Tayebwa asks IGG to probe school project

The Deputy Speaker Parliament, Mr Thomas Tayebwa, has requested the Inspectorate of Government to investigate shoddy works at Mayanga Progressive Secondary Seed School in Mayanga Sub-county, Mitooma District.
 Mr Tayebwa, who represented the Education minister, Ms Janet Museveni, made the remark last Friday while presiding over the commissioning of the school.
 While touring the school,  he found ICT and science blocks with cracks, weak water tap stands and unfinished drainage system.
“I have called the IGG and a team will be sent here in a week’s time to investigate and ensure that all the defects are fixed and in three months. I will come to check if they were fixed,” Mr Tayebwa said.
He warned the contractors (KHALISA Developments Uganda Limited) against doing shoddy work and using court to defend their errors.
 “This business of contractors saying they will go to court, did they get a contract from court? We have the capacity to stop any contractor from getting any contract of the government. You can decide to go to court, but we can decide to ban you and deny you any other business because the money is ours (government),” Mr Tayebwa said.
The head teacher, Mr Samuel Ainebyoona, told Daily Monitor that all the classrooms had cracks. 
Other defects were identified at the playground whose size did not measure to the required standards after  the district leadership raised the complaint.
The district chairperson, Mr Benon Karyeija Boneza, said the project was marred by connivance between some district staff and project managers.
 “Some of my district staff entered into unclear understanding with the project managers. There is a lot we did not understand. I have evidence to that,” Mr Karyeija said.

RDC tasks contractor
The Resident District Commissioner, Mr Kibuuka Amooti, said he wanted to block the commissioning, but couldn’t since he was new in office. 
He asked the contractor to use the “profits” to fix the defects.
Mr Ronald Areeba, who represented the company, said the works were still under defects liability period, adding that the errors would be fixed before getting retention money.
 “After the project is handed over, there is the defects liability period. During that period, before we get retention money, we always work on those defects. We are still within our defects liability period and after this (month), we shall identify all those issues and do the repairs. It is to our advantage to do that and get our retention fund,” Mr Areeba said. 
 The chief administrative officer, Dr Simon Peter Akileng, said the project was done under a fixed lumpsum arrangement, which makes it hard for the local district leadership to supervise and identify defects.
 “This is a fixed lumpsum contract which is terrible to supervise because you don’t encounter a problem and go to the client and explain the variation. At the national level, 58 schools have not been worked on because of a fixed lump sum contract,” he said.
Mr Akileng added that the issues can only be fixed through legal means. 

About the project

 Mayanga Progressive Secondary Seed school is a Church of Uganda founded that started in May 2019.  It was built by three contractors, including KHALISA, MP company and GESE who also supplied ICT and science lab equipment according to the CAO. Structures constructed include two classroom blocks, science laboratory, administration block, three staff houses and their kitchens. Others are  pit-latrines, playground, ICT and Library block, three water tanks, 120 twin desks, multi-purpose hall, and ICT equipment. According to the head teacher, Mr Samuel Ainebyoona, the school still grappled with under staffing and piped water shortage.