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Senators open inquiry into ‘incomplete’ Bunge Towers

Marsabit Senator Mohamed Chute petitioned House to probe the project

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by The Star

News29 November 2023 - 17:22
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In Summary


• The probe could uncover the mystery that has surrounded the project that has gobbled up billions of taxpayers’ money but is yet to be completed.

• The project, which was initiated 10 years ago, was meant to create enough office space for members and parliamentary staff and committee room.

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula

Speaker Amason Kingi has ordered a Senate committee to open inquiry into the delayed completion of the multibillion-shilling Bunge Towers whose construction started 10 years ago.

The development comes after Marsabit Senator Mohamed Chute asked the Senate’s Roads, Transportation and Housing committee to inquire into the project.

“The committee should provide a status update on the completion of the Bunge Towers construction project,” Chute said in the statement he sought in the House.

The probe could uncover the mystery that has surrounded the project that has gobbled up billions of taxpayers’ money but is yet to be completed.

The first-term lawmaker want the committee chaired by Kiambu Senator Karungo Thang’wa to disclose, in their inquiry, the outstanding scope of work.

Further, the committee has been asked to clarify the procedures employed in the tendering process, including information on received bids, the awarded contractor and the bid amount.

“The committee should explain any disparities between the initially agreed upon project timeline and actual commencement and completion dates,” Chute demanded in the statement.

The committee has also been tasked to outline any measures implemented to guarantee the project’s timely completion and prevent further delays.

The project, which was initiated 10 years ago, was meant to create enough office space for members and parliamentary staff and committee room.

Initially, the project cost was about Sh5 billion, but this has since ballooned to about Sh10 billion due to delays to pay the contractors and other factors.

“We found Bunge Towers there, which started with a contract of Sh5 billion. Today, it’s close to Sh10 billion, and it’s not yet finished,” Parliamentary Service Commissioner Johnson Muthama told the Star during a recent interview.

 “There is another building called CPST that’s coming up in Karen. The contract that was signed was about Sh4.5 billion, today it’s about Sh7 or Sh8 billion or it’s heading there,” he added.

The 28-storey Bunge Towers building boasts 26 committee meeting rooms and has the capacity to host 331 MPs.

Out of the 331 offices in the building, 280 will go to the National Assembly while 51 are preserved for the Senate.

Priority will be given to Majority and Minority House leaders, Deputy Whips, members of the Speakers’ Panel, committee chairpersons and their deputies.

Addressing a National Assembly leadership retreat in Mombasa in September, PSC chairman Moses Wetang'ula said the building was not yet ready for occupation.

Wetang'ula clarified that the building would remain a construction site until the contractor officially approves its readiness for use.

“I assure members that you will soon have the privilege of occupying the new facility once it receives the necessary clearance,” he stated.

The Speaker disclosed that some parties had requested to occupy the finished spaces, but he declined the requests.

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