As usual, the FrontPage Africa story claims it was only reporting concerns of citizens and government officials regarding the quality of the roads and their dilapidate state especially after their recent “reconstruction”.
Interestingly, it was also reported in the article that the Public Works Minister Mr Kofi Woods has accepted responsibility for the apparent "unacceptable" conditions of the “reconstructed” roads. One is left to ponder the state of affairs regarding the basic aspects of governance - avoidance of waste and the upholding of public trust - and quiz oneself as to the level of involvement / oversight of the Government agency that award these contracts.
One very important aspect of engineering is quality control. I wonder if the public works ministry has a functioning QA/QC (Quality Assurance / Quality Control) wing. If the quality of the roads have become unacceptable in such a short span of time, I believe this situation could have been avoided if the initial construction process was thoroughly monitored for adherence to established standards (strength of materials in basic engineering) .
I would also imagine that there were established warranties / maintenance agreement included in the contract for a reasonable period of time whereby the construction firm would maintain these roads at little or no cost to the government.
While it is unlikely that the Government or one of its agencies, would award such high price contract with apparently no quality control in place, I believe this sad case presents us with an opportunity to reassess the manner in which contracts are awarded - be it construction or of any nature.
It is common knowledge that political appointees are a fact of national politics but as we constantly review/reshuffle our ministerial postings I would suggest that emphasis be placed on specific areas of qualification, demonstrated leadership and the ability to adapt to constant changes.
The days of having square pegs in round holes are long gone.
Benjamin Kofa Fyneah
Gainesville, Florida
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