Irate people from some villages in Ntchisi on Monday morning marched to district council offices, demanding their wages for the work they did under the Public Works Programme (PWP).
The people, led by group village head Chimbwanda, said they worked under Masaf 4 Public Works Programme from February 20 to March 19 this year.
In their petition, the workers claim that their catchment area has 418 eligible beneficiaries, but they were surprised when the council advised them that only 273 were eligible to receive wages.
“What we know is that 418 people worked under the programme. As such, we will not allow others to be left out,” reads part of the petition presented to district commissioner (DC) Peter Jimusole.
The people rejected a suggestion by the DC to pay the 273 whose money he said the council had already received from National Local Government Finance Committee.
In a separate interview, the DC said the council noticed some people had moved to other areas while others were involved in social cash transfer programme; hence, some names had to be removed.
The wages are K21 600 per person for working for 24 days. n
