‘Unity key to help cyclone survivors’

First Deputy Speaker of Parliament Madalitso Kazombo says unity is crucial to help people affected by Tropical Cyclone Freddy in the Southern Region.

He said this on Monday at Kachulu along Lake Chilwa in Zomba where he, alongside WaterAid Malawi, donated food and non-food items to at least 301 survivors at Namisunje Primary School camp.

Kazombo commended group village head Mbalu for accommodating survivors from different villages.

“The government also commends development partners such as civil society organisations, corporate institutions and religious organisations for their quick responses during the disaster,” he said.

Kazombo advised parents that when they return home, they should encourage their children, especially girls to work hard in school to become productive citizens.

He cited Speaker of Parliament Catherine Gotani Hara, Zomba district commissioner Reignhard Chavula, Zomba Likangala legislator Abigail Bongwe and WaterAid Malawi country director Mercy Masoo as role models to the girls.

Masoo said the consignment comprised sanitation items such as soap, buckets, diapers and other materials to enable survivors prevent waterborne diseases and other abdominal infections.

“It is everybody’s responsibility to ensure that people in camps are well nourished and protected from diseases,” she said.

In her remarks, Chavula said the district is in dire need of infrastructural support for the survivors to be released from the camps.

“The district council is working hard to distribute food to ensure that no one starves,” she said.

Zomba has 123 camps accommodating over 1 600 households displaced by floods triggered by Tropical Cyclone Freddy.