Contractors delaying road work to be blacklisted Infrastructure Principal Secretary John Mosonik says

Government will blacklist road contractors delaying mega projects in various parts of the country, Infrastructure Principal Secretary John Mosonik warned yesterday.

He said Sh25 billion road maintenance projects are behind the schedule owing to lack of competence by engaged contractors.

The PS identified some of the roads whose construction is behind schedule as Homa Bay-Mbita road, Kaloleni-Kilifi road, Kangema-Gacharage, Ol Jorok-Ndundori, Taita Taveta- Mwatate, Nairobi southern by-pass, and Marsabit-Turbi road.

"Every year we award contracts to construction firms to implement maintenance projects. But what shocks us is that even after paying the service providers they apparently delay the projects. This is denying Kenyans value for their money and thus frustrating as well the pace of development in the country," claimed Eng. Mosonik.

He added, "As a Government we have been mandated by Kenyans to improve the infrastructure so that the economy can pick up. We will crack the whip on the contractors interrupting Government agenda by delaying the projects."

 Monitoring mechanism

He said the Government will put in place a mechanism to ensure all projects are delivered in time. During a stakeholder consultation meeting for national roads at Kenyatta International Conference Centre, a furious Mosonik claimed some contractors are delaying projects for a period of between eight months and one year after signing the contract.

This, he said, is contrary to the regulation requiring contractors to start a project 28 days after signing the contract. "We especially have problems with local contractors as they have failed to enhance ability to compete with their foreign counterparts," he added.