GOVERNMENT has been dragged to court by a Dubai-based company demanding over E31.4 million for services allegedly rendered to the Royal Science and Technology Park (RSTP), but never paid for.
INFRA International QMCC, an engineering and technology services company headquartered in Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, has instituted legal proceedings against both government and the RSTP, claiming they breached multiple contractual agreements and failed to pay invoices despite numerous reminders.
The civil case, filed at the High Court, is based on two separate agreements signed between the plaintiff and the ministry of information, communication and technology as well as the RSTP over a three-year period.
In total, the company claims it is owed €1 442 033.00 which is equivalent to E31 494 000.
According to court documents filed through the S.V. Mdladla and Associates law firm, the dispute stems from two key contracts. The first was a written agreement entered into on March 30, 2020, under Government Tender No. 82/17 of 2011/2012.
The ministry of ICT, represented by then Principal Secretary Maxwell Masuku, engaged INFRA International to provide ‘Core Business Services’ (CBS) and ‘Core Technical Services’ (CTS) to the RSTP.
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The Dubai company claims it performed these services in full compliance with the agreement. Later, on September 28, 2021, a second agreement was signed, titled Amendment No. 2 to Contract Agreement No. Tender 82/17 of 2011/12. This new arrangement covered Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) services for RSTP’s advanced data centre infrastructure and was signed by the then CEO of RSTP Vumile Dlamini, on behalf of the second defendant (RSTP).
The maintenance contract provided for routine and scheduled servicing of specific equipment listed in an annexure, an annual fee, payable in two six-month instalments, each billed in advance.
Despite fulfilling their contractual obligations, INFRA International alleges that the Eswatini government and RSTP defaulted on payments for services rendered between October 2022 and September 2023, resulting in five unpaid invoices.
The plaintiff claims to have issued multiple invoices and followed up with nine separate correspondences to the RSTP requesting payment, all of which were either ignored or dismissed without resolution.
According to the summons, the company is now demanding full payment of the outstanding sum which includes accumulated interest as per the terms of the agreement.
The plaintiff further states that, in light of the continuing non-payment and breach of the agreements, it now seeks to formally cancel both contracts.
The legal documents state that despite a lawful demand through a formal letter issued to both defendants, there has been no attempt by either party to settle the amount or enter negotiations to resolve the matter.
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