Support Local Contractors - Alhaji PMC Urges Gov’t

The National Treasurer of opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Alhaji Abdallah Ahmed-Abdallah, also known as Alhaji PMC has urged the government to support Ghanaian contractors by awarding them with major construction projects.

According to him, there are local contractors who are equally capable of executing quality projects hence the need for government to give them the opportunity to do the work and spend the money here in Ghana.

Speaking in an interview with Agya Owusu Ansah on otec FM's programme "Dwaberem" on Monday 15th October, 2018, Alhaji PMC suggested that government should groom at least ten Ghanaian contractors in every district to do the construction works so that they can deliver better quality work than their foreign competitors.

“There are good Architectures, Engineers and contractors in the country which the government can improve their conditions of service and give them the necessary support and incentives to enhance the construction industry and utilize their expertise in the interest of the nation.

If you invest in the local contractors and use them here, whatever they get is spent locally but when you give the opportunity to the foreign contractors they repatriate all the money back to their country” Alhaji PMC stressed.

“This is very a critical issue the government should look at because the foreigners use the local contractors as laborers for their construction works, if they can work for the foreigners as laborers why don’t we give them the contract? he quizzed.

Alhaji PMC further said government's failure to get the Ghanaian contractors paid at the right time is discouraging the local contraction firms

“A local contractor can complete a work within one month but they get paid two years later” he bemoaned.

Alhaji PMC appealed to Ghanaian contractors to upgrade their skills and knowledge in the industry to prepare them adequately for future challenges.

He expressed concern about what he described as dishonest practices and shoddy construction works. A situation Alhaji PMC stressed is collapsing the construction firms in Ghana. He consequently asked construction firms to uphold the integrity of the industry.