The Parliamentary Service Commission has interdicted three parliamentary officers, accusing them of leaking critical information to the media on Bunge Towers.
According to the commission, the three individuals were giving out information concerning the disparities of the newly built Bunge Towers, set to be launched by President William Ruto.
While speaking to the media anonymously, one of the officers indicated that it was foul play to threaten and scare off officers who were calling out the ills within the institution.
Further, the officer said that they had raised questions concerning the suitability, security and safety of the Ksh9 billion building. They added that the building was substandard and lacked any physical or technical security measure.
“It is pure malice; it is a witch-hunt and is meant to scare the officers and any other voices that may want to speak out against the ills at Bunge. As of today, the 25th floor which is supposed to be the command center, or the control room has not been fitted with the technical security measures.
“Members of staff who will move into the building will be doing so at their own risk. This is a project designed and implemented by businesspeople. I struggle to see any scientific analysis that informed the construction,” the officer said.
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Questions Raised Over Construction of Bunge Towers
By February 2023, the government had spent Ksh7.7 billion on the construction of the 27-story Parliament office building. The amount by time of completion had hit Ksh9 billion.
According to the project status report, the initial amount allocated to the construction of the building was Ksh5.8 billion, which was then revised upwards by Ksh1.1 billion.
In addition to previous financial claims totaling Ksh1.05 billion and interest on delayed payments amounting to Ksh225.17 million, the government faced further charges, bringing the total project cost to Ksh8.3 billion.
Back in June 2022, the Parliamentary Service Commission initiated a naming contest for the building, offering a prize of Ksh100,000 to the winner, encouraging interested participants to front names that honor minority groups in the House and further justify their choices of names.
On the other hand, Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei questioned its prolonged construction which has taken 14 years, and why its budget was revised upwards to Ksh7.1 billion.
Meanwhile, the parliament of Kenya has announced that the building will be officially opened by the president on Thursday, April 25.
“The President, H.E Dr. William Ruto is this morning set to unveil the ultra-modern Bunge Tower accompanied by the Speaker of the National Assembly and Chairman of the Parliamentary Service Commission Moses Wetangula and Parliamentary Service Commissioners,” the statement read in part.
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Wetangula Defends the New Ksh9 Billion Building
In response to the questions, the National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula on April 18, warned that the Members of Parliament (MPs) who were criticizing the building would be summoned by the Powers and Privileges Committee to explain their allegations.
“Those members who have been pouring vitrail on this project, in fact they find themselves before the powers and privileges committee. They are saying things without proof, things that are utterly untrue,” he said.
The Speaker said the building has been fitted with six high speed lifts similar to the ones installed in buildings in the United States (US), further revealing that the offices were ready although furniture were still being assembled in some of the offices.
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