Same company to kill

The tender is for a job to kill bugs.

The tender is for fumigating lice and other insects that bother inmates at Sidvwashini Correctional facility.

The fumigating process was initiated after inmates complained to the Commissioner that they were spending sleepless nights at the facility because of lice that bit them especially at night.

Lice are the common name for members of over 3 000 species of wingless insects of the order Phthiraptera. Most lice are scavengers. They feed on skin and other debris found on the host’s body, but some species feed on sebaceous secretions and blood. They are not dangerous and they do not spread disease, but they are contagious and downright annoying.

Lucky’s Ark Investment offered its services to eradicate the irritating insects at E39 000.

The company was being considered together with a company called the Specialists which offered its services for E11 000 to do the same job.

The company has been shortlisted for a job it

was paid around E360 000 in 2006.

This was after it won a tender to fumigate inmates dormitories at the Matsapha Correctional facilities.

The 2006 tender was queried when it transpired that another company had quoted around E9 000 for a similar job.

Mnguni Simelane the then Correctional Services Commissioner suspended payment to the company for a period spanning a year while it was investigating how it had been awarded the tender.

Incumbent Commissioner Isaiah Mzuthini Ntshangase says his department invited the company to tender for the job because it had a good history in this kind of business.

He said bugs were last fumigated in 2006 by the same company at the department and they had never bothered the inmates until now.

Ntshangase said the department had received three tenders from different companies in the business of killing bugs.

He said the selection process of a company to be offered the ultimate job will be easy.

"We will take them to various dormitories at Sidvwashini Correctional where they will fumigate and the next day we will do the evaluation," he said.

He said the selection would be done in accordance with effectiveness of each company measure and prowess in delivering the killing dosage to the bugs.

The Commissioner said the company that will totally kill the animals will be awarded the job.

Lucky Ngubane the Director of Lucky’s Ark investment said his company was ready for the task.

"We have killed a lot of bugs in various departments where our services were hired," he said.

Ngubane said he trusted the ability of his chemicals in removing bugs and said his company had a track record in the business.

"We last fumigated at Matsapha Prison in 2006 and since then inmates were never bothered by the creepy insects until now," he said.

He said his company used imported products which were highly effective in controlling the insects compared to chemicals that were available locally.

"We import some of the chemicals from India and South Africa. In total, we mix up to 17 different chemicals for this job," he said.

He said there was no other company in Swaziland which had the same ability to totally control the pests.

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