Kadaga orders probe into Lubowa hospital as Shs130b disappears
Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga. FILE PHOTO
What you need to know:
- Mr Ariko said the Ministry of Health is responsible for the project and should provide a strict breakdown of signatories of the money.
Parliament. Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga has instructed the Health Committee to investigate allegations relating to the disappearance of money meant for the construction of an international hospital in Lubowa.
This comes after claims that $37m(about Shs139.4b) out of $397m (Shs1.4t) passed by Parliament in March has mysteriously disappeared.
The Speaker’s directive was provoked during a special sitting to welcome her from a two-month sickness.
Soroti Municipality MP Herbert Ariko (FDC) blew the whistle of a delayed project implementation.
Mr Ariko said on May 16, the East and Southern Development Bank released $87m (Shs327b) but only $50m (Shs188b) was received by Stanbic Bank.
“The curious question you want to ask, where has the $37m gone even before work begins,” he said.
Mr Ariko said Parliament should not sit and watch as taxpayers’ money is misused.
Ms Kadaga said the country needs special treatment centres, which are accessible to the citizenry, to handle different health complications.
“The last thing I did in this Parliament was to hold a very serious debate about that hospital; when I was in Nairobi, I wondered why I was there,” Ms Kadaga said.
Mr Ariko said the Ministry of Health is responsible for the project and should provide a strict breakdown of signatories of the money.
He also said Parliament should be furnished with information relating to when the project will be implemented.
“The committee didn’t get an opportunity to directly interact with the implementers of this project, that is FINASI International and Roko Construction; the two contractors should appear before the relevant committees in order to provide the committees with clarity on management of these funds,” said Mr Ariko.
Prior to Parliament’s approval, there were allegations that the project did not meet national procurement standards, and that more viable contractors such as the UK based International Healthy Group, were by-passed on directives of highly connected players in the Finance ministry.
