A construction firm which planned to build a makeshift ‘village’ to host Turkish construction workers is in pole position to turn some of its ‘unused’ prefabricated units into classrooms for government schools.

UNEC Ltd a few weeks ago hit the headlines over plans to host Turkish construction workers in a quarry.

UNEC Ltd submitted the cheapest offer in a tender issued by the Education Ministry for mobile classrooms to host students in St Paul’s Bay and Żejtun, making it the most likely supplier.

According to normal government rules, public tenders are awarded to the cheapest offer, as long as they meet the required criteria.

Industry sources said that UNEC Ltd, a subsidiary of construction magnates Bonnici Brothers, made an offer of less than €300,000, opting to “turn their sights on the Education Ministry" after they had to shelve their 'village' plans.

The two other offers received were also submitted by construction firms – Bava Holdings Ltd and Vassallo Builders Ltd – quoting prices much higher than those offered by the Bonnici Brothers subsidiary.

Some four years ago, due to bad planning and an influx in the population of St Paul’s Bay - particularly through migration - the Education Ministry had to turn to the use of mobile classrooms as the primary school could not cope.

Plans to build a new school for the area were also severely delayed as the agency responsible for the project, the Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools, was engulfed in mismanagement and claims of corruption. One of its top managers, a canvasser of the Education Minister, is undergoing criminal charges.

In spite of a public commitment by the Education Minister to open the new school next September, a new tender was still issued to buy new mobile classrooms for St Paul’s Bay. Ministry sources described the move as: “Plan B in case the project is delayed once again”.

At the same time, the ministry admitted that mobile classrooms are to be introduced at Żejtun’s Secondary as a temporary measure until works on an extension to the school are completed. Even in this case, work has been hit by delays.

Meanwhile, construction industry sources expressed surprise at UNEC Ltd's offer, since the company normally trades in heavy plant for construction including mechanical shovels, bulldozers and large machinery.

“Obviously, the fact that their planned quarry village project had to be abandoned posed a problem as to how to get rid of those mobile homes,” the sources said.

Last month, the Times if Malta unveiled Bonnici Brothers' plans to build a container and tent village in a quarry in Mqabba to host hundreds of Turkish workers imported to the island for large construction jobs.

The employees, paid much better than their average wage in Turkey but still low by Maltese standards, were imported by TACA Construction – an Ankara-based company – which won various projects on the island.

Following the story, Bonnici Brothers stopped the erection of their ‘quarry village’ and TACA announced that it had abandoned its plans to build a temporary residences.

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