Speaker To Probe Job 600





Even before the Select Committee on Works & Housing meet the contractor and engineers working on the State Tower Block, generally referred to as ‘Job 600’, the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Edward Doe Adjaho has started probing the contract on the building, meant to provide office accommodation for the 270 Members of Parliament.

Available information to The Chronicle suggests that the Speaker has ordered for audio and video footages of the Select Committee on Works & Housing’s recent inspection of the magnificent edifice.

Parliament’s Select Committee on Works & Housing, Chaired by Hon. David Tetteh Assumeng, on Wednesday, inspected the State Tower Block to ascertain its level of progress when they were hit in the face with challenges confronting the US$63,000,000 project.

Quality of the edifice which is still under renovation has been compromised, resulting in some defects in the building. The building’s proximity to the sea is also having a negative effect, as some metals used in constructing Job 600 have started corroding.

A blend of building materials, some of which were procured fifteen years ago, were used to build the edifice, raising doubts about the

quality of the project.
The Resident Engineer, Bentsi Enchill, when questioned to rate the quality of the project, based on his own assessment, noted: ‘I am personally not too happy with the quality of the building. There are a lot of areas from my assessment that could have been much better.

‘We have some instances where materials procured 15 years ago, when the project was first initiated, was still available, and we had to use what we thought was fairly okay. Those materials may not be the best, but we were obligated to consider using them.’

He was also not convinced whether the project would be completed on time, since the ‘work delivery doesn’t suggest so.’ The renovation of the State Tower Block, which is being undertaken by China State Hualong Construction of Ghana Limited, took off in April 2010, and was projected to be completed by the end of August, 2012.

However, due to delays in the release of funds, the actual date of completion of the Job 600 has become unclear. Mr. Assumeng, not enthused about the quality of work and level of progress made on the 12-storey state edifice, in brief remarks after the inspection exercise, told journalists that the ‘contractor and the Resident Engineer have lots of questions to answer.

‘I must admit that we are not happy about what we’ve seen today,’ he stated. He said, based on what the Committee had witnessed, his office would, in no time, summon Mr. Bentsi Enchill, Chairman of the Design Company, A.D.K. Consortium, Mr. Michael Kraku and officials of the China State Hualong Construction of Ghana Limited for questioning.

But the Speaker of Parliament, who was equally shocked by the news, according to close sources, has noted that Parliament can’t afford wasting time in dealing with the challenges confronting the State Tower Block.

As a matter of fact, he would summon all the parties involved in the renovation work, moments after reviewing the audio and video footages of the Select Committee on Works & Housing’s inspection of ‘Job 600’ and their subsequent interaction with the Resident Engineer, Bentsi Enchill. The audio and video footages, according to inside sources, would be made available to the Speaker Tuesday, April 2, 2013.