The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is set to inspect the construction site for Lubowa hospital, as part of investigations into reports by Auditor General that Shs286Bn was paid to proprietor of the facility in excess to no works done.
The Auditor General, John Muwanga in his December 2023 report established through a minute dated 11th January 2022 that at the time, the owner’s engineer had certified only 23% of the completed works valued at US57,477,000 causing possible overpayment of US76,088,208.28 approximately Shs286Bn.
The Auditor General also revealed that a total of seven promissory notes worth US$133,156,208.23 (Shs476.5Bn) have been redeemed for the Lubowa project and the 8th Promissory note worth US&22.7M (Shs88.971Bn) was scheduled for redemption on 31st December 2023 thus bringing the total Shs600.858Bn that has so far been sunk in Lubowa.
However, the contractor has informed the committee that lacks personal protective equipment for them and therefore requested the postponement of the visit scheduled for April, 22.
The developer, FINASI-ISHU Construction SPV Limited, wrote a letter dated April,11, addressed to Dr. Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, highlighting the necessity of complying with safety measures amidst the impending visit.
Charles Byaruhanga, the Chief Operating Officer of FINASI-ISHU Construction SPV Limited, emphasized the urgency of preparing for the visit, requesting specific information from the Ministry of Health.
The information includes names of visiting persons, personal protective jacket sizes, and protective shoe sizes among the details sought to ensure adequate safety measures are in place for the anticipated thirty visitors.
Citing the short notification period and the sizable number of visitors, the developer proposed postponing the visit until after 22 April 2024.
Dr. Atwine, in a subsequent letter addressed to the chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee, acknowledging the directive for an oversight visit to the Lubowa Hospital construction site but outlining safety concerns and proposing a later date for the visit.