A Sh209 million classroom block at Sigalagala National Polytechnic is facing further delays after the contractor abandoned the site amid a dispute over additional payments and rising construction costs.
The six-storey tuition complex was initially awarded at Sh195.9 million and was expected to be ready by March 2024. However, an Auditor-General’s inspection in November 2024 found the project only 48 per cent complete, seven months after the original deadline.
The stalled project has now attracted the attention of the National Assembly Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education, which visited the institution to assess the dispute and establish how the project can be completed.
The contract value has increased by about Sh13 million through an approved variation, pushing it to Sh209 million. However, the contractor has made further claims that the project management team has declined to approve.
Public Works architect Anthony Ekajul told MPs that the building’s height required extensive steel reinforcement, increasing construction costs.
“The building being the height it is, has quite an immense amount of steelwork reinforcement,” Ekajul said.
One of the disputed claims involves Sh12 million for external scaffolding. Ekajul said the request could not be accepted because the contractor was expected to factor the cost into the rates submitted during bidding.
The project has already reached advanced stages, with the foundation, superstructure, roofing and windows completed. Remaining works include doors, floor tiling, electrical and plumbing installations, balustrades and external rendering.
The contractor had been granted two extensions, with the latest completion deadline set for November 19, 2026. However, the firm left the site after disagreements over the additional claims and later sought to terminate the contract.
Sigalagala chief principal Evans Bosire said the institution could not approve costs it considered unsupported.
“The contractor simply walked away,” Bosire told the committee, adding that the institution had a duty to protect public funds.
The institution has paid about Sh156 million, leaving roughly Sh53 million on the revised contract.
Walter Obwogo, chairman of the Project Implementation Committee, said the contractor had also sought variations for tiling, balustrades and door frames. He said the institution felt approving all the requests would leave little of the remaining work outside the variations.
Despite the dispute, the contractor has indicated willingness to return to negotiations. Obwogo said the two sides are expected to meet for a project appraisal before deciding the way forward.
Some MPs urged the institution to negotiate, warning that terminating the contract could result in higher costs because construction materials have become more expensive since the original agreement.
Kilome MP Thaddeus Nzambia said getting another contractor could cost the government more, while Kiminini MP Maurice Kakai Bissau warned that termination would bring further delays and expenses.
However, Embakasi MP Mark Mwenje said continued negotiations may not work if the relationship between the parties has broken down.
“If it has soured, based on my experience, that’s not a contractor you can work with now,” he said.
Bomachoge Chache MP Alpha Miruka said the impact of rising costs should also be considered, arguing that prices agreed years ago may no longer reflect current market conditions.
Committee chair Dickson Maungu directed the institution to engage the contractor and undertake a technical, financial, contractual and legal assessment of the project.
The review will establish the exact work remaining and its cost, helping determine whether the current contractor can resume work or whether the contract should be terminated and a new firm procured.
The committee wants the institution to provide a clear way forward within two weeks as it seeks to prevent the nearly completed building from becoming another stalled public project.
