By Isaac Salima:
The Public Accounts Committee (Pac) of Parliament has expressed concern over the slow progress of construction works on selected sections of the M1 Road between Zalewa and Chingeni in Neno District.
The work, which began last August, was intended to involve the maintenance of a six-kilometre stretch in the Kam’mwamba area using funds generated from two tollgates, Kalinyeke and Chingeni.
During a recent tour of the project, parliamentarians expressed their displeasure with the progress, noting that the contractor has completed only one kilometre of the six-kilometre stretch over the past year.
Pac Chairperson Mark Botomani said their visit was prompted by concerns regarding how effectively the country is benefiting from the funds collected from the toll plazas.
“We are not impressed. We began collecting the fees a couple of years ago and one would expect that maintenance of the M1 Road would have commenced in earnest by now.
“The work currently being done is not impressive, which is why we came to inspect it ourselves. The initial bottlenecks have been resolved and we expect the contractor to implement their commitments,” Botomani said.
The Road Funds Administration (RFA), which oversees the tollgates, is funding the project, which is estimated to cost approximately K8.4 billion.
RFA Board Chairperson Francis Chikankheni also expressed frustration with the rehabilitation efforts, saying an advance payment had already been made to the contractor.
“The rehabilitation could have been completed by now. The contractor was paid in advance, yet 12 months later, only one kilometre has been rehabilitated. This is very disappointing,” Chikankheni lamented.
Florence Ndenguma, Director of Finance at the Roads Authority, which is responsible for implementing the project, said the devaluation of the Kwacha last November contributed to the delay.
“The contractor has been negotiating for an increase in the contract amount, which has taken several months,” Ndenguma said.
Since their installation, the toll gates have generated approximately K9.5 billion, which will be used for the rehabilitation works.
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