Danish students lights Emfeni court in Mzimba

They left their comfort zones in Denmark to learn and appreciate what Norwegian Church Aid and DanChurch Aid are doing with their partners in rural Malawi.

The Odsherreds Efterskole students have managed to light Emfeni court in Mzimba district, which has been operational for so many years without electricity. Due to challenges of electricity at the court, it was difficult for the magistrate to work odd hours. In t some cases they were using torches from their phones or candles to deliver justice.

According to Magistrate Innocent Letaie Chikudza, the absence of electricity at the court compelled members of staff to knock off early, which affected the delivery of justice as the court has a backlog of cases especially on gender based violence.

“The donation of electricity has come in time at our court. It will make our work easier than before. We handle a lot of cases which sometimes adjourned in the past due to electricity challenges; but now it will be history,” said Chikudza.

Traditional Authority Mabulabo thanked the Danish students through NCA/DCA for bailing them out of electricity challenges which they have been facing for years.

“We thank the students for the good gesture rendered to us. We have been longing for this for a long time as government alone can not afford to do everything. It needs other stakeholders to assist when their is need,” said Mabulabo.

He urged other stakeholders to emulate what the Danish students have done for them, “so that the area can develop faster.

“The area which has electricity attracts investors and businesses. People are able to do their businesses without fear even when it is late at night,” said Mabulabo.

Maria Gast, who is leader of delegation and a senior teacher, said they thought of helping the court with electricity because they heard a lot of stories about the area. She said they heard that there are a lot of cases on gender-based violence. With electricity installed at the court, Gast said it will be easy for the magistrate to assist the court’s clients even at odd hours “than in the past when they were using candles or torch to speed up the cases.

“We did not come to Malawi to have fun but also for the students to learn Malawian culture and share experiences with their fellow students here. And we thought of giving Emfeni Court a new face with electricity for the magistrate to work effectively. We want the court staff to work without difficulties,” said Gast.

Emfeni court serves people from seven Traditional Authorities in Mzimba and Kasungu district.

Rose Chipumphula CHALIRA