RA irks Chitipa business community

The business community in Chitipa has vowed that it will not allow Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) to go back to Mbilima Border to collect taxes until Roads Authority (RA) works on Chitipa-Mbilima Road.

RA earlier indicated that it would maintain the road to ensure that it is passable during the rainy season and would later upgrade it to bitumen once the 2020/2021 Budget has been passed.

However, weeks have passed without RA working on the road.

Speaking in an interview, Chitipa  Business Community representative Davie Musongole said the people feel cheated and wondered why government decided to make promises it would not fulfill.

He said government went to the extent of deploying equipment to show that works would start, only to withdraw them after a meeting government had with the community members.

He said the stretch to Mbilima Border Post is getting worse due to persisting rains in the district and businesses have been affected as people are failing to travel to Tanzania.

“We will not allow MRA back at the boarder until the road has been fixed. We are not demanding a tarmac road in the meantime because we understand it is a process,” said Musongole.

RA spokesperson Portia Kajanga asked for more time before commenting on the matter. She said the person responsible for the project was away and she needed to get proper information.