Chronicle Editor
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu, Gwanda Correspondent
WHILE a number of infrastructural projects have been initiated in Matabeleland South as part of Government efforts to promote socio-economic development in the province, some of them have remained incomplete for decades.
Examples include the Gwanda Magistrate’s Court and the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic Home Economics building situated in Gwanda, Matabeleland South Province. Mooted in 2004, these projects were earmarked to play a crucial part in the development of not only the district but the entire province.
The court, which is a state-of-the-art building, is expected to accommodate approximately 500 Government workers once it is complete. As a result of its delayed completion, court officials have been forced to turn a few small offices into court rooms while patiently awaiting completion of the project.
At the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic College, the Home Economics building is expected to provide learners with an opportunity to be equipped with various practical skills. It is also expected to ease challenges of limited learning space being faced by the institution. Students at the college have to learn outdoors due to limited learning space while patiently awaiting completion of the building which will house them.
Despite funds that have been released by Government on several occasions, the two projects remain incomplete, a development which has been attributed to the failure of the contractor to deliver.
In a move to address this anomaly, a delegation comprising the Minister of Local Government and Public Works July Moyo, Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Ziyambi Ziyambi and Chief Justice Luke Malaba recently visited the Gwanda Magistrate’s Court building site to assess the situation. In the same light, Minster of State for Presidential Affairs and Monitoring and Implementation of Government Programmes, Joram Gumbo recently visited the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic Home Economics building.
Speaking during Minister Gumbo’s visit, Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic Principal Dr Ngoni Moyo said there was need for the project to be completed soon as learners were learning under trees due to limited learning space. She said they had long awaited completion of the project as they knew that it would go a long way in easing the accommodation challenge.
Dr Ngoni said last year in September, they failed to enroll students due to limited space with the hope that at the start of this year, enrolment would resume as the project would be complete. She said with the project still incomplete, the institution was forced to go ahead with the enrolment in order to fulfil its duty of providing students with education.
“I’m lamenting over the poor progress of this project. We don’t have learning space and students are learning under trees. Last year in September, the institution failed to enroll students due to shortage of learning space. We were hopeful that the project would have been completed by December after Government released $3 million towards completion of the Home Economics block.
“However there was no significant progress and this year we were forced to enroll in order to ensure that learners received education. This year, we received $3,5 million towards completion of the project but still there isn’t any significant progress. Each day all we see is one person or two working on the site but they can’t do much given their number. We are eagerly awaiting completion of this project as it will help us in fulfilling our mandate as a tertiary institution of equipping learners with skills. This block will provide learners with various practical skills. As an institution, we have identified experts that are willing to train our students in various skills but there is no learning space,” she said.
Minister Gumbo raised concern over the delayed completion of the project which was expected to significantly contribute towards the country’s education sector. He said infrastructure development was one of the crucial elements in the realisation of developmental goals set out in the Transitional Stabilisation Programme and attainment of Vision 2030.
Castigating the contractor for failing to deliver, the minister said it was unacceptable for students at a tertiary institution in the country to learn under trees.
“I would like to register my displeasure at what I have seen here. It appears the contractor isn’t performing as we have seen and this rings a bell that things are not right. If there are problems with the performance of the contractor and if they can’t deliver on what they would have promised then their contracts have to be terminated. The Government through Cabinet has to be informed of such contractors.
“Gone are the days when contractors were engaged according to favouritism. If they are not performing then they are not performing. It’s embarrassing to see learners having their lessons under a tree at a tertiary institution that is named after one of our national leaders Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo. I have visited many projects in Matabeleland South Province and this is the worst and most disturbing project,” he said.
Minister Gumbo added: “It appears that the contractor chosen to implement the project has no capacity in terms of manpower and equipment. While it’s a noble idea to recommend local contractors for such projects, it should never be at the expense of efficient service delivery. I want to assure you that my report to the Cabinet will capture in explicit terms the poor state of project implementation at this institution,” he said.
Dr Gumbo said the 100-day-target-based programme was introduced as a deliberate attempt by Government to address anomalies associated with project implementation. He said Government was committed to ensure that the 100-day cycle programme became a conduit for promoting development, guaranteeing job creation, empowerment of communities and reducing the prevalence of poverty among people.
He said Government remained committed in ensuring that tertiary institutions are adequately funded. He said higher education in the country should be situated at the core of our development agenda.
Giving a report on the progress of the project, Matabeleland South provincial public works director, Mr Sijabuliso Ncube said the project started in 2004 and was expected to have been completed in 2009 but failed due to economic challenges.
He said Government had last year allocated $3 million while this year $3,5 million had been allocated towards completion of the project but little had been done. Mr Ncube said the contractor had no capacity as was evidenced by lack of manpower and equipment on the site.
Speaking after their visit to the Gwanda Magistrate’s Court construction site, Minister Moyo, Minister Ziyambi and Chief Justice Malaba expressed concern over the state of the project.
“The purpose of our visit here with Ministers Ziyambi Ziyambi and July Moyo was to inspect the construction of Gwanda Magistrate’s Court. We wanted to see what progress has taken place since resumption of works at the site in April 2019. The project started in 2004 and stopped in 2006 and resumed briefly in 2012 but stopped again.
“From April 2019 after my visit to the site we agreed that the contractor who had been working on the project had to be given an opportunity to continue with the project for purposes of contractual obligation. He was briefed and given timelines which his company had to meet,” he said.
Chief Justice Malaba said more visits to the site were conducted in August and December last year but there was no progress as was expected in the agreement with the contractor. He said this became a grave cause of concern for the Judicial Service Commission in view of the magnitude and significance of the building.
Chief Justice Malaba said it was then resolved that there was need for a visit by a high powered delegation of Ministers who are stakeholders in the project.
He said officials from the Department of Public Works and Judicial Service Commission had been tasked to meet and discuss a way forward. — @DubeMatutu
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