Zimba-Livingstone Rd – A death trap

By Nalumino Nalumino

 

During the festive season, I took my family out for holiday to the tourist capital city of Zambia, Livingstone the home town of the Victoria Falls.

 

I must admit my family comprising my wife, Miranda and our two children namely Thabo and Limpho had a nice memorable time having been to all most all the major tourist attractions. 

 

However, one disappointing thing is that the road leading into Livingstone is pathetic and portrays a serious misrepresentation of Zambia’s tourist capital.

Death Sentence

Lack of repairing this road is sentencing motorists and pedestrians alike to death each time they drive or walk on it. 

 

I was informed that tourists traveling to Livingstone by road often make a u-turn when they arrive in Zimba where the worst nightmare of both local and foreign tourists begins.

 

“Sorry we are tourists heading towards Livingstone and were given this road map but we’ve hit a dead end unfortunately. It appears there is no road so we’re going back to Lusaka,” one of the narratives a friend of mine who works in a government department told me after I inquired why the road had deteriorated to such a horrifying extent.

 

Another colleague of mine in the media in Livingstone told me that the local provincial leadership had done everything possible to prevent the Zimba-Livingstone Road from reaching such an extent.

 

However, he alleged that the Zambia National Tender Board were sorely responsible for the state of the Zimba – Livingstone because for whatever reason they delayed to award prospecting contractors a contract to rehabilitate the road.

 

Government should explain WHY

As a citizen who pays taxes as well as the fuel levy as a result of each litter of diesel and petrol I buy, I demand that officers responsible should be made answerable to the Zambian people as to why they allowed this important stretch of the road to reach such a deplorable level.

 

As a matter of fact government should be ashamed that right under its nose and all available resources the road leading to the tourist capital can be left to deteriorate to such unimaginable levels.

 

To make matters worse the contractor on site, China GEO does not inspire confidence in their workmanship according to my assessment because even the diversion they have made to me appears to have been made for earth moving and not ordinary vehicles.      

 

Can the Road Development Agency and Zambia National Tender Board as well as Ministry of Works and Supply either singularly or collectively explain to the nation what they were doing while they watched the road depreciate day by day.

 

People holding public office should know that their first duty and obligation is to ensure they serve the citizens through un-challenged service provision not that nonsense of a road destroying vehicles which government can not even rapier.

 

 

Woke up somebody and get down to serious business and serve the people! 

Unfortunately, due to proper third world internet connectivity the author is unable to publish the spine chilling pictures of the Zimba-Livingstone Road. However, I promised my family, God allowing; next time we are on a trip to the tourist capital, we shall be flying unless otherwise.