Members of Parliament on Tuesday requested the Minister of Transport and Public Works to consider addressing dilapidated road network in the country.
The members of parliament expressed concerns on the slow progress of road construction and potholes in most of the roads in the country.
Nkhotakota Central Member of Parliament Peter Mazizi asked Transport and Public Works Minister to consider maintaining the M5 road saying it is in bad shape .
“Take note of the condition of the M5 road, from Denga to Dwangwa ,part of the road has been washed away by the rains, we understand it is in the plans for rehabillitation but consider partial maintanance,” said Mazizi.
Commenting on the same, Ntchisi South Member of Parliament Ulemu Chilapondwa said the people of Kasungu, Ntchisi and Dowa are concerned with the slow progress of the M1 road.
”Since the launch of the M1 road construction project, contractors are not working on the road, people are losing patience, atleast we are seeing progress of the road from Kanengo to Crossroads hotel but that is not the case from Kanengo to Kasungu, ” said Chilapondwa.
Balaka West MP Bertha Ndebele also expressed concern on the Balaka Chingeni Zomba road saying the road is a death trap.
Commenting on the concerns, Minister of Transport Jacob Hara acknowledged the concerns attributing most of the challenges to poor planning and construction in the past years.
”The concerns that were raised are all genuine because most roads are in bad condition this is because of poor planning and poor construction in then past, but we are here to correct that, that is why we have the massive construction and rehabillitation of M1, M5 and many others and we are making sure we prioritize all important roads in the country,” said Hara.
The Minister further asked for more time for his ministry to work on some road projects saying road projects take time.
He further faulted poor procurement laws guiding national construction services.
Hara said government is lobbying to revise procurement laws that prioritise lowest bidders but rather go for high quality construction.
“It is frustrating that our current procurement laws were structured in such a way that they prioritise the lowest bidders rather than the quality and guarantee of their output on a given project. Such laws make us as a country, prone to trusting wrong firms or construction companies whose constructions are both volatile and of sub-standards,” Hara said.
According to Hara, government is also set to establish a new firm which will be responsible for procurement in the construction industry to facilitate accountability and transparency in the national construction projects.
Hara further advised Malawians to be patient as government is working tirelessly to accomplish the already commenced road projects,and rehabilitate some roads which were poorly constructed and the roads damaged by adverse weather conditions such as Tropical Cyclone Freddy.
