Thursday, March 28, 2024

Contractor vanishes after being paid , leaving 40 casual workers in the cold

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Expansion of Township Roads on the Independence Avenue by China Geo Company (CGC) in Mongu District of Western Province has commenced
Expansion of Township Roads on the Independence Avenue by China Geo Company (CGC) in Mongu District of Western Province has commenced

A sub-contractor engaged by China GEO to construct the Drainage system on township roads in Mongu District, Western Province disappeared after being paid for the work leaving his 40 workers in the cold.

The workers by broadcast time downed tools after learning that their employer only identified as Mr. Watara had disappeared without paying them.

The aggrieved workers told ZANIS in an interview yesterday that Mr. Watara left Mongu for Lusaka without informing the workers after being paid by the main contractor.

Speaking on behalf of his colleagues one of the aggrieved workers Isaac Lubasi said Mr. Watara had promised to pay his workers but disappeared without notice.

Mr. Lubasi disclosed that the contractor only confirmed when reached on phone advising workers to sell the materials on site in order for them to recover their money.

He added later the workers lodged their complaint to the office of the Permanent Secretary who was however out of office on official duty.

Mr. Lubasi has since appealed to Labour Minister Fackson Shamenda to intervene in the matter so that the law can take its course.

18 COMMENTS

  1. A disgrace to hard-working Zambian contractors trying to make ends meet in a competitive environment.

    • The real issue is that contractors are just given two or three names of sub contractors to choose from by the Patriotic Front, and the list consists only of pure bred pf cadres. The same pf tells the main contractor to pay the sub contractor 100% in advance. This is the trick which pf has been using to siphon money from the road contracts and that is the very reason that pf cadres will do anything to support road construction ‘going on in the country’ to hoodwink those not in the know of what is happening. This is an eye opener. Ask any road contractor and they will tell you that they are having serious problems with the performance of sub contractors.

    • @Dollar, you have not understood the story yourself! The main contractor is Chinese, but the sub-contractor is someone else.

    • Ba Dollar…. The main contractor is Chinese, the subcontractor is Zambian but they are both contractors. So, it’s typical of Zambian contractors. Useless…

  2. Nothing surprising there. It would have been a surprise if the Zambian contractor had finished the job. Boers are not lying when they say Zambians are monkeys.

  3. Mr watara is a Somali one of those people running filling stations and some settlements along great North Road. Next Zambia will be dotted with madras schools of Islam where Jiadism is taught from an early stage. One such school is along Great East Road just before Gan motel. Mr Watara as sub contractor is seen as an example of PF govt. providing employment to Zambians. Zambians need to be extra vigilant on these foreigners with Somali background and religious fundamentalist. Remember how not long ago a Zambian was shot at point blank by a Somali employer when a Zambian asked for his wages. These Somali are wandering all over in Zambia and here in Europe and other parts of the world and no one trusts them. In Zambia we know them about fuel deals in Ndola with Inden, let us wake up.

    • @AQUILLA, YOU ARE MORE QUALIFIED/SUITABLE TO WRITE STORIES FOR LT THAN LT DUNDERHEADS WHO CAN’T EVEN DESCRIBE, IDENTIFY A PERSON.

    • @Aquilla
      I cant believe your dangerously low level of thinking. You want to propagate islamaphobia on a story that does not relate to islam whatsoever. The story does not say that Mr Watara is of Somali background but you have ignorantly done so and spilled out vile sentiments against Somalians or Muslims. Evil exists in all societies including Zambia. You do not have to look far beyond your president and his cohorts to substantiate this point. Sata is even worse because it is against his own people that he practices his evil deeds. Not all Somilians are Muslim either, I have associated with many who are equally sick of any acts of exremism. Many foreigners running the mines and ill reating Zambians and colling them monkeys are not Somalians either. Seek facts and not just noises..

    • @ Aquilla

      You are wasting your valuable advice. Monkeys don’t listen, until the bomb goes off…and one day it will. People are just so laid back and sleepy in this country. Ask Kenya where they are right now with these somalians. Because of bombs, tourism in Kenya has gone down almost 90%, some hotels and resorts have actually temporarily closed because tourists have stopped going to Kenyan resorts. Let us face it, we are all Africans, but this is not the time for idealistic romantic ideas of “love my African brother”. There are some people who are just wired differently due to the religion they follow: Islam is terrible, and I’m not the one who made it terrible, so don’t f.u.c.k.i.n.g. condemn me for saying that. Ask the bloody Somalians to stop bombing innocent people in Kenya.

  4. SO BA LT YOU ARE JUST A FACKING HOPELESS ELECTRONIC PAPER WHO CAN’T EVEN PROVIDE AN IMAGE OF THE FUGITIVE CONTRACTOR? HOW DO YOU EXPECT THE POLICE TO CATCH UP WITH HIM THROUGH INFORMERS IF YOU CAN’T AS A PAPER EVEN PROVIDE AN IMAGE OF THE THIEF. TIME OF WRITING A NOVEL LONG WENT . SCRIBLING MUST BE ACCOMPANIED WITH IMAGES. THE CHAP WILL FREELY CROSS THE BORDERS WITH NOT A SINGLE PERSON TO RECOGNISE HIS FACE FROM THE NEWSPAPER.

  5. Aquilla…..you have absolutely no clue on what you are saying.
    its all hogwash.
    peace be on you my brother…….

  6. Kalindawalo Bob, Just keep quite, how is your shop at Kamwala doing given stiff competition from Lebanese and chinese. Do you still cas GRZ cheques?

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