More Police officers to be deployed to support Lusaka Mayor’s  “Operation Clear Path” – Government

The Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security has confirmed the deployment of a substantial reinforcement of police officers to support the Lusaka City Council in executing "Operation Clear Path". The aggressive urban cleanup and compliance campaign, spearheaded by Lusaka Mayor Chitambala Mwewa, targets illegal street vending, unauthorized markets, and unregulated public transport operations choking the capital's Central Business District. Authorities have emphasized that the deployment is necessary to guarantee public safety and enforce statutory regulations without compromise. For months, swelling numbers of informal traders have spilled over sidewalks, obstructed drainage systems, and created severe sanitation hazards. With Lusaka District registering a resurgence of cholera cases, municipal authorities argue that decisive action is paramount to avert a full-scale public health emergency ahead of the rainy season. Under the joint command framework, blue-uniformed council police and officers from the Zambia Police Service are establishing a zero-tolerance perimeter across key arterial roads. The operation mandates that all traders operating in undesignated spaces relocate immediately to official, council-managed markets equipped with proper sanitation facilities. While the local authority has maintained that the initiative is designed to restore dignity and order rather than punish citizens, the heavy security presence highlights the high stakes involved in managing urban informal economies. Critics and vendors' associations have frequently pointed to the scarcity of viable trading spaces within formal markets, raising concerns over potential economic displacement for thousands of urban poor who depend on daily micro-trade for survival. However, the central government's visible backing signals a unified political will between local and national tiers of governance to prioritize structural order and public health hygiene over informal convenience. As the