Making road sense

The Roads Minister attempted a crisp reminder of roadworks carried out or funded by the government over the past three years, placing it in the context of the roadworks backlog and how he plans to "chop it altogether" to create valuable community assets. He appealed to the community to protect those assets (September 1). It is fair enough for a minister to blow his trumpet: The breed is not in the business of being publicity shy.

The Roads Minister, at least, was not loud in implying self-praise as a recommendation. He did not fall into the pit hole of colouring what he wrote with political comparisons. A serious approach befits a serious problem. One that, the minister claimed, was being "rooted out".

The minister's way of expressing himself did not always follow a smooth route, but one got the gist. It was that "the government is giving a high priority to the improvement of the road network".

To claim that the result was "reflected in other success stories" was one temptation that the politician could not resist. But that, too, is part of the game, even if it tempts a whole critical debate on what exactly makes for a success story. Rather than picking at that it might be more useful to analyse and, where the result is deserving of it, appreciate.

The programme in hand focuses on constructing 450 residential roads, covering 50 kilometres at a cost of Lm8 million. It is a significant project.

That it is not enough merely highlights the extent to which the road network is lacking, as well as insufficient value yielded from a substantial annual spend under successive governments, of whichever political hue. This sad reflection of ongoing inefficient use of public financial resources and waste should lead the minister to broaden his focus.

His team came up with a definitive list of residential roads that had never been constructed. This was necessary, the minister wrote, because earlier lists were inaccurate, incomplete, or had already been constructed (and, therefore, fell under the responsibility of the local councils). Roads were listed, photographed and measured, and a provisional estimate of construction costs drawn up.

Tenders for the first 80 roads were issued. Discussions are taking place with representatives of road contractors to negotiate a series of period contracts.

That, the minister feels, should speed up the programme by eliminating the delays caused by tendering procedures. That will be a very tough nut to crack. More speed without undue haste in definitely awarding contracts, which tend to be held up by litigation, is as required as it is essential to execute contract works well and in time.

Yet, such transparency as exists through the tender procedure cannot be clouded in any way, even should it prove possible to revise sensibly public tender provisions and to reach binding agreement with the road contractors, now organised in the Federation of Industry.

Where the minister, on behalf of the public, needs to broaden his focus lies in respect of quality and value for money. To detail numbers of roads and their kilometres, say that they will become community assets, and implore the community to jealously protect them is pertinent.

However, before the community can protect itself by protecting the assets it finances, the government must ensure that assets in fact match up to their cost.

In his next incursion in the media the minister would do well to detail what new action is being taken to see that there is real and effective quality control of contract and departmental work.

To date, such control is not blindingly evident in the form of the final result. Shoddiness is for the government or its delegated authority to root out.

Value for money is for the executing authorities too to ensure. That is road sense the community expects to take root.