Work at Wote Stadium must end by December, officials tell contractor

Work at Wote Stadium must end by December, officials tell contractor

Sports Kenya officials and the National Assembly Sports Committee members have told the contractor working on the multi-million-shilling Wote Stadium in Makueni County to hand over the facility by the end of December.

Speaking Friday during a tour of the facility, Sports Committee vice-chairman Korei Ole Lemein and Sports Kenya chairman Fred Muteti rejected a request by the contractor for an additional two months to complete the works instead directing him to ‘work day and night’.

“The issue of timeline extension can’t apply here because you know the pressure we’ve been given and how many times we’ve been here and you have been assuring us that you’ll mobilise your team in order to adhere to the set timelines , but that has not been the case.

“We’ve even been directed to terminate your contract and re-advertise it but we’ve been patient and so the facility must be handed over to us (Sports Kenya) by the end of the year,” warned Muteti.

Lemein who is also the Narok South MP weighed in: “If you (contractor) can be able to work day and night or in shifts consistently, you will not even ask for time extension and you will save a lot of money. Also, the labour is not adequate and with the set timelines you can’t complete the project with little number of workers, so make use of the many unemployed youths in this area”.

The contractor, Mark Muendo, who signed a return-to-work agreement with the Ministry of Sports in June after the facility stalled in 2017, says he might not beat the set timelines after some areas of the facility were redesigned.

The contractor also says there is a variation of 12 million shillings due to the restructuring of the 15000-seater-stadium and he has already written to sports Kenya for additional funds.

“When there are changes like we have here definitely in construction you’ve to seek some adjustments of time because all said and done we want to hand over a good facility.

He added: “After resuming work we found out that there was water underneath, exactly where the pavilion of the stadium will be, and we had to redesign again and that will obviously force us to require more budget, so we will write to Sports Kenya so that they can add us another 12 million”.

Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed in June said Wote is among ten stadiums which have stalled across the country and which should be completed by end of this year in line with President Uhuru Kenyatta’s new directive.

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Wote Stadium construction Parliament Sports Committee Sports Kenya

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