Comedy of errors in Lae roads

By MALUM NALU
 

There has been a comedy of errors in Lae road designs including concrete pavements, a report released  by Department of Works (DoW) reveals.

The rehabilitation and upgrading of Lae City roads is an on-going project consisting of various stages, with Stage 1 completed and Stage 2 still in progress, and two projects under Stage 3 have commenced.

Dekenai Construction, East West 1, FTM Construction and Lae Engineering procured four contracts for Stage 1 amounting to K24.4 million.

Shorncliffe, Dekenai Construction, Cameron Construction, FTM Construction, East West 1 and R & Sons procured 12 contracts procured for Stage 2 amounting to K104.3 million plus variations.

“There was no proper design and engineer’s estimates initially for all the contracts in Stage 1 and 2,” the report said.

“Also, the rates for existing contracts are quite high.

“The initial scope of works is very poor.

 “In some contracts, bill of quantities (BOQs) is excessive while in others, total opposite.

“Proper procurement process was bypassed to procure these projects.

“The National Executive Council (NEC) condition of contract is new. 

“Most contractors are not familiar with this condition of contract.

“The NEC conformed contract documents have major irregularities and contradictions.

“Examples of such are the appointment and responsibilities of the employer’s representative, the engineer/project manager and the engineer’s representative/supervisor.

“This was not clearly spelt out in the agreement, contract data and in the condition of contract.

“The option of concrete pavement is new in Papua New Guinea.

“Very little or no detailed scope of works, technical drawings, standard works, quality control management plan, environmental management plan and traffic management plan were provided to the contractors in Stages 1 and 2.

“This has delayed the completion of all the projects and seriously impacted the quality of the finished concrete roads.

“Cost blow out is also evident due lack of technical information.”

In stages 1 and 2, projects were managed by NME, Lae City Authority and DOW at various stages and the employers’ representative was Department of Finance (DoF)).

“DOW’s involvement was minimal or nil until August 2012,” the report said.

“These contracts were executed under certificates of inexpediency (COI).

“Mismanagement of the projects under Stage 1 and 2 in design/construction and financial is evident.

“The government directed projects funds to the DOW to manage and execute the remaining works under Stage 2.

“Stage 3 projects were awarded in August 2013.

“Contractors have mobilised on site and commenced works.

“The cost of these two projects is K42million.

“Both projects are programmed to be completed in June 2014.

“Works has commenced and in progress.”

Implementation a key challenge for 2014 PNG budget - ADB

PORT MORESBY, PAPUA NEW GUINEA (2 December, 2013) –Improving the implementation capacity of public agencies to deliver the government's investment plans will be a core challenge for improving service delivery in 2014,according to anew issue of the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Pacific Economic Monitor (PEM), released today.

 

Thereport, a tri-annual economic review of ADB's Pacific developing member countries, says government funding for health, education, law and order, and infrastructure in Papua New Guinea (PNG) is expected to continue its rapid growth in 2014, increasing by almost 30% over 2013 levels.

 

Underpinning this expenditure growth is an expected 21% increase in domestic revenue collection,stemming partly from planned improvements in tax compliance and enforcement which are expected to bring in an additional K750 million in 2014.

 

The reportsays the 2014 budget projects a fiscal deficit equivalent to 5.9% of GDP in line with the government's Medium Term Fiscal Strategy 2012–2017 and keeping public debt at broadly sustainable levels.

 

"Infrastructure is the biggest winner in the 2014 Budget, with its K2.7billion in funding constituting a 46% increase from 2013. While the government's increasing prioritization of expenditure towards key development enablers of infrastructure, education, health, and law and order is welcome news, the real challenge for 2014 will be one of implementation," said Aaron Batten, ADB's Country Economist in PNG. 

 

For example, although the Department of Works and Implementationreceived a 60% funding increase in 2014,  more than 97% of the increase in funding is for additional capital works, meaning there is limited new funding for the maintenance and operational activities related to these new projects.

 

To maximize the development impact of its budget allocations, a larger focus will need to be placed on recruiting and training a much larger pool of skilled Papua New Guineans to be able prepare, deliver, and ultimately maintain these new assets.

 

Papua New Guinea joined ADB in 1971. It is ADB's largest partner in the Pacific in terms of loans for public and private sector development.

 

ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2012, ADB assistance totaled $21.6 billion, including cofinancing of $8.3 billion.

