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Why not stop sanctioning sub-standard contractors?
2008-05-08 09:53:48
By Editor
For years, Tanzania has inexplicably tolerated the sub-standard services of bogus contractors. Most of them have been foreign ones engaged in the construction of all manner of things, including buildings and roads.
This dangerous trend of embracing bogus contractors is confirmed by records that clearly show how some companies grossly messed up important projects but went on to win several other tenders, only to do even more harm.
It is very likely this is what prompted the remarks an irate President Jakaya Kikwete made on Saturday during his just-ended tour of Singida Region.
He was laying the foundation stone for the 55-km Manyoni-Singida road.
It emerged during the tour that the government had allocated a staggering 200bn/- in government funds to a contractor who just would not deliver.
The contract was subsequently terminated and an additional 30.43bn/- has been given to a new contractor, China’s Geo Engineering, with the government hoping that this one will perform better.
There are many other similar road projects in the country whose tenders were awarded to firms of suspicious character and competence and are now experiencing serious problems, including long delays in completion of implementation and shoddy workmanship.
The root cause of the mess and its impact is firmly manifested at three levels of governance, one being the involvement of the consulting engineers who determine the detailed quantity of civil works required in respect of a particular project.
It is usually the engineers who, through their terms of contract, are supposed to ensure that the contractors do their work well enough.
Then come the tender awarding authorities, who evaluate the technical and financial attributes of all bidders before the tenders are actually awarded apparently to the best possible ones.
At level three, often the one most overlooked, lies the applicants` track record. Essentially, this means that there must be proof that a company has previously done some marvellous road construction in Tanzania or elsewhere.
Why this third criterion is often ignored is hard to tell, although many associate it with corruption – that many tender-awarding authorities usually demand a bribe before announcing the successful bidder.
The hard facts are hard to come. However, President Kikwete’s observation that most road tenders were won by the lowest bidders lend credence to these fears.
It is strange indeed that these bids have often contrasted sharply with the actual costs pre-established by the consulting engineers.
The magnitude of the mess in the country`s public road sector is hard to fathom and impossible to bear without as much as a complaint.
Road projects are very costly and most depend on donor funding. But they are a necessity in stimulating sustainable development.
It is both embarrassing and demeaning for Tanzanians planning to travel by road from, say, Mwanza to Dar es Salaam to pass through Kenya just because our own roads are in terrible shape.
The President`s remarks in Singida should trigger action bent on rectifying matters soon because, surely, there are few things to beat quality roads as national priorities.
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