SHODDY WORK: Road develops potholes in record 1 week after completion.

The signboard had been erected to signal the beginning of the project but has since been removed when residents started protesting the poor workmanship.

Residents of Kisii Estate in Thika West Sub-County are up in arms over a bogus contractor whom they accuse of poor workmanship.

The residents have expressed their discontent in the manner in which the Mwangaza Primary School-Munyu road was carpeted after it developed potholes and cracks within its first week upon completion.

The contractor, Dennix Ltd., is said to have done the slightly over one-Kilometre road in a record one month, even though the project was scheduled to be completed by July 2018, according to the construction signboard that they had erected sometime in late February this year.

(The signboard has since been removed when residents started protesting the poor workmanship).

The residents are demanding an explanation from the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) Resident Engineer who oversaw the road upgrade.

According to them, this contractor has swindled the government millions of Kenya shilling for a road that will easily be washed away by a heavy rainstorm. They vowed to block any further construction works until their grievances were addressed.

John Ngatia who is a resident in the area claims that when they confronted the contractor to explain why they were doing a shoddy job, he responded that the contract had been awarded very little money and if they wanted better road works they should ask the government to allocate him with more money.

“The tarmac has been placed on top of mud. No murram has been used at all. The road is very narrow. The thickness of the tarmac used is less than half an inch and no drainage has been provided for. When we confronted him he told us that he was given little money,” complained Ngatia.

He advised the government to keep scrutinising road construction companies properly before awarding them tenders to ensure high standards of workmanship on Kenyan roads.

“This work is substandard and relevant authorities should re-evaluate it before paying the contractor,” he said.

Area MP Eng. Patrick Wainaina, who visited the road after cries from residents, promised to lodge a formal complaint to KURA Director General and the Parliamentary Committee on Roads to investigate possible improprieties in the road project.

Thika MP Patrick Wainaina witnessing first-hand the state of the road that has developed potholes in a record time of a one-week lifespan.

“This contractor should be investigated to and if possible be forced to refund any money paid to him. This way, we can end misuse of tax payers’ money and smoke out rogue companies who are out to defraud the public,” said the MP.

He added that if found culpable, the contractor should be blacklisted and should have their licences cancelled.

“This project should stop forthwith and the engineer who gave the road a clean bill of health be investigated. This is outright fraud and the public has lost about KES. 70 million here!” stated the legislator.