Five street vendors in Chipata have been arrested for trading on the street.
And a civil servant has been arrested for buying lemons and avocadoes from street vendors.
Chipata City Council Director for Legal Affairs Lynn Galapa revealed this during a cholera update meeting on Friday.
Ms. Galapa says that of the five who were arrested, two were fined and released as the police hadn’t been advised that the dockets should be forwarded to the National Prosecution Authority, NPA.
She says that the remaining three are in police custody and will have their dockets forwarded to NPA for prosecution.
Ms Galapa explained that since the local government street vending and nuisance act does not provide specific penalties, the civil servant was made to buy a broom and sweep the front entrance to one of the supermarkets under the supervision of a guard.
She says the local authority hopes such action will deter other would be offenders from buying things from street vendors.
And Ms Galapa says that the fast track court will not only be used to prosecute those going against the street vending and nuisance act, but traffic offences committed by drivers in the district.