"Government wont accept shoddy work from contractors" - Minister

Akyem Achiase, May 21, GNA - Dr Kwasi Akyem Apea-Kubi, Eastern Regional Minister, has warned that the government would not accept shoddy work from any contactor who undertakes its projects. He said contractors who know that they do not have enough resources and materials to undertake major projects should bid for them, stressing that, the government would not entertain shoddy works and delays in the completion of projects.

Dr Apea-Kubi cautioned that his outfit would not hesitate to terminate contracts that exceed their expected completion dates to serve as deterrent to other contractors. The regional minister made the statement when he inspected a three-storey 18 -unit classroom block for the Akyem Achiase Senior High School (SHS) in the Birim South District as part of his tour of the area. During the visit, it was revealed that the project was awarded in 2008 to be completed in November 2010 but at the time of the visit only the fist ground floor had been completed and being occupied by the students. The minister said the delay in the completion of the school block had brought accommodation problems to the school. He said the project was expected to have been completed on time to take care of the increasing student population because of the implementation of the four-year system of the SHS level, but the contractor failed to deliver.


He said during his recent tour to some districts, he realized that delays in completion of projects was the order of the day and cautioned that such behaviours would no longer be entertained.

The contractor, Mr Kwame Owusu, assured the minister that the project would be completed by the end of the year. The regional minister also inspected another six-unit classroom block for the Akyem Achiase Methodist Primary School funded by the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) at GH¢149,000. The project, which was at the foundation stage, was expected to have been completed three months earlier. Dr Apea-Kubi, accompanied by the District Chief Executive, (DCE) Baffour Takyi-Mensah, also inspected a market complex almost completed at Akyem Awisa funded by the District Development Fund at GH¢42,000. Other projects the Minister inspected included a six-unit classroom block at Akyem Swedru SHS, an office complex for the Birim South District Assembly at the cost of GH¢214,653 funded from the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF).


He addressed a durbar of chiefs and people of the Akyem Bosome Traditional Area at Akyem Swedru. The regional minister assured the chiefs that the area would not be denied its share of the national cake and that all development projects, especially roads, would be tackled very soon.