By Isaac Zulu in Kapiri Mposhi
The Kapiri Mposhi Constituency Development Fund (CDF) committee has resolved to terminate the contract awarded to Chrimer Construction Company, a local contractor, engaged to construct a footbridge across the Muteteshi stream, after awarding only four pillars on site since 2012.
The committee has also resolved to compel the contractor to suffer costs of the contract awarded to him in 2019 through the 2018 CDF.
This came to light during the newly reconstituted CDF committee meeting.
District Director of Works, Justin Phiri informed the committee that the contractor has already been paid K 63,000 against the contractual sum of over K 98,000.
Mr Phiri further disclosed that the contractor has only managed to deliver less than 20 percent of the contracted works on site since 2019.
He explained that the contractor has failed to honour the contract which had a four month completion period despite several reminders from the Council.
“The contractor has only mounted four pillars on site and we have written to him two times but to no avail we want to suggest that this contract be terminated to engage a new contractor because other contractor in the same situation have shown commitment to complete their works,” Mr Phiri said.
And Kapiri Mposhi Member of Parliament, Stanley Kakubo has warned the Procurement committee and management at Kapiri Mposhi Town Council against engaging politically exposed contractors to do public works through the CDF.
Mr. Kakubo pointed out that previously most contractors under the CDF were politically aligned without any performance competency to deliver the works to expected standard.
“If you look at the reports, almost everything we approved … if it’s bridges not done properly, toilets that have been done they’ve been washed away. If you look at simple things like boreholes they can’t be done properly despite being funded,” said Kakubo.
The UPND lawmaker implored the council to be proactive and systematically monitor the implementation of the projects being execution of projects being implemented using the Constituency Development Fund in order to avoid wastage of public resources.
