Four projects in 2 years, zero delivery
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Alindo Engineering and General Maintenance (Pty) Ltd is a very lucky company indeed. The company keeps on getting jobs with the Department of Technical Services (DTS) but the company rarely ever complete jobs. In the last three years they have been given jobs to the tune of P78 million and only one of the four projects the company was awarded is near completion.
Alindo Engineering is owned by aspiring Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) treasurer. The project completion for the projects stands at 25% (two years overdue for completion) – 90% (two years overdue for completion) – 3.5% (behind schedule by seven months) – and 100 % (final report yet to be handed over).
Pressure from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has forced the DTS to instruct government lawyers to demand over P6 million owed to Government from the first project. Two other projects have also been red flagged for termination because of poor implementation albeit he has been paid million as part payment for the undelivered projects. According to records, Alindo Engineering keeps on getting jobs despite its record of failing to deliver projects.
The 25% progress after three years
He was given a job for the construction of 4No. Double Storey 4 units staff houses for Maiteko Junior secondary School at the tune of P18 894 333. 47 on 31 March 2014 and he was expected to complete the projected on 05-01-2015 and later date was revised to 19-01-2015. The project as things stand is still at 25 percent completion despite the fact that he has already been paid P8 933, 077.59.
Explaining the back and forth, DTS writes: “The contractor abandoned the project since September 2015 to date. He owes the Government P6, 188, 884.01 which accrued from rejected works and unpaid mobilization. On 2nd May 2017 DTS wrote to the contractor to state how he is going to pay the Government the money he is due to pay. He wrote back on 26th May 2017 stating that the money will be paid by a proposed assignee.
The mobilization was waived to stabilise the contractor’s cash flow problems with a hope the contractor will complete the project. This decision was guided by FIDIC, (The International Federation of Consulting Engineers) clause 3.5 which state that “the conditions provide that the Engineer shall proceed to agree or determine any matter, the Engineer shall consult with each party in an endeavor to reach agreement. If agreement is not achieved, the Engineer shall make a fair determination in accordance with the contract, taking due regard of all relevant circumstances.” Attorney General’s Chambers will be contacted to assist in recovering the money owed.
The only completed project
Alindo Engineering and General Maintenance Pty Ltd also worked on the construction of staff houses at Marakanelo JSS at Ncojane. The contract sum is P10, 714, 659.20 and the contractor was paid P5, 077, 897.25. The project was awarded on 10th April 2014 and was expected to be completed on 05 December 2014 but the completion date was later revised to 25 March 2015. While the status of the project is that it has been completed, the briefing notes indicate that the final account for the project will be concluded and finalized in the second quarter of 2017/2018.
Stuck at 90% progress for four years!
On the 11th November 2013, he was given a project to refurbish the Curriculum Development Building, in Gaborone at the tune of P5, 932, 710.93 and he was paid P5, 422, 627.67. He was to complete the project on 28 April 2014 and the project completion date was revised to 30 August 2016. Today the project progress stands at 90 percent completion.
This is howDTS explains this situation: “The contractor is struggling to complete the contract. He was a written a letter of Notice to terminate on 4th July 2015 which he replied on 9th July 2015 by opting for mutual termination. He was invited for a meeting on 31 August 2015 to discuss mutual termination but never attended or replied the invitation letter.
On 6th April 2017 he was written a letter of Notice to Terminate and replied on 26th April 2017, he further wrote on 23 May 2017 requesting for inspection and subsequent handover of the project. On the 13th June 2017 DTS team visited the project for final inspection, but on arrival on site they noticed that contractor did not finish the works. He further pleaded that he will complete by end of June 2017. After June 2017 if the work is not complete, contract will be terminated.”
Shocking 3.5% progress in six months
On 1st December 2016 the same contractor was awarded a job to construct 9No 2beds Double Storey and 2No LA3 staff houses for Moeding College at Otse at the value of P43, 000, 062. 71 and was paid P6, 945, 543.55. The expected completion date for the project is 31st December 2017 and at the moment the project is at 3.5 percent completion.
And the DTS explanation: “DTS wrote a letter on 15th May 2017 requesting to meet the Contractor and Client (Moeding Colege) on the 22nd May 2017 top discuss poor progress of the project. After holding the meeting on 22nd May 2017 Moeding Colege wrote to the contractor requesting for recovery plan or catch up plan from the contractor. On the 9th June 2017 the contractor wrote proposing to subcontract works. On the 13th June 2017 DTS responded seeking clarity pertaining to the contractor’s proposal.
On the 14th June 2017 DTS team visited the site and observed that the progress on site is still at 3.5 percent. DTS has visited the site again and still found that the progress is still at 3.5 percent. This poor performance of the contractor has been referred to the UCCSA Board of Governors so that appropriate action on contractual obligations and possible act on non-performance by the contractor.”
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Local tennis team upbeat ahead of Billie Jean King cup
With almost two weeks until the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup, which will be staged in Kenya from June 12-17, 2023, the Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) ladies’ team coach, Ernest Seleke, is optimistic about reaching greater heights.
Billie Jean King Cup, or the BJK Cup, is a premier international team competition in women’s tennis, launched as the Federation Cup to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The BJK Cup is the world’s largest annual women’s international team sports competition in terms of the number of nations that compete.
The finals will feature 12 teams (Botswana, Burundi, Ghana, Kenya, Seychelles, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Tunisia, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo) competing in the four round-robin groups of three. The four group winners will qualify for the semifinals, and the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup will be crowned after the completion of the knockout phase.
