By Amb Emmanuel Mwamba
Government Defaults on Mikalie Loan, tries to escape inplications
On 8th July,2024 the Permanent Secretary was directed by the select committee on the Special Audit report on debt that the Ministry of Finance contracted a Supplier Credit agreement whose validity period is 10 years..
Government has so far defaulted all payments and are negotiating a debt restructuring under the G20 framework for Mikalile Hong Kong.
But PS General Education, Noriano Muneku claims the goods were not received, and those about to be received must not be accepted as the period of delivery has allegedly expired.
She has wriiten the following letter;
RE: CONTRACT No. MOGE/SP/STD/004/2017 FOR SUPPLY OF SCHOOL REQUISITES UNDER MINISTRY OF EDUCATION – MIKALILIE TRADING COMPANY OF HONG KONG
Reference is made to the above stated subject matter.You may wish to note that the Supplier (Mikalile Trading Company of Hong kong)
claims to have signed the contract for the acquisition of design and technology
laboratory, computers,furniture, laptops, desktop equipment, officesupplies/chemicals, laboratory equipment, solar to power computers, carpentry, tools kits, accessories, transport, assembling and installation of equipment at schools country wide.
I am aware that there are some goods that the supplier delivered before the contract expired and these were received by various schools country wide.
However, the contract expired due to passage of time and the supplier cannot deliver on an expired contract because it is no longer binding.
According to the partially signed contract at the Ministry Headquarters, I refer to Articles and General Conditions of the contract as follows:
1. delivery period was 12 months effective from the date of contract signature; Article 22 GCC Clause 22.1 states that ”delivery of goods and performance of services shall be made by the supplier in accordance with the time schedule prescribed by the Purchaser in the schedule of requirements as above;
2. Article 24 GCC Clause 24.1 states that .’the Purchaser, without prejudice to any other remedy for breach of Contract, by written notice of default sentto the supplier, may terminate this contract in whole or in part:
(a) if the Supplier fails to deliver any or all of the Goods within the period (s) specified
in the Contract, or within any extension thereof granted by the Purchaser pursuant to GCC Clause 22.
These provisions collectively suggest that a supplier is not allowed to deliver goods after a contract has expired, as it is considered a breach of the contract.
As things stand, the Ministry and the supplier have not substantiated whether there was truly a signed contract for the goods being delivered.
Therefore, I am directing you to reject all the goods being delivered to your schools by Mikalile Trading Company of Hong kong this time around.
You will be on your own should you decide to receive any goods from the supplier.
Treat this communication as directive and must be given the urgency it deserves.