Friday, March 29, 2024

Abandoned Lusaka road works irk state

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Lusaka Province Minister Obvious Mwaliteta with State house Deputy Minister Mulenga Sata tours the Lusaka city market
Lusaka Province Minister Obvious Mwaliteta with State house Deputy Minister Mulenga Sata tours the Lusaka city market

Lusaka Province Minister Obvious Mwaliteta is upset that Avic International, the contractor working on the L400 road project in Lusaka has abandoned the project.

Mr Mwaliteta has since challenged Avic International to sub-contract local contractors if it has failed to complete the works.

In an interview, Mr. Mwaliteta said Government is concerned with the slow pace at which works are progressing on the L400 so far.

‘AVIC, think is letting us down and as government we are running of of patience. That road cannot take us this long. We need to look into that contract,’ Mr Mwaliteta said.

He added, ‘If AVIC has no capacity, let him sub contract Zambian contractors to help speed up the works. I think on L400, they have only done less than 100 KM from the time it was launched and this is two years done the line.’

Mr Mwaliteta said, ‘No much progress is being seen. If you go Burma and Chilimbulu road, it is the same, the way they left it. For me as Lusaka Province Minister, am looking into that because we don’t have time. We need to raise the tempo of infrastructure development.’

The PF Government launched the L 400 road project on 16th August 2013 which was expected to see 400 kilometres of urban roads worked on in various townships and compounds at a cost of US$348.8 million.

The L400 project includes improvement of various roads in various residential, light industrial and industrial areas of Lusaka City such as Kabanana, Chalala, Kamwala South, Chilenje South, Avondale, Kabwata Site and Service, Chazanga, Kamanga, Chinika Area, Bauleni, Northmead, Matero, Chawama, Lilanda, Chilulu, Ngombe, Kaunda Square, Kalingalinga and Mtendere among others.

14 COMMENTS

    • AVIC CANNOT FAIL. IT IS TOO BIG. The govt has no money. Sata messed up by not phasing these projects over 30 yr period.

    • Just the list of areas which needs to be worked on without a proper schedule of works, is enough to tell that there is poor planning at its best on the part of PF led govt.

    • Ba Minister be responsible in your work. We are asking Post to be responsible in reporting but you can’t even gather facts before talking as a Minister.
      Even me I know that you cannot do earthworks or road surfacing in these weather conditions but are you telling me ba Minister you don’t know that?
      Even steffanutti has abandoned great east until rains are over

  1. You can only live beyond means for so long, now the realities of your lies are catching up. your are lucky the voters are dumb and dont hold you accountable.

    • The picture above is telling a lot of stories. This party is on its own no followers. Pay attention people around them are not concerned by they presence.

  2. The truth is that government you have not paid them their monies.How can a contractor use his money to finish government contracts when you have not paid them.
    People told you that you have to put in place a plan and budget before starting a project but chibwi no plan.That is the problem of people illiterates in leadership.Pay them then they will start the projects.

  3. Just pay the contractor iwe Chimwaliteta and he will finish the works.

    Ndola Kitwe dual carriage way, Chingola Kitwe Dual carriage way have also been abandoned because of non payment to the contractors.

    The school infrastructure projects are also moving slow or have been abandoned in some cases because of non payments to the contractors.

  4. What has happened to University’s such as Muchinga University? At the last update, they looked like at roof level.

  5. pay them…………. not waste the monies employing a bloated govt which is toothless n out of touch with reality and common man

  6. ?@ ZedpoorPeople

    Iwe chi ZedpoorPeople, the Minister went to check on the developmental work progress on roads and did not go for political expedience.
    AVIC has a project schedule which they agreed and signed to, whether the money is from here or China, they have to deliver quality outcome. Please be reasonable sometimes and don’t just comment on things you don’t understand.

    Instead of venting your anger on the Minister trying to ensure sanity is seen in Lusaka, why don’t you ask the Minister of Fincance Mr Chikwanda why he has no been paying these contractors?
    There is time to work and time for politics, for NOW its work, work and when time for politicking comes, we will hammer you baiche . If anything concentrate on you Under Five who doesnt know were he stands.

  7. @secret code and likewise they should be a payment schedule and clause in the contract that defines how the project would be financed. Contractors are often times not expected to use thier own capital for an entire project.So if the government has not paid them they have the right to stop the project until they are paid. Actually in some cases contractors have been known to abandon projects completely and move there resources and man power to more lucrative undertakings. Rwanda, Congo. Angola, Botswana and because of UN funded projects South Sudan are all paying lavishly for development projects right now. So if GRZ is playing games these contractors will either try to renegotiate thier inflation adjusted costs or the will abandon and chase after better paying opportunities.We Told You so

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