Minister warns against abuse of rural bridges programme
Minister of Transport and Public Works Jappie Mhango has warned contractors in the Roads Authority (RA) Rural Bridges Programme against delivering substandard work, saying government will not tolerate shortcuts in the construction of bridges.
Mhango said this on Tuesday when he officially launched the construction of Mwambuchira Bridge in Chitipa District. The K50 million bridge will connect people in the area to health facilities, schools, markets and other facilities.
challenges being faced in Chitipa
Speaking during the event, Mhango said the government would not consider any malpractices or substandard work on the bridges under construction, considering they are key to the development of rural communities.
“By constructing these bridges, we are basically opening up these areas to development so we will not condone cheap work or abuse of the programme. People have to benefit from these bridges and we want to see development flourish in rural areas,” said Mhango.
He also warned communities against conniving with workers to steal cement and other construction materials, saying doing so will be shooting themselves in the foot.
T/A Mwaulambia, whose subjects are beneficiaries of Mwambuchira Bridge, committed to protecting government resources and containing the abuse and misappropriation of construction materials.
