Termination of Semlex contract: “Irreversible and non-negotiable,” Mozambique government says

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Termination of Semlex contract: “Irreversible and non-negotiable,” Mozambique government says

12:05 CAT | 25 Aug 2017

South African President Jacob Zuma addresses his supporters after he survived a no-confidence motion in Cape Town, South Africa, August 8, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings

Notícias

The government yesterday reiterated that its decision to terminate the contract with Semlex, the company currently responsible for issuing civil identification and travel documents and visas in Mozambique, is irreversible and non-negotiable.

Speaking exclusively to Notícias, Zefanias Muhate, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, said that the termination of the concession contract was irreversible because of a series of irregularities and defaults. The contract, which had run since 2009, was terminated last May. Currently, the process of selecting a new provider was under way, and the field had been narrowed down to Mühlbauer Mozambique and UAB Garsu Pasaulis.

The decision to terminate the contract resulted from a report on Semlex’s compliance with the terms of the contract between the government and the company.

Muhate clarified that one component which had weighed in the government’s decision was widespread public dissatisfaction at requested documents not being delivered within the timeframe specified.

Also Read: Breaking: IDs, Passports & DIREs – Communiqué from Semlex “reaffirms interest in fulfilling the contract until 2019” / Unabridged

Non-compliance with deadlines and lack of clarity on the readiness of documents requested was responsible for the accumulation of identification cards and others documents at public service counters, he pointed out.

“The poor quality of the documents, coupled with Semlex’s misconfiguration, undermines the prestige of the Mozambican government at both the national and international levels. For example, the issuing of travel documents for miners that are not legible in the optical reading systems at the border created enormous inconveniences and the executive was forced to assign a team to issue new documentation,” Muhate said.

Muhate also pointed out as other factors in the decision the illegibility of passport barcodes, the poor quality of the photographs in identification and travel documents and obvious spelling mistakes in travel document for refugees and emergency certificates for foreigners.

Also Read: Semlex accuses Mozambican government of “illegal termination of contract”

At border posts, Semlex’s system does not communicate internally, making it difficult to control people crossing the border or detect fake documents. Of the country’s 56 border posts, only 21 have installed the migration control system, and Semlex had not constructed the new infrastructure required for the production of documents as per their contract.

“It was provided in the contract that Semlex would train national staff to start managing the process, which did not happen. No one was trained and they do not allow the system to be run by Mozambicans. In fact, taking advantage of this, one of the company’s managers manipulated the system and renewed his own DIRE, which is a serious offence. Once the contract is cancelled, we expect Semlex to hand us the entire document production system,” Muhate said.

Source: Notícias