibility of all Zambian because this is a disease that does not choose whether you are a president, an MP or Minister, it eliminates everyone. But sometimes we as Zambians are jokers and as such we fail to see the seriousness or gravity of something,” Malunga said.

“ For example those that are still selling on the streets, what is better, you continue selling then end up at the hospital and then you are unable to be present at the funeral of a loved one? So my appeal to Zambians at large is that we take measure from government serious. People are taking measures such as partial lockdown in Kafue to be very light. Those are measures which need to be taken serious. These are dangerous times for Zambia. For those who are campaigning saying they want the partial lockdown to be lifted, they will regret because people are dying in numbers in other countries. We actually must thank God that our medical practitioners are handling this issues very well in difficult circumstances.”

Malunga stressed that if it were up to him, he would have locked down Zambia to quickly contain the spread of the virus.

“But now it’s for Zambians to take a proactive role and adhere to government guidelines. Let’s not get to a situation where Zambia needs to purchase a lot of ventilators which are very expensive. Are you going to be happy if you take your loved one to the hospital and you are unable to see them? That’s why this should be taken seriously,” he said.

“If it were up to me, I would have suggested that we go for a total lockdown. And we would have gone for a total lockdown a long time ago this time we could have graduated. My personal view is that a total lock down would help matters more and I’m sure if had taken that position, we would have been in a different situation by now. But the medical experts locally have a different view and they are the ones who can recommend if its important that Zambia as a country should go for a total lockdown. But we have to respect the medical staff they are doing a good job and as Zambians we have to help by being responsible enough.”