Home | News | ABOUT E100M BUDGET FOR NEW GOVT VEHICLES

ABOUT E100M BUDGET FOR NEW GOVT VEHICLES

08/05/2023 08:38:00 Stanley Khumalo

Font size:

MANZINI – About E100 million is set to be used to procure government vehicles.

The money was set aside in the national budget in order to deal with the challenges revolving around service delivery. The government fleet has been in disarray since the 11th Parliament came into office. According to impeccable sources, the new fleet is anticipated to be with government within the next three months. The sources relayed to this publication that it was projected that the vehicles should be with government before the national elections. The amount set aside for the acquisition of the government fleet was confirmed by the Minister of Finance, Neal Rijkenberg. He said: “We have about E100m in the CTA (Central Transport Administration) budget for the purchase of vehicles. The Ministry of Works is working on a smart plan to better leverage the budget for better long-term outcomes.” Meanwhile, last Tuesday, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, through the Eswatini Government Tender Board, issued an advert calling upon companies to express interest for government fleet leasing and financing.

The Chief Ndlaluhlaza Ndwandwe-led ministry stated that it intended to engage a firm for the provision of government fleet lease financing for a period ranging between three and five years. The key requirements for the firms to be considered were said to include relevant qualification of staff proposed for the project and demonstrable experience. It was also stated that the firm must demonstrate its capacity in fleet lease and financing. The sources said this was an effort set to stop the abuse of vehicles and the high expenses in managing the fleet. They said government would now deal with companies which would lease and finance its fleet. This move by government is subsequent to a study which was seen as a move leading to the shutdown of the CTA. In February 2023, the ministry embarked on a study, which was said to be a quest to put into order operations at the CTA. At the time, the ministry expressed a wish to engage an experienced fleet management consulting firm, whose technical team would be in possession of relevant training and demonstrating a clear track record of experience in planning, designing and executing a complete fleet management solution of this magnitude.

Expression

Meanwhile, in light of the call for expression of interest for government fleet leasing and financing, sources informed this publication that it had been established that it was more viable to lease the fleet. The sources said this would absolve government of having to maintain the fleet. The sources said this would soon be the responsibility of the firm which shall win the tender. It was gathered that government intended that the firm which shall win the tender would also provide a fleet management service. This was said to be means of closing the leaks in the bulging expenditure in terms of maintenance and also having the fleet being abused by some personnel.

The sources claimed that this would improve service delivery as the available vehicles would be set for the tasks they would be needed for, instead of having a high number of vehicles, which spent most of the time being fixed. It was gathered from the sources that this mode of running the fleet would be far cheaper than what government was currently spending in renting vehicles. The sources claimed that the government would use each vehicle for 200 000 kilometres. The anticipation from the ministry, according to sources, is that the government fleet would be in good-shape in the next three years. This period, it was gathered, would have allowed for the replacement of the 3 000 fleet, which half of it has already exceeded its lifespan. Meanwhile, the responsibilities which shall now be taken over by the financiers, who would be leasing and managing the government fleet were under the CTA, which has been a drain to government in terms of resources.

The department, which had its trading account suspended in 2020, has been marred by corruption-related scandals, which include the theft of fuel valued at over E10 million, stealing of automobile parts and failure to fix the government fleet. Despite that its core functions include to purchase, maintain and dispose of government vehicles and other related equipment; as well as to provide fuel for government vehicles. It also rents vehicles for government ministries and departments. This department has five workshop facilities spread across the country and they are located in Mbabane, Matsapha, Nhlangano, Pigg’s Peak and Siteki. For the efficiency of the government machinery through provision of transport, the CTA has been responsible for a fleet of about 3 000 vehicles ranging from motor cycles, sedans, LDVs, trucks, tractors to heavy specialised construction motorised equipment. On the other hand, the sources said the implementation of the model being adopted by government would also assist government in cutting the wage bill as some of the personnel at CTA would receive packages and stand to tender for government jobs.

Responsibilities

The sources highlighted that since the National Road Agency would soon start operating, it would take over the Roads Department’s responsibilities. The Roads Department studies, analyses, design, upgrades, constructs and maintains the national road network which comprises of approximately 1 500km of main roads and approximately 2 268.64km of district roads. The department carries out these functions through a combination of professional services and in-house personnel and equipment. The inhouse personnel are responsible for resealing, regravelling, road marking, clearing the road shoulders, drainages, guardrails, drainages which are important for the extended life of the road and cleaning or repairing culverts and small bridges.The sources said their personnel would be awarded their benefits and be encouraged to establish their own companies to tender for government jobs in fixing roads. “They can also buy some of the plant currently used by government to fix roads to engage the required services. As they do that, it will also mean that the mechanics who were responsible for maintaining their plant should also get benefits and start their own companies. It is a chain of job opportunities for many people,” said the source.