Nyusi demands measures against dishonest contractors

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Nyusi demands measures against dishonest contractors

7:18 CAT | 13 Feb 2017

Noticias

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Friday ordered the Ministry of Public Works to present a list of “problem jobs”, for which the contractors will be held responsible.

Nyusi was continuing to implement a promise to visit all the ministries in his government, and toured the various specialist institutions that fall under the Public Works Ministry, such as the National Engineering Laboratory, the National Water Board, and the Housing Promotion Fund.

Speaking to Ministry officials at the end of his tour, Nyusi did not hide his irritation at shoddy work, and at contractors who take the State’s money but fail to complete the work for which they were hired.

He declared that the State could no longer watch passively while building jobs were abandoned by dishonest contractors, and new buildings collapse, or display huge cracks shortly after completion.

“Buildings that collapse, such as the wall at the Olympic Swimming Pool, as well as various schools and hospitals are examples of poor quality”, said Nyusi.

He was referring to the tragedy in February 2016, when the wall around the swimming pool, in the outer Maputo suburb of Zimpeto, collapsed, killing the national swimming coach Frederico dos Santos, and injuring ten others. The swimming pool was built for the 2011 Maputo edition of the African Games. The contractor, a consortium formed by the Portuguese companies Mota Engil and Soares da Costa, was accused of negligence, since an inspection after the collapse found significant changes between what had been designed and the wall that was actually built.

Nyusi stressed that his plans for expanding the school or water supply network depend on good building standards, and not on infrastructures that are never finished or which are prone to collapse.

The Ministry, Nyusi added, possesses all the necessary equipment to check the quality of public works, and demanded that it be used to guarantee proper standards.

“We have to monitor the implementation of projects”, the President said. “I am pleased to know that the capacity does exist to make scientific judgments and ascertain whether the job is of good quality”.

Nyusi demanded that the Ministry manage public tenders with great responsibility and does not delay projects “because of individual interests”. In particular, the state must not pay over the odds for building work, just to satisfy personal interests.

“You cannot take individual decisions, because they may be irrational”, he warned. “Finance must be mobilized within internationally accepted standards, seeking sums appropriate for the projects, and not accepting high sums for projects which cost less”.

As for housing, Nyusi stressed the need to attract funds from the private sector, but always taking into account the purchasing power of citizens.

“We have to work with our eyes fixed on the future, and not just wait – otherwise we will be penalized”, he said. “Climate change obliges us to have a vision for the future”.

Source: AIM