Parliamentary committee says ‘encroachers’ of road reserves should not be compensated
In its scrutiny of assurances given by government officials between July 2021 and March 2022, the Parliamentary Committee on Government Assurances and Public Sector Reforms recommended that “no compensation should be paid” to developers who had built in the reserves of three roads in the Capital, Lilongwe, which are undergoing expansion.
The committee noted that the developers encroached in the road reserves, violated existing regulations and delayed progress of the roads construction because of the court actions they took.
The roads are: M1 road from Crossroads Roundabout to Alimaunde in Kanengo, M1 road section from Crossroads roundabout to Lilongwe Hotel to Lilongwe CCAP, Kenyatta road and Mzimba street.
The first two are being expanded to dual carriageways while Kenyatta road and Mzimba street are being expanded to six-lanes.
The Parliamentary Committee on Government Assurances and Public Sector Reforms is mandated to, among others, scrutinize the assurances given by government officials in the National Assembly. It also follows progress on the implementation of public sector reforms.
In its report of the scrutiny of assurances implemented by various ministries between July 2021 and March 2022, the committee, therefore, recommended that those who had built in the reserves of the roads being expanded, should not be compensated.
“Additionally, Ministry of Transport and Public Works, as a policy holder, should ensure that road reserves were preserved.
“In addition to construction of new roads, the Ministry of Transport and Public Works should invest more in the maintenance of existing roads,” reads the report in part, presented in Parliament by Chairperson, Noel Lipipa.
The expansion of the three roads is currently underway.
According to the report, the expansion of the 10 kilometer M1 section from Crossroads Roundabout to Alimaunde in Kanengo is being financed by a grant from the People’s Republic of China, amounting to US$25 million (about MK25 billion).
The expansion of the M1 road section from Crossroads roundabout to Lilongwe Hotel to Lilongwe CCAP is as follows: from Crossroads to Lilongwe Hotel would be financed locally. From Lilongwe Hotel to Lilongwe CCAP, with an estimated cost of US$ 30 million (about MK30 billion), would be financed by a grant from the Japanese Government.
“Additionally, the committee learnt that the grant agreement between Malawi Government and JICA was signed and, in accordance with the timeline by JICA, construction works would commence by November 2021. The project was projected to take three to four years.
“The Committee was enlightened that the expansion of the existing two-lane carriageway to a six-lane carriageway, from Parliament roundabout to Sharrar street at Constantine junction, would commence on 15th September 2021 and finish on 14th March, 2023.
“That expansion of Mzimba Street from two-lane to six-lane would start at Cross Roads Roundabout to Central Medical Stores. The Road would cover a total length of four kilometers and would commence on 1st April, 2022 and construction period would be 12 months,” the report further reads.
During the period the report covers, the committee also scrutinized assurances under Ministry of Health, Ministry of Local Government, National Economic Empowerment Fund Limited and Ministry of Forestry and Natural Resources.
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