Mugabe hit nail on the head

PRESIDENT Mugabe last week implored authorities to engage contractors with the capacity to deliver quality work on our roads after noting that a lot of money had been spent on some shoddy work in the past.

The President was speaking when he commissioned the Harare International Airport Road, insisting that only qualified contractors should be engaged to do road works.

We note that road works are very expensive as they require expertise from engineers and appropriate heavy duty equipment, among other resources. It is the high costs involved in the construction and rehabilitation of roads that have left motorists with a sour taste in their mouths, as they have to navigate their way through potholes and all manner of barriers that make driving a strenuous exercise.

Nonetheless, the Government managed to source resources for the rehabilitation of a number of the country's major roads, and it is disturbing to hear that some shoddy work was done on the Plumtree-Mutare highway, after Government sunk in a whooping $206 million. Parliament heard recently that some areas of the road were being re-done, and that is a sign that all is not well in the construction sector.

The fact that contractors are meeting the costs of the repairs being done does not absolve them of wrong doing, and it does not lessen the gravity of the matter. The fact still remains that there was poor workmanship and the Transport and Infrastructural Development Ministry should do more due diligence in future. What is clear is that there are other areas that will require attention in the near future, and chances are high that the constructors would not be in a position to do the repairs once they have moved out of sight. Moreover, we shudder to think what will happen to the road once rains fall heavily.

"Clearly, infrastructure development is expensive, hence whenever we undertake such projects we must demand that the product be of high quality, durable and give good value for money once completed. Sub-standard work should never be tolerated. In this regard, we must always ensure that qualified contractors are engaged and that they are strictly supervised to guarantee acceptable results," President Mugabe said.

We note that poor workmanship on our roads is not only limited to the national project. Residents in towns and cities countrywide have always complained that roads show signs of failure a few weeks after they have been rehabilitated. Some of these roads belong to city councils and district councils, and things become really unbearable during the rainy season when potholes develop, leading to accidents and damage to cars.

In Bulawayo some roads have deteriorated soon after being rehabilitated, way before the ten-year grace period even starts kicking in and like the President pointed out, all that points to poor workmanship. In the past, the Bulawayo City Council said it did not have the right equipment to repair the roads, but said things will improve this year after it bought an assortment of machinery to be used on the roads.

Be that as it may, we also note that some sections of the city are still to be attended to even though they have busy roads, leading to some enterprising youths to fill up potholes with sand for a free from motorists. Nonetheless, such kind of patching is just a waste of time as it can not withstand the pressure that comes with heavy traffic and the rains.

We know that, like all structures, roads deteriorate over time. Experts say deterioration is primarily due to accumulated damage from vehicles, and environmental effects such as frost heaves, thermal cracking and oxidation. Experts warn that failure to maintain roads properly can create significant costs in future, and that is the message that should be at the back of the minds of the leadership in local authorities.