Machakos County Development Implementation and Coordination Committee (CDICC) has summoned two road contractors to explain why they have taken longer to complete their projects.
The committee which was chaired by the County Commissioner Esther Maina at her board room arrived at the decision following an admission by the engineers in charge of the projects that Kennol-Ngoleni road under KeRRA and the Katumani- Vota- Konza road under KURA were behind schedule.
The duo is expected before the committee on Thursday, 26th, September 2019 to explain the cause of delays. Esther Mwangi from KeRRA had admitted that the 38-kilometre road which is costing the government Sh. 1.66 Billion, connecting Kenol-Ngoleni-Kaani/Mutituni-Kaseve was long over-due.
The meeting was also attended by the Lower Eastern Director of the Presidential Delivery Unit Mr Larry Mulomi who is also the committee secretary.
The committee noted that though the project was supposed to have been completed in April, this year, only 32 per cent of the works had been executed to date.
The committee noted also that the contractor of the Sh. 42 Million phase two project of the Katumani-Vota-Konza road which is set to be completed by February 2020 was moving slowly and asked the Lower Eastern Kura Regional Engineer Marclus Kirawga who represented the body to bring the contractor along to explain his challenges.
The committee observed that delays in the completion of projects amounted to denying Kenyans badly-needed services which the government had set aside funds for.
Members called on those giving out tenders to ensure they give them to contractors who have the technical and financial ability to carry out projects.
At the same time, the county commissioner warned contractors who fail to meet their deadlines that they risked being blacklisted and denied future government tender projects.
She similarly urged the government officers supervising the projects to ensure the same is implemented as per the original specifications to avoid being investigated. “Ensure that Kenyans get value for their money when you supervise these projects or else you and the contractors will attract the attention of the criminal investigators,” she warned.