$61.7M allocated to repair defective Kato Secondary

Dec 23, 2016 News

Government has allocated the sum of $61.7M to carry out repairs to the structurally unsound $1B Kato Secondary School in Region Eight (Potaro/Siparuni).

$61.7M has been allocated to repair defective Kato Secondary School.

The school was constructed by Kares Engineering Company and was expected to open in January this year, however the project came under intense scrutiny following the discovery of a number of defects.
A technical audit was subsequently carried out by a private company and the findings were presented to the National Assembly by Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson some months ago.
The audit revealed that approximately 60 percent of the project was defective, with another 30 percent just over the borderline. Only 10 percent of the project was deemed structurally sound, according to Patterson.
Cabinet also examined the report, the roles of the supervising consultant, construction and cost of remedial works to be done. The findings had resulted in cabinet recommending that the Attorney General’s Chambers review the report.
“The building of the school at Kato, what those findings revealed (are) nothing short of criminal,” the Minister of Natural Resources was quoted in the media as saying.
The project is the brainchild of the former administration – the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and was initially billed at $780M, but the then administration later disclosed that the final tally could be about $1B.
The school was intended to be a ‘super structure’, which would cater for 400 students, 250 of whom will be accommodated in the dormitory.
The 2017 allocation is provided for under a provision of $465.8M under the Ministry of Education’s Capital Secondary Education delivery 2017 work programme. This was according to Junior Minister of Education, Nicolette Henry, during the consideration of her Ministry’s estimates in the National Assembly on Wednesday last.
This $465.8M allocation, based on the 2017 Estimates of the Public Sector, also includes funds for the completion of the South Ruimveldt Secondary School ground; the extension of The Bishops’ High School; the multi-purpose complex at Queen’s College; and the reconstruction of St. Rose’s High School.
During the consideration of the estimates also, the Minister said that the company had indicated its interest in effecting the needed repairs. She explained that $66 Million was budgeted for the school’s completion in 2016; however, the money was not expended due to the legal issues arising from the defects in the school’s structure.