By LT Blogger
More than 30 workers working for Global Drilling Services Ltd, a Zambian company based in Livingstone, were left stranded in the Gwembe valley in Southern Province for more than one month without food and basic needs. This was after the company which was contracted to drill for coal exploration failed to undertake the works. Global Drilling Services Ltd was contracted by an Indian firm, Era Power and Infrastructure (Z) Ltd.
It is reported that Global Drilling Services was awarded the tender to drill more than 3700 meters of coal exploration in the southern coal block in the Gwembe Valley. However, Global Drilling Services Ltd failed to drill even a meter despite being paid more than 81 000 US Dollars towards mobilisation. The stranded workers complained that they were left stranded in the bush for more than one month in Gwembe Valley whilst the company owner was in Livingstone spending the money.
It is reported that the owner and his directors never went back to the Gwembe Valley after receiving the mobilisation funds and left the workers starving in the bush.
Some of the workers spoken to who sought anonymity claimed that their employer engaged them from Mazabuka’s Munali Hills near Albidon Mine and ferried them to the Gwembe Valley to drill. The workers also complained that Global Drilling Services Ltd engaged them without giving them any form of contracts and that the employer only promised to pay them five million kwacha (K5 000 000.00) each every month .
The workers further explained that their employer failed to provide the equipment needed to do the works and neglected to pay salaries. This forced the workers to start abandoning the site one by one and the site has since been abandoned. Global Drilling Services Ltd is also reported to owe various suppliers of goods and services more than seventy five thousand US Dollars.
This development echo’s the various concerns by foreign investors to offer contracts to Zambian companies, as most local contractors fail to do the works despite being paid huge amounts of money.
This has further delayed the opening of the new coal mine which is poised to bring a total of $1.8 Billion US Dollars worth of investment in the country. Era Power and infrastructure (Z) Ltd intends to build a thermal Power Plant in the area which will be in excess of 1.8 billion US Dollars. Global Drilling Services Ltd was supposed to undertake the works within a period of two months from October 2009 to end of November 2009.
THE CEO OF THIS COMPANY SHOULD BE JAILED. WHERE IS CORPORATE GOVERNANCE? WE NEED LAWS TO SORT OUT GUYZ LIKE THESE. WE SIMPLY GIVING AMMUNITION TO CHINESE AND INDIANS TO BRING THEIR OWN COUNTRY MEN TO DO WORK WHICH WE CAN DO. IN ZAMBIA WE JUST LIKE DOING OUR SELVES IN THE BACKSIDE. HERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE MONEY LEGIT , BUT THIS FOOL DECIDES TO BOLT WITH THE MONEY WITHOUT DOING ANYTHING
#1 I completely agree with you. These are the same chaps after behaving silly like this end up condeming the Government unfarely about lack of investment in so and so area. The Gov. should get tough and punish such people to fullest extent of the law. I am sure there are laws to protect people in such situations.
jail them period
Pure Zambian mentality…….lazy but want to get rich.
This is what Rupiah calls advancement
Jail the directors period………this is counter development. Am sure the people of gwembe valley will have to wait a little longer to start working on the mine. The directors of this company should be called to answer for this embarrasing behaviour. Where is our labour officers and what are they doing about this? Global what?
I am a livingstone resident and i have heard about this company, what amazes me is that i havent seen any of their so called drilling rigs anywhere in livingstone, I have lived in livingstone more than 45 years and i have never seen a local drilling rig. this guy is up to no good and he is suppose to be investigated. If found wanting, he should be brought to book. I believe zambian businessmen have matured and this guy is not even zambian…he is spoiling our name and chances of getting big contracts as local businessmen
Bazungu no.6 i agree with you, i live in livingstone and i know the CEO of this “company” if at all it can be called a company. This guy just came in the country with a laptop and he talks too much…..and gets a contract. I doubt if he even has an office….i think he operates from home and runs a one man show. he should be investigated and brought to answer for this gross violation of economics. What a joke. Zambia never a crazy moment. We seem to have failed to run this country and jokers with laptops are taking over.
RB…….Where is the law?
and we will continue to import coal, Indains will have a reason to contract fellow indian firms from kamwala, chinese will continue to use chinese firms, workers will continue to be abused like this, gwembe valley will remain undeveloped yet it has the potential to stop load shedding, employment figures will continue to go down and so forth and so forth…….my point is arrest this guy and let him be investigated…he is luck to be Zambian, or is he?
# 9, The law? What law…..RB’s Law??
Rb’s Laws and Lawyers are only concerned when it about por.no.gr.afy
How did this company win this contract? Was procedure followed? How did this CEO pass under the radar of the labour office and go to this extent? Plz LT do more investigative work on this one and we want a clear follow up on this story until the plight of these workers is resolved. I am sure there is more to this than meets the eye. We should learn from this and vet these companies more before giving them contracts. Here is a chance to make legitimate money and the guy chooses to play jokes. I call upon commerce minister to do something about this guy and the minister of mines to see to it that this doesnt happen again.
Thanks to google search…..this company has a news flash on its website front page…..the guy wants to invest 50 million US Dollars in Zambia….can you believe this? This is a briefcase businessman!!!! a polite term for a CON ARTIST! Jail HIM period.
invest $1.8 billion for a thermal plant in gwembe vally ?? The numbers do not add up. LT check you numbers, that amount of money is no joke. If the figure is right , then this is a phony company.
# 12 you seem to have a lot of info on this guy and his company, please avail yourself to the law enforcement authority to help with investigation. i hope you are not one of the accomplices
no. 15. can someone plz tell me if this guy is in jail (where he belongs) or still running his freak show?