Mustafa Abubakar
28 January 2009
The Kwara State government has opened bids for the construction of school facilities across the state, reaffirming its commitment to continue to uphold accord due process transparency and due process in the course of policy and programme implementation.
The State's Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Alhaji Bolaji Abdullahi,who made this government's stand known during the bid opening for the World Bank assisted project in the state, said the present administration does not believe in playing to the gallery.
Abdullahi who spoke through the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Tunji Fagbemi, maintained that the on-going education reform agenda in the state will be pursued with all seriousness, saying that no stone will be left unturned in order to accomplish the set goals.
Similarly, the Commissioner also promised to follow laid down procedures in the execution of the project with a view to justify the confidence reposed on the government.
The Commissioner, who said the government will not condone project abandonment and shoddy jobs, argued that low bidding was not a yardstick to win the contract but experience and technical ability.
Abdullahi warned the prospective contractors against executing shoddy jobs, saying that punishment await any contractor who embarks on shoddy jobs.
The State's Co-ordinator of the Education Sector Project (SESP), Mrs Catherine Adeyemi, had earlier shed light on the project, saying that it was a World Bank assisted project aimed at assisting the state in the on-going reform agenda in the education sector.
She further disclosed that the project is the renovation of classrooms and drilling of boreholes in some primary schools in some selected six local government areas across the state.
The selected local government areas according to her are; Asa, Baruten, Ilorin West, Offa, Isin and Patigi local government areas of the state.
The SESP Co-ordinator who promised to follow the World Bank procedure to the letter, promised to assist the prospective contractors to execute a good job.
According to her, "there is nothing like project abandoning because we don't want anything that will tarnish the image of the present administration internationally".
"You must be time conscious in the execution of the projects while adhering strictly to the World Bank procedure", she warned.
Speaking on behalf of other bidders, a representative of Ridan Express Limited, Mr Jacob Elegun, commended the STSP for being transparent in the course of the bid opening and appealed to the SESP to expedite action on the bid evaluation to enable the prospective contractors commence job before the rainy season.
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