Construction of the Harare-Beitbridge Road, the busiest highway in the country, is now under the guidance of Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa and all the obstacles that were hindering the project have been resolved.
Deputy Transport Minister Michael Madanha told the Senate that more than 10 contractors were interested in the project but these had now been narrowed down to three.
Madanha said when the project was launched, tenders were set out and Zim-Highways won the tender. The country, however, had no money to fund the project and therefore decided to turn it into a Built Operate and Transfer or Public Private Partnership project so that the contractor would pay everything.
Zim-Highways took the government to court for cancelling the tender but it had since withdrawn the litigation after talking with the government.
“What is now happening is we are starting afresh sourcing out for contractors to work on this road and once the tender is awarded, progress on the road will start,” he said.
“We may not be able to tell when the construction of that road will be complete. But we know progress is at an advanced stage and the job is being done under the guidance of Vice President Hon. Mnangagwa. So, what we now await is the sanctioning of it under this voice.
“May I also tell this Senate that we had more than 10 contractors who had been assigned to work on this road and were competing for this road but now these have been whittled down to three so that we can select who to give the tender. As soon as the tender is awarded, the job will progress.”
Q & A:
*HON. SEN. CHIEF MUSARURWA: Thank you Hon. President Sir. My question is directed to the Deputy Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development Hon Madanha. So, what is the progress regarding the Beitbridge road? We still have lots of accidents on this road. What steps are you taking in order to preserve life and property on this busy road? Thank you Mr. President Sir.
* THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Thank you Hon. Chief Musarurwa. I let you continue talking but we do not encourage making long statements but to simply ask your question.
*THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. ENG. MADANHA): I will start by thanking you Mr. President Sir. I also thank the Hon. Sen. Chief Musarurwa for the question he has asked because he wants the country to know what progress has been made in the construction and re-mending of the Harare-Beitbridge road. We may not be able to tell when the construction of that road will be complete. But we know progress is at an advanced stage and the job is being done under the guidance of Vice President Hon. Mnangagwa. So, what we now await is the sanctioning of it under this voice. May I also tell this Senate that we had more than 10 contractors who had been assigned to work on this road and were competing for this road but now these have been whittled down to three so that we can select who to give the tender. As soon as the tender is awarded, the job will progress.
*HON. SEN. CHIPANGA: We have some of you who came and addressed this House and informed us that we had lots of contractors who were delaying this progress. But, you have come in this House and you are telling us that the ball is in the court of the Vice President to award the tender. Which is the truth on this issue?
HON. MADANHA: I thank the Hon. Member for this follow-up question. When this project was launched, tenders were set out and we had contractors who submitted their bids. The contractor Zim-Highways won the tender to work on this road but we have since discovered that the country has no money in its coffers to support this programme. As a result, we had to cancel the tender and we are now interested in getting contractors under Built Operate and Transfer or Public Private Partnership so that when the road is constructed, the contractor will pay everything and operate on that. The Government was taken to court by Zim-Highways because the tender was cancelled. We have had talks with Zim-Highways and Zim-Highways has withdrawn the litigation. What is now happening is we are starting afresh sourcing out for contractors to work on this road and once the tender is awarded, progress on the road will start.
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