Nkaigwa queries alleged GCC over-expenditure

Baboki Kayawe | Friday December 5, 2014 14:39

 

Nkaigwa queries alleged GCC over-expenditure

His bone of contention is the awarding of a P2.4 million tender awarded to a private company for the construction of a park in Naledi Central. The facility was constructed in 2012. 

According to the Gaborone North legislator, the standard of the park and the amount injected towards its design are non-congruent. At the Wednesday Parliamentary session, Nkgaigwa asked whether the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) Slumber Tsogwane was aware of ‘overpricing’ of the project and if anything was done to address the issue.

Responding on behalf of Tsogwane, MLGRD Assistant Minister Frans Van Der Westhuisen told Parliament that he was aware that the tender awarded was worth close to P2.2 million.

“The final cost of the park was P1,497,770.40 and not P2.4 million as stated by the honourable member,” he said.  He also stated that a committee of Council used guidelines contained in the Local Authority Public Assets Disposal (LAPAD) Act, before it awarded the projects such as the park in question. “I am not aware of any anomalies that occurred in the award of this contract, hence no further action was taken,” he said.

 In an interview with Mmegi, Nkaigwa stated that in 2011 the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture awarded the GCC the sum of P5 million for the construction of recreational parks in all the five constituencies in the capital; Gaborone South and North, Gaborone Central, as well as Gaborone Bonnington South and North.

Nkaigwa bemoaned that about half of the amount was spent on one park. He further said it had taken long for the tendering officers to estimate the costs of the park and award tenders. The former mayor said he was disappointed with the final product because that ‘huge investment’ was fit to produce a topnotch facility. He added that the park didn’t look like an infrastructure worth more than P1 million. Nkaigwa further said a management audit was proposed three years ago to investigate the matter but progress had been stifled by the disappearance of critical files. He stated that some of the involved officers had since left the Council.

When asked what action he took on the matter during his helm, Nkaigwa said he had been vocal about the over-expenditure and even sought intervention from other governmental departments on the matter but his efforts had not borne any fruit.