A health and nutrition expert in the country, Dorothy Ngoma, has expressed shock following reports that Government distributed rotten maize to hundreds of hunger stricken people in Dowa district.

Ngoma said this after the officials from the Department of Disaster Management (DODMA) admitted to have distributed rotten maize to the people in response to the current hunger situation.

She further said the development is an indication that government doesn’t put the lives of its citizens at heart.

Ngoma said: “How can a human being do that to a fellow human being? It’s disgusting and just the same as killing these people who are already in poor health condition.”

She further dismissed assertions that officials were not aware that the distributed maize was in inconsumable state.

“Government officials were fully aware that the maize is in this state but they chose to ignore and take an advantage of the people’s vulnerability to gain a political mileage but this is a violation of human rights at its first degree.”

The maize, packed in government labeled sacks, was distributed over the weekend by DODMA which is under the responsibility of the office of the country’s vice president, Everton Chimulirenji, in an on-going relief program.

Meanwhile people are returning the rotten maize and DOMA has promised to send them some more grain which is consumable.