Chief condemns police unit arson
Senior Chief Mkanda of Mchinji in central Malawi has condemned villagers who torched Mkanda Police Unit on Sunday.
More than 20 residents stoned the police building before they burnt it and released four “dangerous suspects”. This was after police arrested a suspect who was allegedly keeping 100 litres of petrol in his home. The residents claimed the police arrested and abused a wrong suspect.
Said Mkanda in an interview on Tuesday: “The act is not welcome. It also shows that people in the area are not serious with development.”
He called on group village heads in the area to mobilise their subjects to mould bricks and contribute to the rebuilding of the police unit.
Mkanda is one of the busiest trading centres in the district and the police unit was built by communities around the trading centre as one way of reducing crime in the area.
Meanwhile, the police in the area are operating under a tree.
This is not the first time villagers have burnt police units in the Centre; last year residents in Mitundu burnt a police unit after accusing police officers of aiding crime in the area.
