THERE is no word yet on the FICAC inquiry into how millions of dollars of public funds were used on the Nadi four-lane road upgrade.
Transport Minister Ro Filipe Tuisawau confirmed his ministry was yet to receive an update of the inquiry.
“So far, we have not received any update on the investigation,” said Ro Filipe.
Questions sent to FICAC have remained unanswered.
The last update this newspaper received was in April last year when FICAC confirmed receiving a complaint against a former board member.
The project, according to Ro Filipe, had busted its budget by $50.9million from its original $65m.
In Parliament last year, Ro Filipe revealed details of an audit report on FRA revealing the project’s financial allocation had gone way above what was expected to be paid.
“For the Nadi four-lane upgrade, the original contract was $65m, project completion of $116.8m (with a) cost overrun of $50.9m,” Ro Filipe had said.
“It should be noted that the office of the Auditor-General, in its 2018-2019 report, stated that Fiji Roads Authority paid $623,250 for bougainvillea plants without a proper tender as stipulated in Fiji Roads Authority procurement procedures where purchases of over $100,000 should be tendered.”
Ro Filipe also referred to the Queen Elizabeth Dr project which also went over budget from $61.9m to $65.7m, an overrun of $3.7m.
“This Queen Elizabeth Dr project generally coincided with the sale of State tiri land in Nasese initiated by the FijiFirst government with zero consultation with current residents and the Tui Suva and his people.
“This is a total disregard of the key stakeholders.”
