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(DAILY MAIL) State contracts under scrutiny

State contracts under scrutiny
By REBECCA CHILESHE

MINISTER of Works and Supply, Kapembwa Simbao, says the Ministry of Justice is reviewing all Government contracts to scrutinise them for possible malpractice. Mr Simbao said this in Lusaka yesterday at National Council for Construction workshop on the status of the Zambian construction industry. He said it was not clear why most contractors had been asking Government to use the International Federation of Consultancy Engineers (FIDIC) conditions when Zambia was not a member of FIDIC.

“It is shocking that contractors have been asking that contracts be signed under FIDIC conditions. In Parliament, I have been at pains several times to explain why we subscribe to FIDIC conditions which are bad, and why we have not pulled out,” he said.

He said Zambia had never been a member of FIDIC and, therefore, no Government contract would be signed under its conditions. He said some contractors were using FIDC conditions as protection when they breach contract rules. This year, Government would be stricter in the award of contracts. He said those who have performed poorly would be blacklisted for Government jobs.

He said he was often at pains to answer queries from President Mwanawasa when he asks how some contracts are arrived at. He said this was the reason Government had stopped giving advance payments to contractors. Government would only pay contractors upon the presentation of certificates of works by relevant authorities.

“Some contractors are making our work very difficult. We give them an advance payment and then they take off and expect us to start pursuing them. We will no longer entertain this,” he said.

Mr Simbao said it was sad that some contractors only got into the industry because of the huge profits involved. He said the NCC, the industry regulator, was being run by qualified people who did not want to be associated with shoddy works. The construction industry was perceived to be one of the most corrupt and therefore measures to clean it up were in place to improve the image of the sector.

Labels: CONTRACTORS, FIDIC

posted by MrK @ 1:12 AM