A 28-year-old woman working as Secretary in Health Department at Mzuzu City Council, Ndinawe Mtambo, surprised people when she took her belongings to the civic offices, as part of her protest against delays in payment of salaries.
Mambo complained that sometimes the council takes more than 6 months without paying her and other council workers.
For the past two days, Mtambo has been sleeping in an open space at Mzuzu City Council. She is a secretary at the council’s health department and said she decided to take her belongings to the city council as one way of expressing her grievances over delays in salaries employees have been facing at the council.
She explained that she has been passing through depressing moments since 2017 as she mostly struggles to make ends meet despite being employed.
“Though authorities have given me two months’ salary I will continue holding vigils at the council because I want a lasting solution to the problem. We are suffering, we are not supposed to be requesting for our salaries when the council is aware that it has employees,” Ndinawe narrated.
While admitting that the council is facing financial squabbles, Mzuzu City Council Public Relations Officer, Macdonald Gondwe, expressed surprise over Ndinawe’s actions.
We are surprised because she was supposed to engage other authorities and follow procedure before taking this action,” said Gondwe.
Meanwhile, Ndinawe’s mother has collected her daughter’s property from the civic offices.
