By Sami Zaptia.
London, 30 September 2021:
Libya’s Audit Bureau reported yesterday that a Turkish company has agreed to return to the country immediately to resume its Tripoli University project after reaching a ‘‘settlement’’ with the Audit Bureau. The company was not named and no further details were revealed of the type of contractual settlement reached.
The settlement was reached on 28 and 29 September during meetings held at the Libyan Consulate in Istanbul by Audit Bureau head Khaled Shakshak with several Turkish companies contracted to work on Tripoli University projects. The meetings included the committee in charge of negotiations and various other relevant stakeholders.
At the meetings, Shakshak stressed the need for the contracting parties to bear the responsibilities entrusted to them, bearing in mind that the causes of projects stalling were beyond everyone’s control. He said the matter required dealing in a realistic way to ensure the completion of the remaining work in record time and to spare the two parties the burdens of alternative costs.
The Audit Bureau said the procedures came in the framework of the implementation of its competencies in approving contracts and following up on payments and sensing the importance of returning the wheel of construction and development in Libya.
The Istanbul meetings also follow on from the follow-up by Shakshak on the suspended projects at the University of Tripoli, which he carried out on August 30. At that meeting, the reasons for the failure of projects in the university were identified, including the rejection of foreign companies returning to complete their work due to financial and technical problems resulting from the period related to the hiatus of implementation.
Shakshak also stressed the need for the rest of the local and foreign companies contracting with the Libyan state to follow in the footsteps of these companies to form a real partnership with the government, which guaranteed a large part of the budget to finance Tripoli University projects in particular, and which is a real opportunity to achieve effective development that serves the community and serves everyone’s interest.
