By Emmanuel Moyo
Guardians at Karonga District Hospital’s Guardian Shelter are under a trap of unhygienic conditions as the country draws close to rainy season due to lack of electricity at the facility.
A visit at the facility revealed that all the rooms, kitchen inclusive have no lighting and residents use light sourced from torches which is not reliable during evening and night hours.
In an interview, one of the guardians at the facility, Mercy Mwalughali described the condition as critical saying it has potential of causing unhealthy conditions.
“We are facing challenges of lack of electricity here, so when rains start it will be pathetic and it might cause water born related diseases to us and the patients we are helping too,” she said.
Concurring with Mwalughali, Elfrida Kapira said at night the situation is bad as there is a lot of uncleanliness.
“Lack of electricity is really of much concern as without light, there is a lot of uncleanliness and there is also danger that thieves can take advantage of darkness to steal from us,” she said.
In a separate interview, Director of Health and Social Services, David Sibale, said the facility is out of the jurisdiction of the hospital hence the hospital is powerless and refered the reporter to the council.
On his part, Council Chairperson for Karonga District, Belliam Msukwa said he was not aware of the challenges but was quick to say the council will work towards solving the problem.
“As a council we have not formally received a complaint, however since we have received it through the media, we will take action and work with concerned members towards solving the problem because it is very important during rainy season as it is dark and people can face difficulties in performing their normal duties,” he said.
