Not getting major contract works was one of the challenges that some contractors in Thimphu, Chhukha, Paro and Haa districts are facing. This was shared yesterday when the contractors from Thimphu and the districts nearby came together in preparation for AM with PM.
They will be sharing the challenges and issues faced by the Bhutanese contractors with the Prime Minister soon. Some of them claimed they have not been getting any major contracts for the last one and a half year.
“It is running more than a year now after the present government assumed the office. I did not get a single contract. I am running two years without any works. It is not only me, but many of us are also facing the same problem and we could not do payments to our staff and pay loans for our machinery and loan amounts kept on rising. We had to reduce our staff to reduce monthly payments,” said Neten Wangdi, a contractor from Thimphu.
“We could not pay membership fees for the Construction Association of Bhutan (CAB) because we could not get any works for the last one and half years. We could have paid it easily if we get works,” added Zeko, another contractor from Chhukha.
Today there are more than 2700 contractors registered with the CAB. The association collected only 12 per cent membership fees last year and only five per cent this year.
Large contract license holders pay Nu. 50,000 annually as membership fees while medium and small contract license holders are paying Nu. 10,000 and Nu. 1000 respectively.
“Our members did not pay fees and so we had to send our staff to collect fees. And we faced a shortage of payment for our CAB staff. Our members said, they couldn’t pay fees as they are not getting contracts. We also had a meeting in Monggar and Gelegphu and they shared the same problem,” said Tshering Yonten, the Vice President of the CAB.
“The government now should support the contractors to talk with the financial institutes to reduce the interest rates to make money available in the market so that even if there is no fund from the government, our banks should be able to finance and keep the market vibrant. And also if the contractors are having problem with loan repayment, they should look into the matter and at least help out the contractors because the nation has to grow together, the government and public have to clap their hands together” added Thinlay Gyamtsho, the President of the CAB.
The contractors compiled seven points to be discussed during the AM with PM session for which the association has an appointment coming soon.
Pema Tshewang
