Sekyere West assembly slams contractors for non-performance

Mampong (Ash), Dec. 23, GNA - The Sekyere West District Assembly has joined the Atwima District Assembly to slam contractors for non-performance and threatened to terminate their contracts. Mr Thomas Edward Atakorah, District Chief Executive, addressing a meeting of the assembly at Mampong on Tuesday, said in spite of the fact that over 90 percent of feeder roads in the district had been awarded on contract, most of the contractors had failed to execute the jobs well. Last week, the Atwima District Assembly threatened to terminate the contracts of 'lazy contractors' as well as those who delay projects and said because about 90 per cent of roads in the district had been awarded on contract, most of the contractors had not even started work on them thereby, giving the assembly and the government a bad image. Mr Atakorah also said those contractors, who had started work on their contracts were working at a very slow pace.

"We are racing against time and I will therefore not hesitate to terminate contracts of lazy contractors in the district," he said. When the Ghana News Agency contacted Dr Osafo Ampadu, the Ashanti Regional Engineer of the Department of Feeder Roads for his comments, he admitted the problem and therefore, the concerns of the two District Chief Executives.

He said about 1,000 kilometres of roads in the region had been awarded on contracts and that most of them were of the simple contract type, which involved reshaping of the roads and regretted that in spite of government's efforts to rehabilitate roads, the performance of contractors did not match the volume of work.

Dr Ampadu, however, attributed the problem to a number of factors, including the shortage of road contractors as against the number of kilometres of roads that are worked on.

He said, for instance that, in Ashanti, there were not more than seven road contractors who could confidently deliver. Cash flow, he said, was also a contributory factor, while the state of equipment hired by contractors for their work was also another problem.

Dr Ampadu also explained that most of the contractors who won the contracts, especially for the reshaping of roads were from outside the region.

He said Ashanti being centrally positioned, attracted contractors from all over the country when the roads are put on tender and when they win the bids, they cannot be denied the contracts.

Unfortunately, these are also the contractors who default, Dr Ampadu pointed out, and said this year, the volume of work had been tremendous and had clearly stretched contractors.

He said, however, that the department was terminating the contracts of these contractors and that this year, eight contracts had already been terminated mostly in the Atwima District, while he had written to the Regional Tender Board to terminate the contracts of six others and that these would be re-awarded.

Dr Ampadu said the Department was compiling a catalogue of contractors, who cannot deliver so that they do not get contracts in the region again, even if they win bids.