(TAP) - Nearly 41% of the Public Works Ministry's fleet dedicated to road maintenance is inoperable and 48% of the total earth-moving machinery distributed in the regions are not working, reveals the 27th report of the High Committee of Administrative and Financial Control.

Approximately 4% of the road maintenance budget is spent annually on the maintenance of vehicles and some office equipment.

In addition, the report highlighted unjustified charges that are spent from the budget of maintenance of pavements, in addition to the absence of confidential standards and extended to all regional directorates to classify the pavements that require maintenance according to priority.

Regarding the implementation of maintenance work, the report showed the failure to comply with the guidelines for the use of equipment, which has had a negative impact on the fleet, burdening the state and blocking the maintenance work of pavements.

According to the report, 77 drivers do not have licenses in the required categories allowing them to operate earth-moving machines and heavy trucks, which has contributed to the deterioration of their conditions.

There are also shortcomings in the area of competition, as in some cases the public tender is biased, requiring, for example, experience in carrying out at least 200 km of similar work in the last three or five years, which is considered an excessive requirement.

The annual report contains a summary of the committee's activity during 2021 and half of 2020 in terms of studies and use of the audit reports published by the Court of Auditors and the general control bodies, as well as the inspection reports published by the ministerial general inspections.

This summary also emphasises the follow-up of the commitment of the management structures concerned by the control, in terms of catching up on the dysfunctions and shortcomings detected in these reports as well as the execution of reforms to avoid them and improve the public management methods.