THE government, battling to contain a humanitarian disaster caused by poor planning around the construction of the Tokwe-Mukosi Dam in Masvingo, has been found wanting again.
Construction of the country’s largest inland water reservoir that is touted as the lasting solution to Harare’s perennial water problems is being disrupted by the government’s failure to pay the contractor up to $70 million.
Italy’s Salini-Impregilo Joint Venture has been struggling to get payments for the project that began as far back as 1998 resulting in many stoppages. Construction was suspended in 1999 due to lack of funds and since then it was stop-and-start for contractors.
However, there was some momentum from 2009 when the inclusive government released funds to speed up construction.
A deadline of December 2013 had been set to complete construction, but again that came to pass. The funds dried up again and Tokwe-Mukosi resident engineer Paul Denga told a ministerial delegation that toured the dam site recently that work has since stopped due to lack of fuel. Yet another deadline of April 2014 has come to pass.
The work at the dam was also interrupted by the flooding of the dam basin in February, which saw thousands of families being displaced.
Further disruptions were caused by seepage through the dam wall at the end of January, which precipitated fears that it would collapse.
The problems surrounding the whole Tokwe-Mukosi project epitomise the danger spawned by the half-hearted approach to national projects.
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It is worrying that the government seems to always have its hands in numerous projects that are never allocated enough resources leading to inordinate delays.
The Tokwe-Mukosi Dam is just one among many infrastructure projects that have taken years to complete.
In the case of the Masvingo dam, it has not only become a drain on resources, but also a threat to families living around the area as was typified by the floods disaster.
There is also the Bulawayo-Nkayi Road that has been under construction for many years and now poses a serious danger to motorists.
The only logical thing to do in such circumstances is to start capital projects only when funding is available to complete them to avoid waste and putting people’s lives in danger unnecessarily.
