Government has taken great exception to the video that has gone viral of the UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema inspecting Lumumba road in Lusaka alleging that government spent one point two billion dollars on the ongoing rehabilitation works on the road.
Housing and Infrastructure development minister Vincent Mwale has told ZNBC news in a statement that the contract for the Engineering Design, Rehabilitation, Upgrading and Construction of selected Lusaka Urban Roads in Lusaka City that includes Lumumba, Mungwi, Great North and Ngwerere to Kasisi roads cost 70 million dollars and not one point two billion dollars for Lumumba road as alleged by Mr. Hichilema.
Mr. Mwale says Government through the Road Development Agency -RDA directed the contractor AVIC international Project Engineering Company to redo the works on these roads due to deformations observed.
The Minister says RDA carried out assessments and ordered AVIC to immediately remedy the situation by reworking the asphalt surfacing or the wearing course.
He says the works are being done at no cost to the Government as it is being done within the defects liability period.
Mr. Mwale further says it should also be noted that the road has not been handed over to the Government by the Contractor.
He says Mr. Hichilema should learn to engage the necessary stakeholders for him to get factual information on any of the road infrastructure projects instead of misleading the nation on matters he is not competent on.
He says RDA is a public institution that anchors its work on transparency and accountability and the UPND Leader or any other person can easily have access to project details once requested upon.
The minister adds that Mr. Hichilema’s statement on social media should therefore be dismissed with the contempt it deserves as it carries no grain of truth.
He says the UPND Leader could be mixing with the works that are yet to be embarked on by Messrs China Jiangxi Corporation for International Economic and Technical Cooperation -CJIC on the 3-hundred and 21 Kilometre Lusaka-Ndola Dual Carriage Way.
Mr. Mwale says AVIC international is a reputable road construction company that has done quality works on many road infrastructure projects for a considerable period in Zambia.
He says , However, that the RDA has a vendor rating system in place that carries out assessments on road projects and contractors found wanting are directed to redo the work until the Agency is satisfied with the performance.
The minister further said Government will not be derailed by people like Mr. Hichilema who are in the habit of making negative statements but will continue to deliver developmental projects such as a good road network not only in Lusaka but throughout the
country.
before handing over the road is being repaired .AVIC behaving like bricklayers.
Hh got confused with his own lies. What he meant is that that is half the amount he stole from selling parastatals for nothing
That is what we need more of……
keep it up HH , with PF appittite for corruption that guarantees shoddy work, there is plenty of ammunition for you……
“Mr. Mwale says AVIC international is a reputable road construction company”
NO SIR
THE NAME AVIC STANDS FOR “Aviation Industry Corporation of China”
But in ZAmbia they do roads… perhaps this is why their roads do not stand the test of time.
HH ,
Since GRZ seem very qwick to answer you ,
for the 50 innocent murder victims of lynchings from pf gassings ,
We beg you HH to ask lungu yo update the nation on investigations on the PF gassings of our people.
We can not let something as evil as that get lost in PF and lungus silence and indifference least it happens again.
Zambians were being burned alive in our towns by fellow Zambians for the first time in our history.
Am worried we have reached a point where the game is one sided. The government is defending deep and striking less. The stratage has to change as defending all game is un sustainable. There are possibilities of errors or mistakes in defending. Both party presidents gave a strike last week. Where are MPs?
When HH speaks government will always come up with a serious rebuttal and when HH is quite government will always ash why he is not talking. Indeed HH is a serious challenger going into the 2021 election. PF no longer say HH is not a factor, not anymore. Even Kaizer Zulu has admitted this fact. PF striking force has become blunt and are now depending on defending. They are now fatigued and soon will crumble. No doubt they are on their way out- the ending is fast approaching.
Apart from corruption, it seems there is no independent supervision contract for these roads. If there was an independent roads construction supervision contract on these roads, the shoddy works of AVIC would have been identified by this supervision contractor. Any interim payments to AVIC should only have been approved once the roads construction supervisor approved the interim works done. Now the government is amused that AVIC will address the shoddy works at no further cost to government. Does this mean AVIC was already fully paid for the roads construction works? We need to have transparent and accountable systems in the management and administration of such road works which cost us lots of money. If there is a supervisor on the works AVIC does, why didn’t this supervisor stop AVIC…
H2 we need to know In the same way you are inspecting these roads to tell us how your off shore tax is fairling.
YES WE NEED TO KNOW!!
HH we need to know In the same way you are inspecting these roads to tell us how your off shore tax is fairling.
YES WE NEED TO KNOW!!
“….. Hakainde Hichilema inspecting Lumumba road in Lusaka alleging that
government spent one point two billion dollars on the ongoing rehabilitation works on the road”.
IF YOU WATCH THE VIDEO, HE DIDNT SAY THAT.
PLS WATCH IT.
He says that more than one time ba Christian Nation
Crossing that road was scary….
ZP and RTSA should always available to protect the president when he is inspecting government projects.
By the way, he said $1billion is supposed to be spent. And now that girl Vincent Mwale implicating hem self that $70 million spent.
Officers at RDA must be fired for certifying poorly executed works. Engineers are responsible period.
