OSHAKATI – The National Council Parliamentary Standing Committee on Habitat is dismayed by the way drought mitigation funds were utilised in the construction of the Ombonde-Omapale water supply pipeline project.

The project, which is aimed at improving water supply to what is known as the Ombuga grazing area in the Oshana region’s Uuvudhiya constituency, received a grant of N$23 million from the Office of Prime Minister in the 2019/20 budget.

Besides purchasing of materials for the pipeline rehabilitation, the money is also earmarked for the ongoing construction of a booster pump station on the same pipeline at the constituency’s Ombonde centre.
Chief Regional Officer in Oshana Martin Elago told the committee on Monday that the project is 98% complete and over N$20 million has already been utilised.

The committee members, chaired by Swapo politician in the National Council from the Zambezi region, Cletius Sipapela, however expressed dissatisfaction with Elago’s explanation.

They argued that the infrastructure provided was not worth N$20 million and a better presentation about how the money was utilised is outstanding.

“I have no other option but to bring in our public accounts committee which deals with public money,” Sipapela said while declining to accept the project presentation.

Sipapela said contractors have a tendency of overpricing when it is a government project, which is not the case for privately-owned tenders.
A member of the committee and Kunene councillor for Opuwo Urban, Weich Mupya asked how N$183 000 was spent on building the pump station caretaker’s house which he said is “tiny and not suitable for a human being.”

Oshana Regional Council members such as its chairperson, Gerson Kapenda and Andreas Uutoni, also expressed disappointment with how the project was implemented.
The construction of the Ombonde-Omapale project commenced in January this year and is expected to be completed in September, after it was extended from its initial three-month completion period.
-Nampa