Pretoria - The Roads and Transport Department in Gauteng is moving towards blacklisting construction companies who do shabby jobs after getting a tender.
“We want to be clear that if contractors want to bid for our work in the department, they must understand what they are in for and there will be consequences if they don’t do the job,” Transport MEC Ismail Vadi told SAnews during his visit to officially launch the reconstruction of the R511 road outside Ladium on Monday.
The reconstruction of the R511, which is between Erasmia and Diepsloot, linking up with Malibongwe Drive, was delayed by a contractor who failed to deliver on his commitment.
“I want to apologise on behalf of the department to our community, but we’ve taken a tough decision to terminate the contract. [We want] to teach contractors a lesson that if they take on jobs for this department, they must be able to deliver on their commitment.
“Where they can’t, we will act against them. We will terminate their contracts and very soon, we’ve taken a policy decision to blacklist all the contractors who are doing shabby jobs for the department,” he said.
According to the MEC, the initial scope of the project with the fired constructor was R28.5 million, but it has since gone up to R305 million. He said the project was expected to be completed in 24 months’ time.
Vadi said he had faith that the new company, VNM and Associates, would deliver.
“This is a reputable company. Depending on the weather, we believe that they will complete this project on time. We trust them. They have done a lot of work for the department in the past.
“The scope of their work covers the complete reconstruction of certain parts of the road, rehabilitation and removal of the existing pavements, road layers, climbing lanes, drainage system, widening of the lanes [by] an extra metre as well as landscaping of the road itself.”
Vadi said through the project, his department aimed to provide a secure link between Ladium and Diesploot, create employment and training opportunities for local people.
VNM and Associates’ Gert van Niekerk told SAnews that work would commence in three weeks’ time. As part of the contract value, a total 30 percent will be for creating jobs, while 40 percent will be for partnering with Black Economic Empowerment subcontractors.
Van Niekerk said once completed, the lifespan of the road will be 20 years if it is properly maintained. - SAnews.gov.za
