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Police in conjunction with Blantyre City Council officials have arrested 18 people for illegal vending in the commercial city.
According to police, the arrest was made on May 2 and 3 following failure by the vendors to comply with set by-laws against illegal vending.
“Those arrested have been continuously bringing their merchandise along the streets in Blantyre defiantly,” said Blantyre Police Public Relations Officer, Augustus Nkhwazi.
He said the suspects have since been charged with illegal vending contrary to Section 3 as read with Section 24 of Local Government Act (Blantyre City Council) By-laws,”
Among the 18 suspects are two women and 16 men and they are expected to appear before court soon to answer the charges.
The arrests come at a time the city council has rolled out different measures aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19.
Among other measures, the council has been exploring ways of decongesting markets and banned street vending to avoid crowding.
Health experts recommend that there should be a physical distance of not less than one meter between people so that if one of them is infected, they will not transmit the virus to others.
According to government statistics, currently Malawi has 43 confirmed Covid-19 cases with three deaths.
Worldwide, there are over 3.8 million cases with
