Shoddy work exposed in construction


By Kondwani Nyondo 

When the Kamilang’ombe Bridge in Nthalire, Chitipa, caved in last week — leaving a Toyota Land Cruiser carrying ten People’s Party campaign members dangling over the edge — the near-tragedy pulled the lid off a deeper scandal.

Our investigation has established that the bridge, valued at K167 million and barely a month old, was not only substandard but was also suspiciously constructed at night, away from the community’s watchful eyes.

A Rescue That Took Hours

The collapse sparked a desperate rescue. Villagers rushed to save the trapped team, sliding logs and shoveling sand beneath the teetering vehicle until it was finally dragged back to safety.

Prisca Yapereka Kayira, one of those trapped, recalls:

"Just as we were about to cross, the slab caved in. We thought we would die. It took hours of villagers working with bare hands to save us."

Signs of Negligence

What happened at Kamilang’ombe was no accident. Our investigation revealed that cracks had already started appearing on the bridge within weeks of its completion. Villagers said their concerns were ignored, even after the council itself condemned the structure.

Community member Masuta Kaonga told us:

"We saw workers pouring the slab at night. When we asked, they assured us they had used strong Y-16 reinforcement. But later, we found out it was only Y-5  much weaker. They were hiding the shortcuts they took."

The Council Knew

Chitipa District Council officials confirm that the bridge had already been flagged as unfit for use.

District Director of Public Works, Eng. Misheck Gondwe, admitted:

"We wrote to the contractor instructing them to redo the work. The bridge had already been condemned."

Yet the bridge remained open, exposing villagers and campaign teams to mortal danger.

Contractor Accepts Blame

Faced with mounting evidence, Wotazs Group managing director Bob Banda conceded that the collapse was due to poor supervision and shoddy workmanship.

"The man in charge started well, but when it came to the decking slab he misused resources and delivered substandard work. We failed to supervise properly," he said.

The company now promises to reconstruct the bridge at its own cost, though locals remain skeptical.

A Pattern of Shoddy Works

The Kamilang’ombe Bridge collapse is not an isolated case. Malawi has witnessed a pattern where multimillion-kwacha projects fail within months, raising serious concerns about oversight, procurement loopholes, and political protection of contractors.

For the people of Nthalire, the incident is a betrayal. A project meant to connect them to schools, markets, and hospitals has instead become a symbol of negligence and wasted public money.


"This is not just concrete breaking," Kaonga said bitterly. "It is our trust in government breaking too."



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