By Tovin Ngombe
Sinazongwe District Commissioner (DC) Laiven Apuleni has disclosed that the contractor to repair the damaged Maamba-Batooka road is already on the site.
Mr. Apuleni said government has contracted GM International to repair on areas that were extensively damaged during the rain season.
He said the contractor has started doing deviation works to control traffic while they would be working on the damaged sites.
The DC noted that the Maamba-Batooka has economic potential to Sinazongwe district because it was used by heavy duty trucks carrying coal from Maamba Mine and from the Chinese Culumn coal mine in Sinazeze.
He said they are also heavy trucks ferry meat from Sinazongwe ZAMBEEF, cotton from Great lakes Ginnery factory and crocodile meat from a prominent Investor in Siansowa.
“The contractor must do a good work because the road was of economic value to Sinazongwe district,†Mr Apuleni said.
He bemoaned that the previous contractor tasked to do the same work on Maamba-Batooka road did a shoddy work because before the year ended the repaired culverts collapsed and posed a danger to motorist.
Mr. Apuleni said the new contractor assured him that they would repair it according to the specifications given.
In February, the Road Development Agency (RDA) Head of Public Relations Loyce Saili told ZANIS in a telephone interview that the entire road would not be rehabilitated because there was no allocation for Maamba-Batooka road in this year’s budget.
Ms Saili disclosed that 88 billion would be required to rehabilitate the entire Maamba-Batooka which was in a deplorable state.
She said the RDA would only repair the mostly damaged parts of the road from the three billion Kwacha meant for emergency in this year’s budget.
“We hope that we will be able to do some work on the Maamba-Batooka from the three billion set aside for emergencies,†Ms Saili noted.
