Saving a market from fire

A walk at Vigwagwa Market in the heart of Mzuzu City takes one through timber stalls where vendors sell their wares.  Vigwagwa, which refers to timber in Tumbuka, is a makeshift market that started eight years ago to rid streets of the green city of vendors.

The market lies within a kilometre of the Mzuzu Market which had four of its sections reduced to ashes on the night of April 19, 2014. The fire is reported to have been caused by a charcoal burner that was left burning in a restaurant.

A chat with Zigwagwa Market’s chairperson Yona Siluti reveals that sellers at the market are living in fear. They feel that the makeshift market can easily catch fire.

Siluti even says the main job of the market committee is to prevent fire break outs.

“Five years ago, my shop and others in my section caught fire because my neighbour left a burning candle on. We could not extinguish it. It was terrible,” says Siluti, who sells assorted groceries.

He says the fire spread rapidly and he could not save a thing from his shop.

“Whatever you are seeing here, it was rebuilt,” he narrates.

Siluti says traders from the market have asked Mzuzu City Council to consider giving them permission to construct a permanent market with more durable materials, but the council’s response has not been encouraging.

“They say we are here temporarily and that we will relocate to the Flea Market which is currently under construction. But eight years have gone now and we are still here,” he says.

However, he mentions that the flea market will accommodate farm produce traders only, not his type of merchandise. Thus, Siluti feels the city council is not helping them.

“If they could just give us the design and plan of the market, we will construct our own stalls with better materials. We will even do it under the city council’s supervision,” he says.

Meanwhile, the market committee is taking their own initiative to ensure all restaurant owners construct brick fences around their cooking areas and that they do not use open fires to avoid another market fire.

“If one does not comply, we ban them from operating in the market because we do not want another case of fire,” Siluti says.

Yamikani Masamba, a mother of four who runs a restaurant in the market says the city council should just declare the place a permanent market so that sellers can put up better structures.

“We do not feel obliged to construct stalls with stronger materials because government is non-committal,” says Masamba, a mother of four, adding it is expensive to construct an all plank stall than using slabs because planks need regular maintenance.

However, Mzuzu City  Council’s chief executive officer Thomas Chirwa says once the flea market is operational, Vigwagwa Market will be closed.

Chirwa says traders at the market operate at their own risk as the place is inhabitable.

“The flea market will accommodate all farm produce traders from the main market, Vigwagwa, car park and all streets. The rest of the traders will fill in the space created in the main market; we are going to remove Vigwagwa permanently to construct a more habitable place,” he says.

As for Siluti and Masamba, they maintain that they are going nowhere.

“We cleared this place, it is because of us government constructed a tarmac road here. Our customers are accustomed to this place,” Siluti says.

According to Siluti, council officials did not consult the traders on their plans to remove the planks market permanently.

“Speculation is rife that they will give this land to Chinese when we relocate but we are Malawians. How can they give our land to foreigners?” queried Siluti.

However, Chirwa says the council has no plans of distributing the land to foreigners.