K9.8m motorbike contract was done by PF – Mwamba
By Kombe Chimpinde Mataka
COMMUNITY development minister Doreen Mwamba says the over K9.8 million contract
for supply and delivery of 75 motorbikes was done by the PF government.
This amount means that each motorbike would be procured for K130,000, an amount which stakeholders have described as absurd.
According to a contract awarded to Kafelix Limited dated May 9, 2022, that’s been circulating on social media, “Following the Ministry Procurement Committee Recommendation to award the contract in the meeting held on Friday, 6th May 2022, your Bid for execution of the supply and delivery of Seventy-Five (75) Motor Bikes – Contract number MCDSS/GEWEL/00/21 for Accepted Contract Amount of Zambian Kwacha nine million, eight hundred and eighty five thousand and ten inclusive (ZMW9,885,010,00) as corrected and modified in accordance with the instructions to bidders is hereby accepted by the ministry.”
When asked to explain the contract, Mwamba said it was not signed under the UPND
and that as far as she was concerned the contract was coming to an end.
“What happened was that I have gone on leave but before I went on leave on Tuesday, Wednesday, last week I was going through all the files so that I know where I was going to leave the ministry. So that is when I came across this contract which is under a project under my ministry. As you may be aware we work with cooperating partners so that one is under Gewel and the World Bank,” she explained. “That is when I discovered that contract and questioned the implementing departments under my ministry. It came to my attention that that contact was awarded early last year under PF and it was extended in July the same year just before the elections and that these people haven’t supplied anything and they have not been paid anything. So then I requested for more details. In fact, I also questioned why it was extended last year. They failed to deliver and this is August., the contract isexpiring tomorrow (today).”
Mwamba said the matter was taken to Cabinet for consideration after she also got concerned.
“I sent it to Cabinet because I was going on leave. I sent it to Cabinet so that they could continue looking at it. So in the process
of the registrar sending to Cabinet that is when it leaked to the media but that issue was not raised by the media. It came from me,”
she said. “That is just one contract. A lot of things were sent to Cabinet because government does not stop running because the minister is on leave. But when we see a red flag we always raise it so that people continue monitoring and I also gave a copy to the Minister of Justice (Mulambo Haimbe) on Tuesday or Wednesday last week.”
Mwamba said the perception “out there” was that the document was leaked against the government.
“It came from office and immediately, they instituted investigations as to who the owner of the company is and other details and they will be concluding before the end of this week so after they have concluded I will give a comprehensive statement,” she said.
“So it was not awarded under the new dawn government. It was something that was awarded under the PF and nothing has been supplied and at the same time nothing has been paid.”
Asked if the partners of the project had been engaged on the concerns by people on the contract price, Mwaamba could not disclose that.
“I cannot reveal to you because I am telling you that it caught my eye then I raised a red flag and said ‘can we look at this’. It is
not like it is someone investigating. It is me who started it,” she said.
Mwamba said that the matter was with “the relevant wings”.
She said she had also informed Secretary to the Cabinet on the matter.
