Speaker of Parliament Jacob Markson Oboth-Oboth has put ROKO Construction under a firm 10-month deadline to complete Uganda’s long-delayed new parliamentary chambers, ordering the contractor to deliver the project by 30 June 2027.
The ultimatum follows a comprehensive inspection of the construction site by the Parliamentary Commission, which has stepped up pressure on the contractor amid mounting concerns over the prolonged delays and the continued financial burden of accommodating legislators and parliamentary staff elsewhere.
According to the Speaker, the Commission resolved that the project could no longer operate under shifting completion dates and instead issued a strict and binding completion target.
ROKO officials who attended the meeting with the Parliamentary Commission and project consultants subsequently committed in writing to meet the June 30, 2027 deadline, with Parliament warning that progress will be closely monitored.
The development comes barely days after the project was reported to have reached about 63 percent completion, with major structural steel works completed and roofing underway. The project team has indicated that accelerated works are now expected to pave the way for internal finishes and specialised installations.
Years of delays
The new parliamentary chambers project has become one of Uganda’s most closely scrutinised public construction projects after years of delays.
Construction, undertaken by ROKO Construction Limited, began in 2017, with the project initially expected to be completed around 2020. The estimated project cost has since risen from approximately Shs179 billion to about Shs220 billion following revisions.
Parliament has previously attributed the delays to a combination of factors, including changes to structural designs, revised security requirements, funding and cash-flow constraints and difficulties in securing construction materials.
The latest meeting between the Parliamentary Commission, ROKO and the consultants was therefore focused on identifying the causes of the previous setbacks and establishing measures to prevent further slippage.
Design changes, cash-flow problems
Among the issues reviewed were structural design modifications that have repeatedly affected the construction programme.
Previous parliamentary explanations have also pointed to changes in the design following the November 2021 bomb blasts in Kampala, which triggered additional security considerations for the building, including the requirement for blast-resistant materials.
Cash-flow problems experienced by the contractor have also been cited as a major factor behind the slow progress.
The delays have attracted growing political scrutiny because Parliament continues to spend billions of shillings renting office space for MPs and staff while the purpose-built facility remains unfinished.
Leader of the Opposition Joel Ssenyonyi has repeatedly questioned the slow pace of the project and called for greater accountability over the substantial public resources committed to ROKO and the chambers project.
Parliament turns up the heat
The latest directive signals a tougher stance from Parliament, with the Commission effectively placing ROKO on a countdown to completion.
The contractor is now expected to work within the newly enforced schedule while operating under close parliamentary supervision, meaning future delays are likely to attract renewed scrutiny.
The new chambers are intended to address congestion in the existing parliamentary building and provide additional facilities for legislators and parliamentary operations. The current Parliament has expanded considerably beyond the capacity envisaged when the existing chambers were constructed.
With the project now entering advanced construction stages, the June 30, 2027 deadline will test whether the latest acceleration measures can finally bring an end to a project that has dragged on for nearly a decade.