Massive fraud in Lae roads

Source: The National, Friday November 29th, 2013
By MALUM NALU

A damning report on rehabilitation and upgrading of Lae city roads released yesterday by Department of Works (DoW) shows that  there was massive foul play in awarding of contracts amounting to almost K200 million.

The report reveals that four contracts were procured for Stage 1 amounting to K24.4 million,  12 contracts were procured for Stage 2 amounting to K104.3 million plus variations, an additional K28 million was appropriated in 2012 to settle outstanding claims, and additional funding of K27.39 million is require to complete the remaining balance of works.

The government only transferred the administration and management of Lae roads rehabilitation and upgrading to DoW in August 2012 to ensure successful completion of ongoing works.

Stage 1 works commenced in 2009 with contracts given to Dekenai Construction, East-West 1 Ltd, FTM Construction and Lae Engineering Ltd.

“In line with the national government’s aspiration to upgrade the Lae City roads to a standard urban city road status, K50 million was allocated in 2010 supplementary budget,” the report says.

“By the virtue of the appropriation bill, the funding was allocated to DOW, however, the projects were hijacked at the central agencies and Central Supply and Tenders Board (CSTB).

“NME International (PNG) Ltd was engaged as state’s representative to manage all aspects - design, procurement, project management - of these projects.

“A detailed audit has been undertaken to establish the project financial and physical status.

“The audit reveals that 12 contracts were procured which equates to K104.3 million, including variations.

“The state erred from the beginning by awarding contracts above the K50 million funding appropriation.

“Additional K28 million was appropriate in 2012 to settle outstanding claims certified by NME as well as completing the outstanding works under Stage 2.

“Additional funding of K27.39 million is require to complete the remaining balance of works.

“Most of this outstanding is paid from K100million appropriated for 2013.

The report highlighted that most of these projects were procured under certificate of inexpediency (COI).

“There was no justification for the expedited procurement for such important projects,” it said.

“Ample time should be given for proper planning and technical design necessary to make informed investment decisions.

“Consequently, a lot of ambiguities and variations have surfaced, thus DoW is doing its best to address and conclude these projects.

“NME scoped for concrete pavement works, a highly technical task; there was no proper design to guide contractors.

“Most contractors lacked experience in such projects and were not familiar in executing it. Inefficiency of unskilled contractors in concrete pavement and buildable design resulted in poor performance and slow progress.

“Engineers’ estimates were unavailable to compare and review the contractor’s prices.

“All contracts were awarded as per contractor’s pricing.

“These prices were further inflated by variations due to poor scoping and design.

“Department of Finance (DOF) paid over K30million in advance to contractors to commence work.

“Some commenced as expected, however other did not commence until October 2012.

“Due to misprocurement, some contracts have been suspended awaiting further instruction from CSTB. “

Lae Roads Watch

 Not only did the Lae roads CONtractors f..k up our roads and steal our money, they even had the audacity and cheek, no bloody sense of respect or history whatsoever, to chop down many of the iconic rain trees of the 'Garden City'. 
Many of the silent sentinels of Lae are now gone forever because of some stupid, money-hungry con artists. 

This is what remains at Markham Road with the golf course on the right,

Lae Roads Watch

 A picture tells a thousand words...this is the excellent Busu Road between Ampo and Balob Teachers College together with perfect sidewalks which were built by AusAid in 1998-2002 but have stood the test of time. 

Compare that to the recent multi-million kina roadworks which have already started to fall apart.

Markham Valley lives up to name

The Markham Valley of Morobe is known as the ‘Food Bowl of PNG’ and Binimamp village, in Kaiapit, is no exception.

The people are prolific gardeners and grow everything they need to eat including bananas (marafri) and taro, as well as fruit such as pineapples and water melons.

They also raise their own pigs and chickens.

Pictured are youngsters from Binimamp loading a vehicle with fresh garden produce on Friday, Nov 15 for a gathering in Lae.-Words and pictures by MALUM NALU

Once a farmer, always a farmer

Former Lae MP and well-known banana farmer Bart Philemon was pleasantly surprised when he attended a family gathering between Yanga and Wagang villages on Saturday, Nov 16.

 

His nephew, Ahi Nako (left), showed him a big bunch of bananas, offspring from Philemon’s farm at Malahang outside Lae.

Philemon supplied bananas to supermarkets, resource projects and institutions around the country, and even exported to Australia and New Zealand, before entering politics in 1992 and was a four-time Lae MP until 2012.

Philemon is now on the board of several major companies in life after politics.-Words and picture by MALUM NALU