KASAMA MAYORAL POLL SHOULD PRIORITIZE DEVELOPMENT OVER PARTY POLITICS – CHANDA
Kanchibiya Member of Parliament Sunday Chanda has urged voters in Kasama to prioritise development over political considerations as the town prepares for its mayoral election scheduled for Thursday.
Speaking during a programme on Radio Mano earlier today, Mr. Chanda said the forthcoming election presented a critical opportunity for Kasama and the wider Northern Province to redefine their development trajectory.
He stressed that the contest should not be reduced to party rivalries, but should centre on the town’s long-term growth and transformation.
“This election must be about development, nothing more, nothing less,” Mr. Chanda said, arguing that political competition had for too long overshadowed strategic planning in the provincial capital.
He observed that Kasama, which was founded in 1889 and attained municipal status in 1994, had failed to translate its age and legal status into meaningful urban development.
According to the MP, more than three decades after becoming a municipality, the town still lacked the infrastructure and planning expected of a provincial capital.
“Kasama is 136 years old, and a town founded in 1889 should today be a well-planned and industrialising urban centre,” he said.
“Thirty-one years after attaining municipal status, the reality on the ground tells a far less inspiring story.”
Mr. Chanda noted that development in Kasama remained uneven and largely driven by private initiatives, with public infrastructure concentrated mainly along Zambia Road, leaving many townships on the periphery of municipal attention.
He cited the road network as a clear example of stagnation, saying much of it remained based on designs from the Kaunda era.
“New settlements like Mukulumpe and Chikumanino have expanded rapidly without properly planned road layouts or supporting infrastructure,” he said, adding that such challenges were the result of “a long-standing tendency to prioritise political contestation over developmental planning.”
The MP further lamented the absence of a strong industrial base in Kasama, warning that without industry and jobs, young people were left vulnerable and hopeless.
“Without industry, a city stagnates, and without jobs, young people lose hope,” he said. “Politics then becomes a distraction rather than a tool for progress.”
Mr. Chanda reminded residents that the office of Mayor was not ceremonial, but central to urban development, investment attraction and economic transformation.
He said voters should carefully assess all six candidates contesting the election and base their decision on competence and capacity to deliver.
“The people of Kasama must ask themselves: do we vote for politics, or do we vote for development?” he said.
“This election is not about who wins power; it is about whether Kasama finally wins progress.”
Mr. Chanda urged voters to look beyond party loyalty and focus on who could provide a clear vision for sustainable growth, warning that continued delays in development would amount to “time stolen from the future of our children.”