Parliament has approved the Shs1.050Trn Supplementary Budget of which Shs53.119Bn will go towards Lubowa Hospital, while State House has been allocated additional Shs234.75Bn in classified Expenditure. This was after Government informed MPs that works for Lubowa Hospital are expected to be completed in April 2025.
Prime Minister, Robinah Nabbanja said physical works for Lubowa hospital stand at 61.8% and the hospital will be complete by April 2025, and the medical workers to work at the Hospital are undergoing training in Italy.
“Colleagues the works there is at 61.8% complete physical and I am reliably informed that all the equipment that is supposed to be used in that hospital is already manufactured and procured. The staff who are supposed to work at that Hospital are still undergoing training in Italy. The contractor is working day and night and I request that we should give the money so that we complete this in April 2025,” noted Nabbanja.
The Premier’s remarks were in response by Joel Ssenyonyi, Leader of Opposition who rejected the recommendation by Parliament’s budget Committee to approve more funds in the Supplementary Budget for Lubowa Hospital, wondering why Government should keep on using Parliament to approve funds a project, yet they don’t want MPs to supervise.
Ssenyonyi said, “Lubowa hospital. Again Government keeps taking Parliament for a ride. You don’t want Parliament to establish what is happening at that site, but you keep coming back to Parliament to appropriate money to go to that site. Why? Why do you keep using Parliament? Because each time we try, I went there with colleagues I was denied access, the Committee went there, it was denied access, the Minister of Health was denied access. What are you doing there that you want to hide from us? But you want us to appropriate money. We are constrained to keep passing money for a project we don’t understand, Government doesn’t want us to supervise. It isn’t right.”
During his submission, Ssenyonyi also asked Deputy Speaker Tayebwa to provide a report on his visit to Lubowa as had been promised by Speaker Among last year, after the Leader of Opposition and his Shadow Cabinet were denied access to the site.
In response, Tayebwa told Parliament that the works at Lubowa Hospital are “very impressive” and the Contractor promised to complete the structural works by April 2025, adding that there are over 700 young people working throughout the week.
“I went to Lubowa Hospital, I am sorry I forgot to tell you this, in fact I have gone there twice. I can tell you the work is very impressive now; I have used the word now. And I think the Committee. When I went, I even had to interact with the young people working there 700 are working and they are working 24/7 even on a Sunday because one day I visited on a Sunday, another day I visited on a Wednesday and the contractor told me that by the end of April 2025, they would have finished all structural works,” said Tayebwa.
While presenting the Committee’s report before Parliament, Achia Remigio, Vice Chairperson Budget Committee revealed of the need for Parliament to avail the Department of Treasury Operations, at the Ministry of Finance with Shs53.119Bn for Promissory Note obligations on completion of Lubowa Hospital.
