Minister orders demolition of structure for shoddy work

Subinso Number Two (B/A), July 11, GNA- Nana Kwadwo Seinti, Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, on Thursday ordered the demolition of the foundation laid for a new 2.2 billion cedis community Market complex at Subinso Number Two in the Wenchi District of Brong Ahafo for shoddy work.

He said the foundation should not only be demolished and rebuilt but that whenever the construction firm wanted to restart work, its blocks and other materials would have to be inspected to ascertain their quality and conformity to specifications and standards. The Regional Minister gave the order when he found that the blocks used for the foundation were of very poor quality and less than the standard size of five inches.

Nana Seinti and Alhaji Moctar Musah Bamba, Member of Parliament (MP) for Wenchi West, were dissatisfied with the work done. The project is being undertaken under the Promotion of District Capital (PRODICAP) Two Programme of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the GTZ, a German Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) and the District Assembly are funding it. Two other markets are to be put up at Badu and Seikwa and will contain stores and stalls, open sheds, paved lorry park and places of convenience.

Mr Paapa Essel of Urban Development Consortium, an Accra-based Civil Engineering Consulting firm and a Consultant on the project, said the district assembly had not as yet provided the site supervisor with accommodation.

He said the construction company flouted his instruction, as it did not wait for his advice and directive before starting the work. ''As stated clearly in the contract documents whenever the contractors do anything without the consultant's consent it is at their own risk'', he said.

The consultant acknowledged that the blocks were of poor quality because the sand used was not of the specified type.

Mr Lie Wie, site foreman of Top International Ghana Limited, a China Building Construction Company that is executing the project, admitted the inferior type of sand used and promised to obtain the standard quality type to mould new blocks.

Mr Michael Kwantwi, District Planning Officer attributed the problem to lack of proper supervision and monitoring, saying though the District Assembly was contributing 10 per cent of the project cost, it was completely cut off from supervision and monitoring, Everything is being controlled from the project office at MLGRD in Accra, he added, and expressed regret that since Subinso Number Two was a viable market centre in the district it would be very counter-productive if the project was not successfully implemented because of improper monitoring and supervision. Mr Joe Manu, Assembly Member for the area, said h e had cause to complain about the shoddy work "but because I am not an expert my complaint was ignored".

Nana Seinti later inspected a 242-million-cedis six- classrooms block, office and a store for the Islamic Primary School funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the district assembly.