By Crispina Cummings

Officials of the Senegalese construction company, CSE, have told a parliamentary subcommittee that they have received only 10% of payments due them in two years and that after having invested heavily in new equipment they cannot now access loans from banks because they have reached their pre-financing limit.

They told MPs of the Committee on Works led by Komboh Kamara that “all the projects we have completed were projects funded by the European Union with no outstanding payment”.

China Rail Way Company officials told the committee that their projects were still not finished as they were waiting for utility companies like NPA, Sierratel and Guma to finish work to “avoid a situation where we will finish our work and utility companies have to dig up the roads again.”

The MPs urged the other company, GUICOR, now on contract to construct the Kono road to speed up work.

Earlier, KombohKamara, MP, said his committee “is very interested in the roads as it concerns everyone.” He raised concern about the issue of consultants and the Acting Director of the Sierra Leone Roads Authority, Abdulai Aziz Kamara to explain “how these consultants are appointed and paid huge amounts of money with all the problems on the roads”.

The SLRA boss said several people were usually contacted but that it's always the most competent people that were appointed as consultants.

(C) Politico 26/11/13