Good! Each criticism is giving them nightmares! They are even putting words in peoples’ mouths. HH did not say anything to that effect. Watch the video!
IF HE IS LYING, THEN HOW MUCH DID IT COST? BUT IT IS ALSO EXPENSIVE FOR SURE, DOING THE SAME JOB IN 2 YEARS TIME.
At least, we commend the opposition for walking the road to also give their “side” of the story. The Bible records God asking Satan, Mdyelekezi in the book of Job, “where are you from?” And Satan, Mdyelekezi answered, “from roaming to and fro”. Then God continued asking, “did you inspect all the highways and byways and have seen my righteous servant Job?” And Satan, Mdyelekezi went straight on to accuse God of favouring Job. Thanks Jesus Christ because Satan Mdyelekezi is a defeated Foe.
Constructing roads only to re-construct them again.
Just like Mulungushi Textiles or Kafue Gorge lower which has been opened and re-opened just before election time.
That is the PF way of doing things.
Ours eyes are now open.We can see clearly.
Now is $70million when translated realistic to the cost of the roads? How much is 1 Km/$? Does the road done equal to amount said? Bukabolala tufwile twasumina ati natulyamo. Ubomba mwibala.
Is that an issue really Hon minister? Maybe and most likely its just an error not deserving the whole ministers reaction. Bally probably meant $1.2million (and not billion) for Lumumba road alone. Even in government “errors” are made everyday, “Limited” in the MoH scandal, now boma has clarified that $17m was paid to an individual bidder!!. Another one, 150 bycyles were donated by Japan and Japan denies, and then government “corrects” the “error”, its India not Japan and issues a “diplomatic” (term for embarrassing) apology to Japan.
Wamene uyu Bally looks like he has got PAf really scampering for their lives the whole PAf leadership reacts to any little thing that Bally does or says or even when he sneezes I am told.
But you can understand, in 2016 all the talk about infrastructure by PAf still gave them a paltry 100,000 votes majority and they are still singing the same strategy, when their battle now should be to win a resounding majority simply by cleaning themselves and renounce corruption, and reconnect with all voters including the youth.
That is what in politics is called running after your tail….PAf for you…cant wait for 2021!
@ Independent,
Why shud you ask details about HH’s offshore accounts? Ni ndalama za nyoko?
Is it against the law to have off shore accounts? If it is, take him to court!!
70 million dollars was 1.2 billion kwacha that time. I think that’s what he meant.
HON. MWALE, WHERE WERE THE INSPECTORS TWO YEARS AGO WHEN THE ROAD WAS BEING? HOW DID THEY APPROVE WORKS THAT WERE NOT PROPERLY DONE? HOW WERE THE CERTIFICATES OF COMPLETION GIVEN? THIS IS CALLED NEGLIGENCE OF DUTY BECAUSE CORRUPTION. HH IS RIGHT.
Even 70 million dollars is just too much. Is this gonna be a double decker highway with flyover and stuff?
@johan Wind that road has gobbled up half Zambia’s GDP since the 80s. They keep repairing it and it doesn’t get better. Very soon there will be new works and new contracts on Lumumba road
Being in opposition is tough, look at Hichilema just talking, and inspecting his colleagues work. The point is he has nothing tangible to show. So all he can do is to go and flog a dead horse. The contractor has already been ordered to remedy the construction defects and Mr right goes to inspect the works. Why didn’t this guy inspect the road when it was completed?
HH taishiba politics, typical Under 5 behavior
The cost of $70 million seems too high for the quality of road in question. We are talking over $3million per kilometer when the same just between $0.5 to $1million in the region! “Sonta epowaibile!?”
This is just how PF has been stealing. Last time the President accused engineers of omitting a power option to the water supply and said somebody was to be assigned at a cost to fix the power option. Every project in pf is programmed like this for a simple reason: stealing. PF administration is a total fail, no management skills. They have PHDs in stealing and allowing criminals to gass the nation, steal build 48 magic houses, at such things they experts
Checks and balances kikikikikikijukija Hehehehehehe pwahahahahaha!
Doesn’t he look like a f001?
Full of lies h² can never make a president.
Thank God he isn’t gonna make it to plot one.
The nigga is now idling and wandering about like a headless chicken.
When we tell you h² is u5 you don’t exactly know what we mean.
Taking photos when the cat is away. Avoid chimbokaila by making sure he avoids a road run with the motorcade.
Once bitten, twice shy.
Ba PF, every project ninshi twalya nafuti…ba mambala imwe. It was another day when KZ was boasting about driving around Lusaka streets in his newly acquired top of the line Range Rover. Now how do you feel seeing poor people around you . Shame maningi, what a heartless leadership.
The political events evolving in Western & North-Western provinces is frustrating HH to the extent of criticizing all infrastructural development occurring country-wide. He HURTS (1) to see the road constructed from Kalomo to Kafue National Park; (2) Hurts to see the development of Choma as a Provincial HQ. HH is a rich man who grabbed poor-people’s land in Namwala & fenced it as a his ranch – and Katuka says “this is business sense”.. HH never exhibited remorse when a disabled woman was beaten by his guards at his house. In the sad event that HH became Republican President, he will only grab properties from Southern Province because other provinces will NOT allow him to be exploited.