Residents of Lusaka have appealed to the Lusaka City Council (LCC) to use social media when calling on the public to go and identify unclaimed bodies at mortuaries.
In an interview with Lusaka Star, Benson Cheelo, a resident of Kaunda Square in Lusaka, said that the current use of print media by the council to publish the public notice on its intention to bury unclaimed bodies is not effective as many people no longer buy newspapers.
“People have shifted to social media so LCC should also migrate to digital media and make good use of it if they want to reach a large number of people to go and identify unclaimed bodies at hospitals,” Cheelo said.
And another Lusaka resident, Yusuf Banda said that popular radio stations and social media are more appealing and effective in reaching people from different backgrounds.
Meanwhile, LCC Public Relations Manager Mwaka Nakweti said that the Council is required by law to publish the public notice on its intention to bury unclaimed bodies in the print media as it is easy to refer to.
According to the First Schedule of the Local Government Act No. 2 of 2019, local councils are mandated to place a public notice in the press on its intention to bury unclaimed bodies.
The unclaimed bodies are buried 14 days after the issuance of the public notice.
Nakweti however noted that LCC is open to the use of other media platforms, including social media, to call on the public to go and identify unclaimed bodies at mortuaries before they are buried at designated cemeteries.
Last week Lusaka City Council called on well wishers to help it bury 42 unclaimed bodies deposited at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) mortuary.
