COMMITMENT and zeal have been the driving force behind the success stories of many individuals that have established themselves as influential figures in society.
In today’s column, we feature Patriotic Front (PF) Kafue Member of Parliament, Obvious Summerton Mwaliteta, unveiling challenges and scores he has managed to record since assuming the seat in the once vibrant town.
Just like other towns with a vibrant history of industrial activity mirroring in the past, Kafue is recovering from its phase of economic melt-down.
The tale of the town centres history to the hay-days of Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ) and Kafue Textiles of Zambia (KTZ).
The two companies were the focal point of activity and employed a vast number of locals and others from elsewhere.
The collapse of the two giants in the small town located some 45-minutes drive south of Lusaka, spelt doom and misery to many of the people whose livelihood was premised not far beyond the comfort zone of NCZ and KTZ’s continued existence, but fate as it, changed the course of life’s direction.
The effects of privatisation of the two companies resulting in the laying off of hundreds of workers caused unbearable misery, a story that will remain unforgotten for years to come.
However the scenario has been changing over the past years, as Government has taken full responsibility to resuscitate NCZ with financial injection, this is all in the effort to resurrect its viability.
Mr Mwaliteta, once a councillor of Mungu ward in Kafue set his benchmarks, that once he became MP, his priority was to revive NCZ and bring some dignity to the face of the town.
A former pupil of a local school, Mungu Primary School and Kwacha Private School in Lusaka, Mr Mwaliteta now aged 54, recalls that he was determined then and still is determined now, to continue on his path to improve the economic standing of Kafue.
Mr Mwaliteta who is married and is the Central Province Minister narrates that the road to restore this much-desired dignity of Kafue has not been smooth.
At the helm of representing the electorate that ushered him into office in 2011 after changing camps from the former ruling party, the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) to the PF, Mr Mwaliteta sees hope for his Constituency that covers a large geographical area, stretching to Chiawa among other locations.
The geography of this part of the country is one that does not require much explanation to many that have travelled around this area, hilly land and the vast Kafue River, meander around, providing both beauty and a source of thought on how to go about bringing shreds of development to the people, who are in the rural areas.
Like most of his colleagues in Parliament, schools, health, sanitation, good roads and drainage are paramount.
“I come from a rural set up and in 2006 while as I was councillor for Mungu ward, I was driven by the zeal shown by our late President Levy Mwanawasa to fight corruption and this was the start of my political ambitions and I then admired the same zeal in President Michael Sata and I joined PF and I won in 2011,” Mr Mwaliteta says with a facial expression beaming with some deep satisfaction, but emphasises that he wants more for his people.
To improve communication in the road sector, Mr Mwaliteta said the construction of a bridge across the Kafue River in Chiawa was a priority target and true to that, a bridge will be ready in three months time.
Various roads in his Constituency have been earmarked for improvement.
The Shimabala-Kapongo Road, Mungu-Chikupi Road, the Shimabala via Kabweza-Mungu Road, are among the set targets.
The Link-Zambia 8, 000, the mother of all road projects in the country, will also extend benefits to Kafue Constituency and already the State Lodge to Chiawa Road is one such benefit.
Health and Sanitation
Mr Mwaliteta knows the benefits of having a healthy population. They contribute more to the development of his area and much to the benefit of national growth.
And so he has also set his focus to continue out-rolling the improvement of health facilities in various localities in the Constituency.
He adds that his target is to transform Kafue into a municipal council from its district council status details about this mammoth task are still in the infancy stage but gaining momentum.
The Parliamentarian is undertaking to improve Kafue District Hospital and says that the health facility has a bed space of 120 and further expansion is taking place in the area of a surgical ward and a new mortuary.
He adds that sanitation levels have improved to at least around 90 per cent and has extended gratitude to the Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company (LWSC) for a job well-done in this area.
But on the other he laments the continued existence of unplanned settlements which make it difficult to connect piped water but a project is also underway to ensure the local population is linked to piped water.
He says that K179, 000 has been injected in a project to put up pipes in Mutendere area in his Constituency and in Matanda area where K62,000 has been budgeted for.
“Very soon we are going to have piped water to help reduce water borne diseases in my Constituency and this is not the end-point but a start of good things to come,” he says.
Education
In the area of education, Mr Mwaliteta says under the Rural Electrification Authority several schools have been lined up to be connected to power supply.
This he notes will greatly contribute to improving learning standards among pupils and help boost the morale of teachers.
Schools such a Chanyanya, Shantumbu, Kabwezya, Mungu and Chifwema Primary, are among the learning institutions that will benefit from this programme and some are covered under the Constituency Development Fund (CDF).
A further development is the construction of a secondary school in Chikupi area at a cost of K24 million and that once complete, it will help absorb pupils from several surroundings schools.
“I went to school in a rural area and because I could not find a public secondary school nearby,  I had to learn at a private school in Lusaka and this is why I am determined to build this secondary school because the location is central and a lot of pupils will benefit,” he says.
Once these goals are attained, Mr Mwaliteta says he will be a proud individual as he will not only contribute to changing the lives of his constituents but play a part in national development.
Challenges lay in his path as he fosters development but these are not a deterrent.
He says the late release of the CDF is a major hiccup in trying to realise his goals and hopes that this will change for the better.
He wants to address the issue of drainage and improve the township roads and wants more storage sheds for farm produce.
Another area of concern has been the animal-human conflict in  Chiawa area but has commended the Zambia Wildlife Autrhority (ZAWA) for the efforts put in place so far to address the problem but states that more can still be done such as the setting up of fences around areas where people reside to avoid animals straying and destroying crop.
Irrigation farming in Chiawa is also another target and Mr Mwaliteta says he wants to empower the locals especially women with irrigation facilities so that they maximise the usage of rivers to irrigate their crops and ensure they were self reliant.
Mr Mwaliteta emphasises that despite of the hurdles, he wakes up each day with a new zeal to ensure that the people benefit from his commitment and zeal.
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