The Road Development Agency (RDA) has awarded a contract to China Geo construction company for the rehabilitation of the Kitwe-Kalulushi road and five township roads in Lufwanyama district at a total cost of over K57 Million.
RDA Copperbelt Regional Engineer Chabala Pandeki told ZANIS in Kalulushi in a telephone interview today that a variation order was issued to China Geo, adding that the company was creating some extra works on some existing running contracts.
Mr. Pandeki said China Geo was the same contractor that worked on the Kalulushi-Sabina Road and extended the project to the Kitwe-Kalulushi Road.
He said the contractor has so far done preparatory works and diversions where vehicles will be passing before the main road along the Kitwe-Kalulushi road is completed.
He noted that the same contractor also rehabilitated the road from Mufulira Technical College to the duo carriage way up to town at a total cost of K138, 000,000 million.
Mr. Pandeki said that after the Contractor graduated from the Kalulushi Sabina road project, RDA felt that the Contractor exhibited good performance, and hence extended the contract to the Kitwe -Kalulushi road and the township roads in Lufwanyama.
He said that the Kitwe Kalulushi road covers a total of nine kilometres while five township roads in Lufwanyama cover a total of five kilometres.
And in a separate interview, Kalulushi Town Clerk Eddie Mumba said works on the township roads in Kalulushi have started.
Mr. Mumba said the works which are being carried out by China Civil amounting to over K84, 000, 000 million cover a distance of over 20 km.
He said the works which had started from Chambishi, involved rehabilitating the existing paved roads and upgrading roads to bituminous standards in the three townships namely Kalulushi, Chambishi and Chibuluma.
Will this include new areas like kalengwa plots
It’s a pity that in our country you can bring a good contractor from any part of the world but they won’t produce the same good quality of work they are known for in their country of origin, and this is because;
1. Our engineers, architects and quantity surveyors in RDA and other ministries are ineadequately experienced and exposed to high standards of construction to enable them distinguish good from bad quality work.
2. The more shortcuts a contractor employs in their work, the higher their profit margins – sometimes deliberately and with the Consent of the supervising public official, so that they can share the spoils. We seriously need to raise the competence levels of in-house professionals in government so that they can effectively supervise contractors and reject poor…
Now, here is a clear sign of either incompetence or crookedness or both on the part of this ‘engineer’ called Pandeki; in engineering contracts Variation Orders (VOs) are used to either increase or reduce the scope of work ON THE SAME PROJECT(And correspondingly increasing or reducing the contract amount as the case may be). As a public finance management safeguard VOs are usually capped to a maximum of only 20% of the original contract sum to carter only for unforeseen factors in the project. So, you cannot award a contract for Kitwe-Sabina road and then issue a VO for Kitwe-Kalulushi road. Firstly, These “VOs” are wrong and then the values of the additional works of K138million and K84million are far higher than the original K57million, this is DAYLIGHT FRAUD AND CORRUPTION!
Yes excellence pays. But look at the following statements: (1) if it was given to a Zambian contractor, the performance would have been shoddy (2) If it was given to a Zambian contractor it would have been corruption (3) Foreigners will perform better in Road works than indigenous Zambian contractors. are these statements true or false? When will the Zambian contractors ever be appreciated? May be the answer lies in making sure that any of foreign contractors or company that starts operating in Zambia MUST partner with Zambians before they are allowed to operate.
How can paint all Zambian companies with the same vrush?
How can paint all Zambian companies with the same brush?
Bid low and then add more works to. What a well known way of winning contracts and sharing the loot with. 20% of geo’s income is going to one account. Come next president, Satas are going behind the bars.Lisa
How can you take pride in awarding public contracts to foreign firms for something as simple as a road. W
All road contracts are going to Chinese companies ,WHY?Can’t you give to other local contractors?Mwe bantu how are we going to prosper as a nation when all the money is going out?
Which Zambian company can be given these jobs?And do you think Zambians can do such jobs?Just building a 1 classroom block or just a toilet, you hear about a Zambian company running away with an advance payment.
#Sinjojo why do think so low of Zambian companies.If they are not being given large tenders how are they going to get the technical experience to maintain the same roads when the Chinese companies have made billion dollar profits and leave?
Can someone update me on the solwezi chingola road.
china geo, well its a compony of stupid chinese *****s who just order zambians around and dont pay them enough. You work for 10 to 12 hrs a day @ k5.12 per hour in hard labour even more than a prisoner and only 8 hrs are considered per day. Its hell, but due to the poverty in our country, people have no choice but to work and get whatever change is given to them. China jele construction.