The government has been challenged to launch a national programme to upgrade motor vehicle servicing equipment in various garages in technical institutions in preparation for the total takeover of government motor vehicle servicing and repairs.
Jeremiah Nyagah National Polytechnic Trustee and former MP Norman Nyagah, warned that unless the government hastens the launch of the programme to upgrade the garage, the majority of the institutions will not take over the protectively lucrative offer.
While welcoming a recent directive by the government that all government and state corporations motor vehicles be serviced and repaired in technical institutions garages, Nyagah, however, lamented that the Embu County-based national polytechnic lacked the capacity to undertake such work.
“While the directive from the government is welcome and a good idea, how many technical institutions, including national polytechnics like ours, can be able to undertake the required works? Major upgrading programs are required, ” said Nyagah.
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Speaking after the inaugural meeting of the recently created team of trustees and council at the facilities board room, Nyagah wondered how many technical institutions across the country had the capacity to undertake such works.
He clarified that huge investments would be needed to upgrade the small units in the majority of the technical institutions, which were presently only used for equipping trainees with basic motor vehicle servicing and repair skills.
The former MP also noted that the institutions required to hire highly qualified and skilled personnel in the motor vehicle mechanical training departments to ensure that the high skills presently offered by the private sector were made available to those seeking services and trainees.
He noted that the highly qualified personnel attracted to the institutions would also partly guide the management of the technical institutions in elevating equipment to equal what was available in the upmarket commercial garages and motor vehicle servicing units.
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He said that only a major upgrading of the equipment would enable the institutions to successfully and professionally take over servicing of government and state corporations’ motor vehicles with success and adequacy.
The majority of garages in both middle-level technical institutions and national polytechnics, Nyagah noted, lacked even the most basic motor vehicle servicing equipment and were ill-prepared to immediately take over the servicing of Government vehicles.
By Robert Nyagah
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