Civil society say laws were flouted in Lubowa hospital deal
The Southern and Eastern Africa Trade Information and Negotiations Institute (SEATINI Uganda) and Uganda Debt Network this week denounced government's decision to spend huge sums of money guaranteeing a specialised hospital, a process that they say was strewn with flaws.
Government recently awarded FINANSI/ROKO Construction SPV Limited, a contract to design, construct and equip the International Specialized Hospital of Uganda (ISHU), at Lubowa, Wakiso district.
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The deal has come under criticism after government guaranteed them Shs 1.3 trillion in loans.
“We note with concern that the project agreement arrived at on December 2018 between the Government of Uganda and FINANSI/ROKO Construction SPV Limited did not follow the right process of granting contracts, under Public Private Partnership (PPP) Act, 2015”, said Kizza Africa, SEATINI Uganda Program Officer.
He said; while the Act provides for a PPP Committee and Unit respectively, with their specific functions, there is no clear indication that the committee and the unit were consulted at the initial stages of the project agreement.
“The Act under Article 7 provides that the Committee shall among other functions; oversee the monitoring and evaluation by contracting Authorities of a PPP from commencement to post completion stage”, he added.
Faith Lumonya, SEATINI Uganda Trade and Investment Program officer, said much as government has good intentions of building a specialised hospital, to reduce on medical treatment referrals abroad, Ugandans will continue going abroad for medical treatment, for what she termed as; “free choice to treatment”.
She said the sum of $ 379.7 million (approximately Shs 1.3 trillion), to be spent on the hospital construction would be used to equip all referral hospitals and health facilities in the country.
