By Vincent Gunde
The National Initiative for Civic Education Trust (NICE) in Dowa, says the media acts as a platform for communities to share their stories and issues affecting the marginalized, and promotion of equality and justice.
The NICE Trust is providing support to the media notably investigative journalism and reporting to encourage the rights holders to demand transparency and accountability from duty bearers on the projects being implemented in Dowa district.
Speaking on Friday at Mponela during an interface meeting with a team of investigative journalists for the district, Nice Trust District Programmes Officer for Dowa Alinafe Chikakuda, said the meeting reflected on the progress done as a team investigating developmental issues affecting the people in the district.
Chikakuda said when the information comes out from their investigation, it empowers the community who are the rights holders to be able to demand accountability from duty bearers so that whatever is being implemented in the district is in the interest of all.
She said the NICE in the district is very impressed with success stories coming out from their investigative journalism especially on the issue of James CDSS’s school Block construction project in the area of Traditional Authority Chiwere.
The officer said the school according to the District Development Plan (DDP), it was allocated K23 million for the construction of a school block in the 2020/2021 Financial Year but to this day, there is nothing on the ground.
She said journalists conducted the investigation at the school where it was established that Senior Group Village Headman James of the area has for five times been visiting the Dowa District Council offices but, this was to no avail.
“This necessitated the Nice office in the district to organize and conduct a public rally with the communities surrounding James CDSS and an interface meeting with the council on the way forward,” said Chikakuda.
She said the interface meeting with the council following the findings of the investigative journalists, it was resolved that the classroom block construction project should be done at the same village as previously arranged during the 2020/2021 Financial Year.
Chikakuda said the investigative team also discussed other areas of investigation such as a Health clinic at Nauchi in the area of Traditional Authority Chakhaza saying staff was deployed but there is nothing happening on the ground that the clinic is not functioning.
She said Kamwana school had its roof blown off by strong winds in 2021 saying the Member of Parliament for the area is claiming that roofing was done but the communities surrounding the school are claiming that there had been no roofing
The officer said the investigative journalists are intending to investigate Matekenya clinic in the area of Senior Chief Msakambewa which some years ago, appeared on the list of completed projects but the truth was that, there were drainages only and the Chimwaza-Nambma -Kasiya Road project.
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