Sluggish road construction in Pemba riles 2VP
ZANZIBAR: THE Zanzibar second Vice President, Mr Hemed Suleiman Abdulla has expressed concern over the delayed construction of Chakechake-Wete main road, saying there is no justification for the delays.
He made this comment after inspecting the construction work, which started in February 2022 and was supposed to be completed by August this year, but the construction has been going at a snail’s pace, causing inconveniences to road users and the government.
Mr Abdulla questioned the competence of the Mwananchi Engineering Construction Company (MECCO).
“It is unfathomed to spend nearly three years constructing a 22-kilometre road, the contractors must assess themselves whether they have the ability to accomplish the work.
“You must do the work based on the agreement, including completing in time and observing standards. People are eagerly waiting for the road which will improve provision of social services and boost economic activities,” lamented Mr Abdulla.
He said that delays to complete some of the development projects including road construction cause a big challenge for citizens, who use the road for various activities to earn income and meet social needs.
Mr Abdulla warned companies which underperform risk being denied opportunities to work with the government in future projects.
Responding to the concerns raised by the Second VP, MECCO’s Chief Engineer, Nassor Ramadhan said the reason was changes on the volume of the road earthwork which has been increased by 1,015 per cent under the directive of the consultant who said the changes will improve quality of the road.
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Eng Nassor also said that they have not been paid the project funds, making it difficult for them to accomplish the task at hand, saying if the situation persists, they will have no choice but to halt the construction project.
He also said they will require time extension to accomplish the task.
“The consultant directed that the earthwork should increase by excavating an average depth of 600 millimetres of the soil and placing additional soil so that the quality of the road is improved,” Eng Nassor said, which they had to comply.
He said that the changes led to an increase of work on soil from 26,600 to 270,000 cubic metres with an average increase of 1,015 per cent.
The 30-month project is estimated to cost 23bn/-. It is funded by Saudi Fund and BADEA.
The Second VP also inspected progress of the construction of a fish and vegetable market at Mzambarau-Takao and the market for entrepreneurs at Kifumbikai in Wete, where he issued a one-month ultimatum to citizens who have already been compensated to leave the area in order to pave way to complete construction.
He said that the continued presence of the people in the area hinders development of the road and market construction, saying the government will continue to provide cooperation to various companies that are engaged in development projects in Zanzibar to ensure that the projects are completed in time.
On their part Ministers Dr Khalid Salum Mohamed (Infrastructure, Communication and Transport) and Mr Masoud Ali Mohamed (State Minister- Office of the President, Regional Administration, Local Government and Special department) promised to make a follow-up of projects implementation to ensure success.
The ministers asked the contractors to work harder, including having enough manpower to speed up the construction as the Second Vice President promised to resolve various challenges facing the companies, including the delay in payment, which may contribute to delays.
