President Hakainde Hichilema has vowed to take decisive action to address the severe flooding that has displaced thousands in Lusaka, pledging to relocate residents who have built on waterways without engaging the courts. The President’s remarks came during a visit to flood-affected areas, where he surveyed the devastation and expressed his condolences to families who have lost loved ones.
“This new challenge stems from decades of poor urban planning, which we must now face together,” Mr. Hichilema said. “We are committed to addressing this challenge, even if it means making bold decisions.”
The President declared that the government will take swift action to drain Lusaka and ensure that those who have constructed homes on drainage systems are relocated to designated areas. He assured affected residents that they would receive compensation.
The administration has called for an emergency meeting with all relevant government departments to coordinate the resettlement of displaced individuals and mitigate future flooding risks.
Defense forces have been deployed to restore critical infrastructure, including a bridge connecting the Ng’ombe and Kabanana townships that was washed away by floodwaters. The Finance Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane, pledged that the necessary resources will be allocated to implement the President’s directives promptly.
Lusaka Province Minister Sheal Mulyata confirmed that engineers will remain on-site to conduct surveys and devise long-term solutions to protect vulnerable communities from recurrent flooding.
President Hichilema also urged political leaders across party lines to put aside their differences and work together in the interest of the Zambian people.
“We must act now,” he said. “This is not about politics but about safeguarding lives.”
The flooding crisis in Lusaka has reignited discussions on urban planning and climate resilience, with experts warning that without significant infrastructure reforms, the city may continue to suffer from devastating seasonal floods.
Not wanting to be left out after visit to the areas by opposition. Too late the hero
If Citizens First hadn’t first visit the floods victims even our republican president wouldn’t have seen it fit to relate with the affected. He is so reactionary and never proactive. Sometimes it it is misplaced priorities if not utter cold heartedness. He wished for floods, soon he will again hope for droughts.
Also those whose houses will be demolished must be given moratoriums, relocations and aid in time of disasters.
Yes, the opposition visted the flood victims first, then tell us what did they achieved so far. How much food,tents or blankets did they donate?
The President was on a 2 day visit and Kalaba was already demanding that the President must cut short his 2 day visit to Egypt.
HH has always done what he did yesterday in Kanyama but the evil haters have always something negative to say.
Always acting after the fact
HH is part of the problem….now going there for photo shoot even wearing a hard hat…..Politicians are fake….we need a serious revolutionary leader to awaken us not pathological liars like HH….imagine we’re the 6th poorest County in the world and yet we have trillions worth of minerals….we cant even construct proper drainage system 60 years after independence
President Hichilema Orders Removal of Homes Blocking Waterways Amid Lusaka Flood Crisis.
Yes, this is the result of his photo shoot. Tell us the result of the opposition miserable visit.
It is called fire-fighting management. Instead of preventing the fire you only show up when everything is burning and announce that you will put out the fire!
The result is that the opposition made him do the right thing. A good achievement that is. Last year when America was hit by a raveging storm their president cut short his visit abroad. Can ours abandoned a foreign trip. He didn’t. Did he?
All Politicians are conmen…..and what a contrary from those filtered pictures we see from Lusaka July….and look at these pictures….Lusaka July is what we call boasting na njala…trying so hard to show as if things are rossy in Zambia and yet there’s filthy everywhere
@Anonymous…Including Donald Trump!
There is filth, not there is filthy
A few years ago I used to wash Luanda the capital of Angola submerged in filthy rainy water but now am now watching my own country submerged in filthy rainy water….during UNIP we used to have heavy rains but no flooding….this means that our cities have become garbage dump sites
You also has become part of that garbage.
A full blown and comprehensive audit of the drainage system needs to be undertaken. The government also needs to devise a building code of practice going forward.
I repeat….LETS KEEP OUR CITIES CLEAN….STOP CUTTING TREES….STOP THROWING GARBAGE EVERYWHERE..cleanliness is a joint responsibility
In government for the 4th year now, no action but full of hollow self praise. Only that we have a fragmented and disorganised opposition and that is what gives him a lifeline in the 2026 elections.
Especially tuma egos coming from leaders of socialist party, CF and PAC, and when they get wired by UPND in 2026, they start their tuma rigging stories. Get together you chaps, but of course not for the sake of removing the party in power only, but by having tangible plans to come and sort out the economic mess worsened by the UPND IMF policies. Get us back to PF economic levels atleast
Putting your ugly head under the sand. You don’t want to see what they have done so far.
