Contractor ordered to demolish Shs170m house over shoddy work

Authorities in Kabarole District have ordered a contractor to demolish a staff house at Nyabuswa Health Centre III in Mugusu Sub-county, citing shoddy work.

Construction of the structure was budgeted to cost Shs170 million. However, area leaders led by Resident District Commissioner Festus Bandeeba and Kabarole District chairperson Richard Rwabuhinga, after inspecting the construction work recently, were not impressed.

They then resolved that the contractor first demolish the entire building up to ground level and resume construction at his own cost.

The district council last Friday also approved a resolution that the structure be demolished after the district chairperson and his executive reported to the council.

In February, DOXA Construction Company was awarded a contract to construct the staff house at Nyabuswa Health Centre, ahead of its elevation to health centre III status. The building has so far reached ring beam level.

But after he was directed to demolish the structure, the contractor has not turned up to either implement the directive or continue with construction.

Mr Rwabuhinga said the contractor used blocks, which were made shoddily from ground level up to ring beam level, saying if they allow him to continue with construction, the building will collapse before completion.

“As district leaders, we recommended to the contractor to demolish the entire building because the work done is not of quality and we cannot accept. Fortunately we have not paid him any money,” he said.

The staff house in question has two self-contained rooms and it can accommodate two staff.

Mr Bandeeba said some sections of the walls of the building are about to collapse before roofing.

The Mugusu Sub-county chairperson, Mr Vincent Kusemererwa, said when the contractor was starting construction, there was no site commissioning and the local leadership was not given a bill of quantities for easy monitoring.

“As sub-county leaders, we don’t know the contractor because we have never seen him on the site, we used to see his workers, the quality of blocks he used don’t meet standards, he declined to tell us what he was doing and to be told that he was constructing a staff house,” he said.

The district engineer, Mr Steven Wakatama, yesterday confirmed that the contractor will start demolishing the whole building effective next week.

“It’s true the work is shoddy and he will start demolishing it,” he said.

Efforts to get a comment from DOXA Construction Company were futile by press time.