By Linah Andisi, Vihiga
A Sh69.9 million construction project at Luanda Technical and Vocational College has come under scrutiny after MPs raised concerns over prolonged delays, poor project management and the apparent slowdown of works despite the availability of funds.
The project, which involves construction of workshops, classrooms and office blocks, was initially scheduled for completion in March 2024.
However, an Auditor-General’s report for the 2023/24 financial year found that the works were only 55 per cent complete and 32 weeks behind schedule as of June 30, 2024.
The project has since progressed to about 85 per cent completion, with major structural works substantially finished. But concerns remain over the completion of the remaining works, with the contractor reportedly having stopped meaningful activity at the site.
The matter resurfaced before the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education, chaired by Luanda MP Dick Maungu, where members demanded explanations over why the facility had remained incomplete more than two years after its original completion date.
The project team told the committee that Capital Icon Construction Limited, the contractor, had been granted an extension until November 19, 2026.
Despite the extension, Project Implementation Committee chairman Walter Obwogo told MPs that the contractor had failed to maintain satisfactory progress.
“Meaningful activity on site appears to have stopped,” Obwogo said.
He told the committee that the contractor had been issued with a formal notice of default on August 20, 2026, and directed to resume work.
The contractor has also reportedly demanded an additional Sh6 million, citing price fluctuations, before returning to complete the project.
The dispute has been complicated by a sharp difference over the value of work completed.
MPs were told that the contractor had submitted a payment application of Sh7.9 million for work allegedly undertaken. However, the project team assessed the value of the work at only about Sh747,000.
The discrepancy triggered a heated exchange between lawmakers and officials responsible for managing the project.
Maungu questioned why the contractor had been allowed to fall behind schedule despite the project having adequate funding.
“This is not about money. It is about project management,” Maungu said, accusing the project management team of failing to ensure timely completion.
The MP said the delays were having a direct impact on students, who were being forced to learn in inadequate conditions while the promised facilities remained unfinished.
“I can confirm that the students in Luanda are learning under a tree and in a primary school class. They have money in the account. The management has failed to deliver,” he said.
Maungu said the committee’s concern was not simply about the construction of buildings but whether public resources were producing the services they were intended to provide.
“The government money should not just die in an account. That money is meant for a purpose,” he said.
He directed the project team to present a clear plan for completing the stalled works.
MPs also questioned why the contractor had not been terminated following the prolonged delays.
Kiminini MP Maurice Kakai Bissau warned that weak contract management could expose the government to further financial losses.
“If you are following the articles of the contract, they will not even dare come back for variation,” Bissau said, urging officials to review their procurement and contract-management procedures.
Bomachoge Chache MP Alpha Miruka proposed giving the contractor until November 30 to complete the project, failing which the contract should lapse and procurement for a new contractor begin.
Maungu, however, appeared reluctant to grant another extension, noting that the project had already gone substantially beyond its original completion deadline.
The project’s mentor institution, Sigalagala National Polytechnic, defended its handling of payments, saying public money would only be released for verified work.
Sigalagala Chief Principal Evans Bosire said the contractor had previously been paid about Sh5 million but had failed to use the funds to advance the works as expected.
“He wants to tell me to pay him around Sh8 million for work he has not done,” Bosire said. “For me, I cannot allow the government to lose money.”
He said all works were measured before payments were approved, adding that the project team would only pay for work that had actually been completed.
“We ensure that we measure the work done, and that’s the only money we pay. Extras we don’t,” Bosire said.
He explained that Sigalagala’s role was to mentor Luanda Technical and Vocational College on behalf of the Ministry of Education and ensure that the construction process complied with the law and required procedures.
“We follow the law to the letter. I don’t want the government to lose a single cent in a wrong way,” he said.
But the project’s architect, Anthony Ekajul of Public Works, warned MPs that terminating the contractor could create another lengthy delay.
“Termination is a process. We might end up another three years before we get back to the project,” Ekajul said.
He proposed continued engagement with the contractor while ensuring that any further payments were strictly tied to verified work.
MPs, however, cautioned that allowing an underperforming contractor to remain on the project could ultimately prove more expensive.
Kilome MP Thaddeus Nzambia said experience with stalled government projects showed that some contractors complete much of the structural work before abandoning sites and later demanding variations.
He urged project managers to intervene early whenever it became apparent that a contractor was unlikely to meet contractual obligations.
Kasipul MP Boyd Were also cautioned that keeping project funds safe in an account would not benefit residents if the facility remained incomplete for years.
“The money may be safe, but if the project stalls for two or three years, at the end of the day we are lost,” Were said.
The committee directed the project team to provide a clear way forward and details of measures being taken to compel the contractor to resume work.
The scrutiny comes at a critical time for Luanda TVC, which has already admitted its first cohort of trainees and is expected to expand its enrolment to about 400 students.
The college offers technical courses including electrical installation, ICT, plumbing and cosmetology, creating a pathway for young people to acquire practical skills for employment and self-employment.
