DG Dalal and sold premisesBy: Yusuf M HasanHARGEISA (Somalilandsun) – The ministry of aviation has justified rent payment to premises it sold last year.
According to the Aviation Ministry DG Ahmed Dalal Farah, the continued occupation of the premises by the ministry and subsequent rent payment came after the sales money was included in the 2012 budget, Said he, "We had finalized plans to start construction immediately after the sale but the finance ministry demanded the money be included in the 2012 budget"
The inclusion of the money in this year's national budget thus forced the ministry to continue occupying the premises and subsequent payment of rent while awaiting budget approval which was effected last month.
This explanation comes after the Somalilandsun exposed the anomaly in an article titled FUNNY UNDERTAKINGS AT THE AVIATION MINISTRY which was published last Thursday. Refer this link http://somalilandsun.com/index.php/politics/589-somaliland-funny-undertakings-at-aviation-ministry
The aviation DG informed that before the tender for the sale of the premises was affected by the National Tender Board, the ministry had already acquired architectural drawings of the proposed new ministerial headquarters that were to be constructed immediately after sale.
The aviation ministry had decided to sell its offices which are next to the Sooyal veterans association building at Baar Hargeisa purportedly because they were in an inappropriate location for conducting business. A public tender for the purchase of the buildings was widely contested the ultimate winner being a local tycoon who paid over $750,000.
The tycoon is slowly recouping the amount as he started collecting rent from the ministry the month of purchase as the agreement had stated that the aviation ministry will move immediately.
Though the DG has justified the rent payment the ministry is not known to have initiated construction of the new offices near Egal international Airport a month after the budget was approved. Initial planning that might have involved the advert for a contractor is yet to be effected even though the money is now ready, thus our continuous ?????????.
And as earlier mentioned this rent anomaly should not be let to impinge on the good development record of the aviation minister Hon Mahmoud Hashi Abdi, who has in a short duration uplifted the standards of the country's airports especially Berbera and Egal international airports, thus credit with placing Somaliland's main airports at international per.
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