Sango Bay Technical Engineering Company Limited is under the spotlight for abandoning work at Bugaashe 1 Primary School in Nyakayojo Mbarara city North Division.
Mbarara City contracted Sango Bay Technical Engineering Company Limited to construct a three classroom block at Bugaashe 1 Primary School after receiving Shillings 97million from the Central government in the 2020/2021 financial year.
The contractor was expected to complete the project in June last year. However, the contractor handled part of the job poorly and disappeared from the site after receiving half payment.
Jedius Karetwa, the Mbarara City Deputy Inspector of Schools, says the contractor was advanced Shillings 70 million. He says that they expected to complete the payment in June last year upon the completion of the project but he vanished from the site without completing the work.
Karetwa says that the failure of the contractor to complete the work in time has caused confusion at the school since primary seven pupils now study with their Primary six counterparts due to a shortage of classrooms. Karetwa says that the works look complete but the floor and some walls have developed cracks even before the project handover.
During a monitoring visit, the Mbarara City Mayor, Robert Mugabe Kakyebezi noted that he was shocked to find different classes sharing one classroom while the new block is closed because of shoddy works.
He blames the mess on the award of the contract to incompetent contractors noting that the contracts committee should be investigated.
Kakyebezi advised the City Education Department to continue inspecting schools to see how they are observing Standard Operating Procedures.
Precious Oumugisha, a primary seven pupil at the school, says that they have been sharing the same classroom with their primary six counterparts and sometimes primary five. She says that at times they wait outside for one class to complete a lesson before they also use the same class for their lesson.
The headteacher, Mediuos Mushabe, says that the biggest challenge was completing the syllabus for the upper classes since teachers have to wait for their colleagues to complete their lessons to allow them to use the same classroom.
The school has an enrollment of 428 pupils. Emmanuel Begumisa, an Engineer with Sango Bay Technical Engineering Company Limited denies claims that they disappeared from the site, saying that they ran short of funds and are pursuing a loan to complete the work.
He argues that since they are paid in phases, the work on the ground is commensurate to the money they received from the city.