Construction of the multi-million Marsabit stadia has resumed with the two contractors engaged for the flagship project being asked to focus on meeting the December 31st deadline.
The county development implementation coordination committee (CDICC) which toured the site was impressed that the first phase of the project done at a cost of Sh373 million was now on course, after stalling for nearly three years.
The committee noted that the flagship project which is jointly being undertaken by the national and county governments had intertwined works, hence the need to harmonize the operations.
The county government’s contribution into the mega project is Sh78 million with its contractor for the VIP pavilion, Arid Lands having been advanced Sh46 million but faced hurdles, after the national construction Authority (NCA) questioned the integrity of the work.
Sport Kenya, on behalf of the national government awarded a Sh295 million contract to Benisa Limited the main contract to build public pavilions besides putting up the main pitch to international standards.
Sports Kenya Director Gabriel Komora added that the company which has since been advanced Sh126 million is tasked with establishing a certified athletics track and installing electrical and mechanical works.
Komora assured the contractor that the money for the project was available, adding “The delay in completing this noble project had sent the wrong signal to the residents and especially the youth, who were being denied the opportunity to nurture their potential in sports.”
County commissioner Paul Rotich called for a joint approach in the implementation of the project to ensure that it is completed by the end of the year as directed by the president.
Rotich said the abundance of talent with the local youth would be tapped as the facility would offer an avenue for them to train and develop their abilities.
“We want to see both contractors busy at the site as there was no excuse whatsoever for Arid Lands company not to have resumed work,” said the County Commissioner, who gave the firm five days to resume operations at the site.
The CDICC members who included the president’s delivery unit (PDU) director Jared Buoga, a consultant with Mruttu Salmann Associates Arch. Odhiambo George called for the re-evaluation of the Arid Lands’s capacity to be awarded the second phase e of the contract following revelations that they had used sub-standard materials to cast concrete columns on the main dais.
The committee also noted that the flagship project which was commissioned by President Kenyatta in mid-2017 was far behind schedule and a special sub-committee with a fortnight schedule of sittings to oversee its progress was constituted.
Arch. Odhiambo disclosed that the project which has so far offered 270 skilled and unskilled jobs was expected to cost Sh1 billion.
By Sebastian Miriti