The biggest problem is not houses being built anyhow, it’s the landscape of Lusaka. Lusaka land is very flat and mainly composed of limestone which doesn’t absorb water. Come to Kapisha Chingola, houses are built in such a way that you have to leave your vehicle away from the house you are visiting and walk through people’s yards for your destination…. but there’s no flooding… simply because the land is sloppy dipping towards streams and the land is of ordinary soil which easily takes in water.
Floods have been a feature of Lusaka since 1967. Those of us bred on the copperbelt often wondered why our capital had floods and cholera when our well planned neat towns had nothing of the sort. Now, every Zambian President’s itinerary has a permanent unscheduled visit to Kanyama, Chibolya Mitsitsi, John Howard etc during the rain season.
After which he heads back to State House for a three course meal with the Local government minister and other fatties in cabinet. They will do the same next year. They never get anything sorted out. In China govt would have tasked the local universities with a flood draining plan and a local efficient company to work on the problem. Us we have universities for people to show off their gowns and mortarboards. Their knowledge is never used anywhere
I don’t think. It’s homes blocking the water.
Just LCC has not done much cleaning the
Drainage system for all these years.They are
Raising alot of money from Rates as this is the
Time to come in and work on drains.Its all talk
No action.
The drains are blocked at the ends , that’s way you see water running on roads as the only outlet…….
FWD2031
The man has been busy flying about in the jet he promised Zambians he will sell now he has realised that instead of going round the globe photo shooting he has serious problems to attend to.Too late badala the clock is ticking
Its only in Zambia where tik tokers like you would like to control the president.Has HH ever gone outside Zambia just for a holiday? Compare with your adada Lungu. He went to New York with about 30 cadres and you were busy cheering upon seeing the cadres on the Hudson River on a boat cruise.
The new President of Botswana has been everywhere since he became President. I have not heard or read anywhere about Batswana complaining about his foreign visits.
Indeed the clock is ticking
bring on 2026
We the people will decide
Ths platform accounts for ZERO
Congratulations. It’s a very good directive. We hope and trust that relevant authorities will take a speedy action
This is the result of so called…….
UNPRECEDENTED DEVELOPMENT
As we were being told by the PF zealots……
Kanshi……..the theives were just building anyhow with out regard to anything……..
No rules , no laws , even reserve forests were looted and destroyed, with plans to destroy game parks by allowing mines in them……….
And the same politicians are in opposition hoping to come back ???
FED2031
There is no order in Zambia, no planning, no bye-law enforcement and on and on I can go. You wonder what the so called authorities do in their offices. Its a disgrace to say the least. We are used to doti and disorder, chapwa.
The lasting solution is a tunnel or multiple tunnels under the city. Its called Underground Mining and Zambia is the world’s capital when it comes to Underground Mining. Use them. For you doubting Thomases, please check how the Japanese have done it.
That’s the only solution. It’s been done in other nations… maybe here we need permission from the world bank
Why are some political leaders and MPs already packing their bags?
The President said the same thing after touring flooded areas in 2023. Then the drought came and he thought nothing more of it. So why wasn’t the prolonged drought seen as a window of opportunity to do what he is proposing now?? The mind boggles!
Ask Piranha
He seems to think he has all the answers
Jumping about on flood waters like those of us born in Chibolya. Id he trips and falls it is the presidential protection unit that gets fired
Jumping about on flood waters like those of us born in Chibolya. If he trips and falls it is the presidential protection unit that gets fired
Some of us used to sing songs about poor drainage systems during the PF days, we used to condemn how poorly the drainage network was designed in Zambia. No one paid attention to what we had to say. Today other people are suffering and will continue to suffer until people take these matters seriously. Drainage and urban planning go hand in hand, you can allocate plots without first constructing good drainage systems.
Correction
You can’t allocate plots without construction of drainage systems
@2020 vision
You’re 100% right…poor urban planning and just issuing plots randomly….before issuing plots the councils should survey the land and construct drainage system…sewer system and put up electricity poles….this is what they do in South Africa and developed countries….but in Zambia someone just wakes up and starts issuing plots…i bought land in Zambia and i made sure it was properly surveyed with running water and electricity poles….
These are PF induced floods ,they allowed street vending everywhere and building anywhere just to gain votes in 2011.
It’s been going on since w3e got Independence in 1964
It’s an AFRICAN THING
Is there such a thing as Town Planning in Zambia?
The first and only relevant comment on here
NO PLANING by LCC
They should be removed
By the way is it only poor people’s houses causing floods? What about the flooding at the Malls, Great East Road etc..why don’t we demolish these structures too?