Olembe Sports Complex: MAGIL threatens sports ministry with international lawsuit
In a correspondence to the Secretary General at the Prime Minister’s office dated January 3rd 2023, sports and physical education minister, Professor Narcisse Mouelle Kombi says the Canadian company MAGIL Construction Corporation has put an end to their contract.
According to the Minister, they received a letter from MAGIL on December 6 2022 informing them that their contract would be terminated within a month. Unfortunately, before the end of the said perios, the construction company reportedly stopped all works at the Olembe stadium. Mouelle Kombi says this termination was a unilateral decision taken by MAGIL and so they could not comprehend why the comapny notified them that the matter would be taken before an international court in the months ahead.
MAGIL, also asked that 10% of the total worth of the contract be paid to them as well as other financial damages. Kombi however explains that he believes the company worked in bad faith for a long time and even refused to submit documents needed for a better project follow-up in spite of several letters written reminding them of the importance of the said documents.
He further reveals that in two years, MAGIL has done almost no work to take the project which was started by the PICCINI construction group any further although the state has already spent an extra F CFA 42 billion paid to MAGIL to ensure that the project is completed. He equally accuses MAGIL of soaring and even doubling amounts on receipts showing company expenses, of producing fake receipts, willingly stalling works and even exponentially increasing salaries of expatriate workers.
“Since the contract was signed in 2020, it has been one complain to the other… We have been on MAGIL’s back to get the retro planning to follow up advancement of works but nothing” sports Minister Mouelle Kombi says.
“Within 2 years of work, MAGIL has been into blackmails like it was the case with the 2020 AfricanNations’ Championship and the 2021 AFCON,” the minister further explains.
Phase 2 of the project was estimated at F CFA 65 and F CFA 110 billion by MAGIL which would make the total cost for the Olembe Sports complex F CFA250 billion.
Of the F CFA 55 billion provided by the public investment bank and the Standard Chattered Bank, only F CFA13 billion is left thus the sports complex will be completed with state funds.
Mouelle Kombi recommends that the MAGIL company be sued for infringement of public wealth if they fail to reimburse part of the money which was given to them for works to be continued as well as the F CFA 4 billion which was borrowed and paid to them.
MAGIL took over works at the Olembe stadium in December 2019 from the the Italian construction company PICCINI group.
