‘Entebbe Expressway cost inflated by Shs55b’
PARLIAMENT.
The cost of the 51km Entebbe Expressway was inflated by $16m (about Shs55 billion), a parliamentary committee has heard.
This is blamed on the need to adhere to the road’s specifications -having a capping layer in sections of the road.
The project cost is $476m (about Shs1.6 trillion), money China’s Export Import Bank has loaned Uganda. China Communications Construction Company Ltd (CCCC) is the contractor.
Mr David Luyimbazi, who was Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra)’s director of planning when the project was conceived in 2009, said since the road from (Kampala) to Entebbe was to be built through a swamp, there was need for durable material.
“The cost is driven by the specifications. If the specifications are more or less equal you cannot now assume that there will be a 50 per cent reduction in costs,” Mr Luyimbazi said.
“Secondly,” Mr Luyimbazi told MPs yesterday, “the capping layer is not being applied throughout the entire length of the road; it is being applied in the areas where it is needed.” They decided to build the road through swamps to “avoid the high cost of compensation”, he added.
Before the expressway was conceptualised, Unra had toyed with widening the current road between the two centres. However, in 2009 the then secretary to the Treasury Mr Chris Kassami, reportedly directed a consular official from the Chinese Embassy in Kampala and officials from CCCC to Unra’s then executive director, Peter Ssebanakitta.
According to Ssebanakitta, Mr Kassami (now deceased), who also doubled as the chairperson of the Unra board of directors, said Unra should look into innovative proposal by the Chinese.
Mr Abdu Katuntu, the chairperson of the House committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises said business entities that deal with government entities, and are found to be dishonest should be “blacklisted forever”.
When contacted, Unra boss Allen Kagina said, “Mr Luyimbazi is the former director for planning in Unra. He was the one responsible for initiating the procurement for the road. The AG’s report compares it with the road in Ethiopia done by HE, the same company and this implies ours is expensive,” she said.
