SHAME AND SHAME ON THE TANZANIAN GOVERNMENT !!!

CONTRACTORS  ASSOCIATION OF TANZANIA  OWING THE GOVERNMENT 800 BILLION

By Correspondent

2nd February 2015

  CATA says it's forced to default on bank loans

Contractors Association of Tanzania (CATA)

The Contractors Association of Tanzania (CATA) has said the government owes its members a whopping 800bn/- accumulated over the past three years.

They complained that as result, they have been forced to default on bank loans incurring interest charges and they have also failed to pay their workers further slowing implementation of projects.

Speaking at a CATA conference convened to elect new leaders over the weekend in Dar es Salaam, CATA Vice Chairman, Lawrence Mwakyambiki, said the debt affects their operations and called upon the government to take urgent measures to settle it.

“Delays in payments are the major impediment to completion of many projects in time,” he said. 

“We wonder why the same government which does not pay us in time forces us to complete the projects on time. How can we do this while we don’t have money?” queried Mwakyambiki.

“These delays create mistrust between contractors and their financiers like banks they owe,” he added.

“We usually get loans from banks and repay them after the government disburses funds for the projects. But there have been delays from the government in issuing such funds and because of this contractors are being penalised by the banks in interests,” he said.

He said the delays by the government have also resulted in delays of paying their workers and as a result now they suffer bad industrial relations causing further delays in the implementation of projects.

“We urge the government to urgently pay us…we are struggling to get funds to repay loans and pay our workers, something which impedes our development,” he lamented.

However, the Dar es salaam Regional Commissioner, Said Meck Sadiki, who was the chief guest, urged the contractors to be patient. 

He said the government is aware of their challenges and is working on them.

He said the government’s failure to pay the contractors on time was not an excuse for them not to complete the projects on time as well as in appropriate standards and quality.

“It is true that the government owes the contractors such funds, but I assure you that this challenge is going to end although it will take time. Keep on working hard,” he told them.

He said the construction industry was vital to the country’s economy as it created many jobs for the youth as such, it had to be given utmost priority. 

“Contractors are very important for any country’s development. This is because they are the ones who make our cities look attractive and employ many youths,” he added.

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN