110m tender scam splits district council

•Three top officials suspendedEASTERN PROVINCE BUGESERA—The District Advisory Council has been deeply divided over who is to blame for the mismanagement of Rwf110m received from the central government to construct classrooms. The rift comes days after the arrest of the District Executive Secretary Edward Munyaburanga and Theophile Rwampogoza, the owner of the company that was contracted to build classroom blocks in selected primary schools. Last Sunday, an emergency meeting convened by the District Advisory Council turned rowdy after councillors criticised members of the executive for mismanaging the project after reports emerged that there was gross irregularities in awarding the tender to Kingstone Enterprise. Drama started after the Director of Infrastructure Cassien Kasire asked the Mayor, Gaspard Musonera and his Vice in charge Social Affairs, Isabelle Mucyowera, to step out of the meeting accusing them of complicity in the scam. “Let members of the Executive Committee step out. They cannot help us get solutions when they are part of the problem,” Kasire said. However, his proposal was turned down and the members continued to listen to a presentation report which was being presented by the chairman of the special commission that was set up to investigate the alleged irregularities. The report accuses the contractor of doing shoddy work.During the ensuing heated debate, the members resolved to suspend three top district officials for two weeks. They include; the Vice Mayor Mucyowera, the Director of Infrastructure Kasire and the District Executive Secretary. The report also revealed that the contractor received 40 percent of the total amount contracted even after technicians discovered the mess. “This is unbelievable! The Executive Committee of the district was informed of the problem, but remained adamant. Kingstone messed the whole tender under the watch of the leaders. They took no action. This is gross mismanagement,” the commission chairperson said. At the meeting, it emerged that pupils in the affected primary schools currently study under trees, while others study in very congested classrooms. One councillor hit at the executive for failing to revoke the contract. But in his reaction, Mayor Musonera said some councillors were over-blowing the matter. “Reports are normally given to respective units. We reacted after the problem was identified, but some individuals are blowing it out of proportion,” he said, drawing more fury from the councillors. Some councillors argued that flouting the tendering procedures was the root cause of the mess. But Specioza Sangayire, the secretary to the council xplained that the Ministry of Education allowed them to take a short-cut because of the urgency of the matter. “There was an emergency to put up classes in the province,” she said. However, Kasire dismissed this, saying there was ample time to follow the right procedures. He revealed that the council had about two months before awarding the tender, but it was deliberately delayed. Following hours of debate, the meeting resolved to suspend the said leaders for two weeks as further investigations into the matter continue. Ends

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110m tender scam splits district council