Engineering Institute of Zambia – EIZ has established that the client who was contracted to construct the Iolanda Water facility in Kafue under the bulk water supply project has not been able to be provided the necessary funding for the project resulting in the project stalling.
Recently President Edgar Lungu expressed dissatisfaction at works by engineers who planned for the construction of the Iolanda Water Facility as the project did not include the component of electricity in the contract.
The clarification from EIZ perhaps shows that the president may have been deliberately misled or miss-informed to shield some incompetent government officers who were part of the entourage from taking responsibility.
EIZ president Eugene Haazele has also shared the republican president’s concerns that such an important and expensive facility has been completed without power supply which is key to commissioning it for people to immediately start benefiting from improved water supply.
He said EIZ has established through discussions with the implementation agents that the Design and Build Contract placed the responsibility of power supply on the client, the Ministry of Water Development, Sanitation and Environment Protection.
In a statement made available to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT on June 9, 2020, Haazele has since implored the ministry to play its role and ensure that the project is completed and starts serving the people of Zambia.
President Lungu complained to EIZ about the unprofessional conduct by some engineers in Zambia saying it is such conduct that has made government to be redoing a number of works on various projects at a great cost across the country.
Meanwhile, the Kafue water project is expected to expand the water supply in Lusaka. The contractor started execution of the civil works at the Iolanda intake on Kafue River in October 2016 at a cost US$150 million.
Upon review of the presidential tour of the facility, the minister of water development was present, and should have taken responsibility but seem to have opted to mislead the head of state by blaming the engineers.
Lack of accountability by some senior government officials and the tendency to deflect blame needs to be routed out as it now results in embarrassing the head of state. This new attempt to blame it on professionals has backfired and Dr. Wanchinga and his team at the ministry of water development should take full responsibility for the Iolanda water project mess.
