TOLL GATES SOLD? – Minister refutes allegation

By NATION REPORTER

IT is not true that toll gates have been sold because they are an income generating venture the government depends on, Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development Charles Milupi has said.

Mr Milupi said it was practically impossible for Government to do away with toll gates because it was one of the key areas used to collect revenue.

However, according to a source, a meeting was held to brief toll gate staff that a new owner would soon be taking over. 

A wrap up meeting was held with all toll gate staff on Friday to prepare them for the new management and take over.

The source said the Ministry of Infrastructure and Housing and Ministry of Transport and Logistics had completed the process to sell the public infrastructure but indicated that terms and conditions of the lease had not been made public.

But Mr Milupi said the new roads being done under the Public, Private Partnership (PPP) would see contractors given a concession that would enable them construct toll gates which they would use to recover their money.

He said this was because they would construct the roads using their own funds therefore there would be need to recover their resources. 

Mr Milupi said the allegations that all   toll gates had been sold were not true because government was the one that constructed the roads where the existing toll gates were hence they needed to recoup the funds.

“We have roads like the Michael Chilufya Toll Gate, government is the one that created that road where the toll gate is so why would we give it to entities that did not even construct the road,” he said.