Closer to home, the BW Tennis team is comprised of Thato Madikwe, Leungo Monnayoo, Chelsea Chakanyuka, and Kelebogile Monnayoo. However, according to Seleke, they have not assembled the team yet as some of the players are still engaged.
“At the moment, we are depending on the players and their respective coaches in terms of training. However, I will meet up with Botswana-based players in the coming week, while the United States of America (USA) based player Madikwe will probably meet us in Kenya. Furthermore, Ekua Youri and Naledi Raguin, who are based in Spain and France respectively, will not be joining us as they will be writing their examinations,” said Seleke.
Seleke further highlighted the significance of this competition and how competitive it is. “It is a massive platform for our players to showcase their talent in tennis, and it is very competitive as countries target to get promoted to the world categories where they get to face big nations such as Spain, France, USA, and Italy. Though we are going to this tournament as underdogs because it is our second time participating, I’m confident that the girls will put in a good showing and emerge with results despite the odds,” highlighted Seleke.
Quizzed about their debut performance at the BJK Cup, he said, “I think our performance was fair considering the fact that we were newbies. We came third in our group after losing to North Macedonia and South Africa. We went on to beat Uganda, then Kenya in the playoffs. Unfortunately, we couldn’t play Burundi due to heavy rainfall and settled for the position 9/10,” he said.
For her part, team representative Leungo Monnayoo said they are working hard as they aim to do well at the tourney. “The preparations for the tourney have long begun because we practice each and every day. We want to do well, hence we need to be motivated. Furthermore, I believe in my team as we have set ourselves a big target of coming home with the trophy,” she said.
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Pep Stores donates sanitary towels to Popagano JSS
The Guidance and Counseling unit at Popagano Junior Secondary School received a donation of 790 sanitary towels from Pep stores on Thursday.
When presenting the donation, Mareledi Thebeng, the Dinokaneng Area Manager, highlighted their belief in giving back to the community, as their existence depends on the communities they serve. Thebeng pointed out that research indicates one in four girls miss school every day due to the lack of basic necessities like sanitary towels. Therefore, as a company, they strive to assist in alleviating this situation. She expressed hope that this donation would help ensure uninterrupted learning for girls.
Upon receiving the donation on behalf of the students, Charity Sambire, the President of the Student Representative Council, expressed her gratitude. Sambire specifically thanked Pep Store for their generous gift, speaking on behalf of the students, especially the girl child.
She conveyed their sincere appreciation for Pep Store’s compassion and quoted the adage, “Blessed is the hand that gives.” Sambire expressed the students’ hope for Pep Stores’ prosperity, enabling them to continue supporting the students. As a gesture of gratitude, the students pledged to excel academically.
During her speech, Motlalepula Madome, the Senior Teacher in Guidance and Counseling, highlighted that many students at the school come from disadvantaged backgrounds where parents struggle to provide basic necessities. Consequently, some students miss school when they experience menstruation due to this lack.
Madome emphasized the significance of the donation in preventing the girl child from missing lessons and its potential to improve the school’s overall results. She expressed the school’s gratitude and expressed a desire for continued support from Pep Stores.
Popagano Junior Secondary School, situated in the Okavango District, holds the second position academically in the North West region. Despite its location, the school has been dedicated to achieving excellence since 2017
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Botswana misses out critical PAP committee meeting
The Pan African Parliament (PAP) committee on gender, family, youth and people with disability in its sitting considered, adopted and recommended to the plenary session the preliminary report on the framework for the model law on gender equality.
According to the last week’s media release from PAP which is sitting with its various committees until June 2nd, the committee is following up the PAP initiative to draw up a model law on gender equality to enable national governments to harmonize, modernize and standardize their legislations to address local needs is set to be discussed in Plenary.
However, what is concerning is the fact that Botswana which is a member state missed the deliberations. Kgosi Mosadi Seboko who sat in the committee representing Botswana has since been ejected by parliament and this is a huge blow for a nation that is still battling equity and gender balance.
“Although PAP has no legislative powers it makes model laws for member states to adopt. PAP also develops protocols to be ratified by countries. The input of countries at Committee state is extremely critical. It now means the voice of Botswana is missing the discussions leading up to development of protocols or model laws,” said one of Botswana’s representative at PAP Dr. Kesitegile Gobotswang who is attending the current session.
While Botswana is missing, the committee meeting took place on the sidelines of the Sixth PAP second ordinary Session being held under the African Union Theme of the Year for 2023, “The Year of AfCFTA: Accelerating the Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area” in Midrand, South Africa and will run up to 2 June 2023. Chairperson of the Committee, Hon Mariam Dao-Gabala expressed satisfaction with preliminary processes undertaken so far towards the formulation of the Model Law,” a release from the PAP website reads.
“The law should be suitable to all countries whatever the predominant culture or religion is. The aim is to give an opportunity to women to participate in the economic, political and social development of the continent. Women are not well positioned and face a lot of obstacles. We are introducing the idea of equity in the Law because we cannot talk about equality without equity,” said Hon Mariam Dao-Gabala in the press statement.
The release has stated that among issues to be covered by the Model Law is the migratory movements of women. The Committee proffered that this has to be addressed at the continental level to ensure that migrant women enjoy all their rights and live with dignity in their destination country. The members of the Gender Committee undertook consultations to consolidate the contributions of the various stakeholders that will be the logical framework format for the Model Law.