Summary:
- Public Accounts Committee (PAC) revealed that the ODPP signed a contract worth Shs523,458,730 for the construction of the Arua Regional Office.
KAMPALA: Members of Parliament have called for the blacklisting of Precise Engineering Services Limited, the contractor that defrauded the Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) of Shs171,925,204, meant for the construction of the Arua Regional Office.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) revealed that the ODPP signed a contract worth Shs523,458,730 for the construction of the Arua Regional Office.
However, after receiving Shs171,925,204, Precise Engineering Services Limited abandoned the project, prompting the ODPP to cancel the contract and hire a new contractor, Neromark Limited, on April 29, 2024.
“Precise Engineering Services Limited should be blacklisted for failing to honor their contractual obligations. The Accounting Officer must enhance due diligence when selecting companies for contracts and implement mechanisms for improved monitoring. Poor contract execution is one of the leading causes of project delays, hindering service delivery to Ugandans. Delayed projects also lead to cost overruns, which drive up expenses,” said Gorreth Namugga, Vice Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee.
Legislators criticized Solicitor General Francis Atooke for unacceptable delays in scrutinizing and clearing contracts, with his office taking over six months to approve a single contract and an additional six months to deliver cleared contracts to the respective government agencies.
These findings are contained in the Public Accounts Committee’s report on the December 2023 audit of the Justice, Law, and Order Sector (JLOS), presented by Gorreth Namugga, Mawogola South Member of Parliament. The report highlighted inefficiencies within the Solicitor General’s office.
According to the Auditor General, of the 1,830 requests made to the Solicitor General as of June 2023, only 554 (30%) were cleared within the 14-day period required by the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Clients’ Charter.
The Auditor General also noted delays in the dispatch of cleared contracts. For instance, it took between 10 to 30 days to dispatch 129 cleared contracts, while 88 institutions were informed of their cleared contracts more than a month later. In some cases, 15 cleared contracts were dispatched after six months, which the report deemed unacceptable.
“The delays were due to inefficiencies in the work methods of the Solicitor General’s office, as no satisfactory explanation for the delays was provided. These delays impact the conclusion of procurement processes, resulting in the postponement of project implementation and service delivery. They also lead to avoidable costs, such as contract variations due to price adjustments, and the failure to utilize funds for projects financed by disbursed loans,” Namugga explained.
