Kaduna To Blacklist Defaulting Contractors- Commissioner

The Kaduna State Government says it has started compiling lists of defaulting contractors handling various project to blacklist the companies.

The Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Muhammad Abdullahi, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna on Friday.
Abdullahi said that the blacklist would contain list of contractors that consistently execute poor quality of jobs awarded to them.

He said that contractors, who were slow in project implementation and those who do not even implement at all would never again benefits from any contracts in the state.
“We have already started building the list and Gov. Nasir El-Rufai has asked that we submit it personally to him when we are done.
“When we do that, it means that these contractors will not be awarded any more contracts in the state for the duration of this administration,’’ he said.
He said that the step became necessary because the state government did not want contractors that did not have the capacity to deliver to bid for its projects.
“They waste the time and resources of the state and they don’t deliver quality job.
“What we want is a list of contractors that are commendable, dependable, trust worthy and can get the job done,’’ Abdullahi said.
The ministry had the responsibility of monitoring the implementation of all projects, adding that it does this through its monitoring and evaluation unit called, “The Eyes and Ears of Projects’’.
“We go out every week to monitor the contractors; find out where they are and assess the level of work and to equally ensure that the project is being done to specifications.
“We also ensure that there are enough resources to fund the plans, so that they don’t just remain theories on paper.”

Credit: NAN

Panama Seeks To Punish Countries That Blacklist It As ‘Tax Haven’

The government of Panama on Tuesday announced a bill that would take a range of steps against countries that put it on their blacklists of “tax havens” in the wake of the Panama Papers revelations.

The legislation would impose tax, trade and migration measures on companies or individuals from those countries that “engage in practices that discriminate or imply damage to economic interests” of Panama, a statement said.

The move could be directed at France, which put Panama back on its national blacklist of tax havens in April following the Panama Papers reports, which showed how some of the world’s wealthy stashed assets in offshore firms created by the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca.

Colombia could also be targeted for keeping tariffs on Panama textile imports despite a World Trade Organization ruling calling for them to be scrapped.

Panama has vowed to improve its fight against money laundering and tax evasion, but has fallen short of regulations the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development wants to see adopted internationally.

The bill will be put to Panama’s Congress for debate and a vote.

Credit: Guardian