•President Lungu interacts with children at Mother Theresa Home in Mtendere Township in Lusaka where he presented Christmas presents to patients and children yesterday. Picture by Eddie Mwanaleza/State house

By PERPETUAL SICHIKWENKWE –
PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu yesterday celebrated Christmas Day by visiting the sick at Mother Theresa of Missionaries of Charity hospice in Mtendere Township in Lusaka.
Mr Lungu, who was in a jovial mood, urged the patients to adhere to medication and assured them that God would heal them if they believed.
He spent about an hour at the hospice and gave out presents to the patients, including the children admitted to the facility.“Christmas is about sharing, sharing the love of Jesus, boundless and timeless. May the Lord bless you all,” he said in his message in the visitors’ book.
Mr Lungu, who was in the company of state house officials, arrived at the hospice at 11 ‎:54 hours and took time to interact with the children and staff who welcomed him.
The President also visited the male ward which had 92 patients mostly suffering from tuberculosis (TB) and took time to shake hands with them while sharing light moments.
“I know that God is there, you will get better,” Mr Lungu told the patients in the male ward.
Mr Lungu encouraged the patients to always take medicine and to eat in order for them to get better‎.
The Head of State also visited Mtendere Police Post where he was welcomed by scores of Mtendere residents.
He took time to inspect the Police post, especially the cells which the officer-in-charge, ‎Raphael Moono, said needed urgent rehabilitation as they were in a dilapidated state.
Mr Lungu said he was at the Police post to inspect the general environment and condition of the cells.
He said it was important that human rights were upheld regardless of one’s status in society.
Meanwhile, President Lungu has directed Local Government Minister Stephen Kampyongo to work with Senior Chieftainess Nkomeshya Mukamambo II to ensure order in the acquisition of land in Chongwe District.
Business yesterday came to a standstill in the district as ‎Mr Lungu spent part of his Christmas time to tour Chongwe Market and other places. Mr Lungu said during his impromptu visit ‎to Chongwe that he would not support any illegality in the acquisition of land by any citizen.
He said such conduct had resulted in a lot of problems in the administration of land in the country.
He, however, said that he was happy with the development ‎registered in Chongwe and hoped all the projects were being implemented with the consent of the royal establishment.
Mr Lungu said he would not support wrongdoing in land acquisition with an understanding that Government would normalise them at a later stage.
“I saw when I was coming that there is a lot of development here and I hope all of it is with your consent and approval your royal highness,” Mr Lungu said.
In response, Chieftainess Nkomeshya Mukamambo II said there was a lot of pressure on her because many people from Lusaka were now moving to her chiefdom.
“‎I have a lot of pressure, people from Lusaka are drifting into Chongwe. There are so many, very soon Chongwe and Lusaka will be the same city,” she said.
She said people were buying land without following the right procedure with the hope that Government would normalise things at a later stage.
She said it was becoming difficult for her to manage the chiefdom, adding that unplanned structures were unsafe.
But Mr Lungu said he would not support such illegality as his Government wanted to have planned developments even in rural areas.
“We need to have planned developments even here in rural areas with running water and proper roads. What we are seeing now is something else,” he said.
Meanwhile, President Lungu says he will follow up with the ministry of Agriculture to see how service delivery could be improved in the e-voucher system.
The President, however, said being a pioneer project, the e-voucher project was bound to have hiccups and that feedback was important to improve the service.
Mr Lungu said this after Chieftainess Nkomeshya complained to him about the tedious process involved in acquisition of farming products through the e-voucher system.
Apart from touring the market, the Head of State also visited Chongwe District Hospital where he presented Christmas hampers to eight Christmas babies.