More than G$324 million in government contracts have been awarded for road works along the Santa Rosa-Kwebanna corridor in Region One, but substantial sections of the route remain unfinished, prompting A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament Sherod Duncan to demand answers on the expenditure, delays and quality of the works.
Duncan, who has been pursuing an anti-corruption and public accountability campaign, is using his parliamentary position and field visits to scrutinise government projects and expenditure.
Following a recent journey along the entire Santa Rosa-Kwebanna route in Moruca, Duncan said he observed no road construction activity taking place. He also provided photographic evidence documenting the condition of sections of the road.
According to Duncan, residents and commuters told him that unfinished sections, including areas at Nine Miles and Twelve Miles, have remained in that condition for more than a year.
The photographs and accounts, he said, show a road project that remains incomplete despite hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts being announced.
“Despite approximately G$324.2 million in announced government contracts, substantial sections of the Santa Rosa-Kwebanna road remain unfinished. During my recent journey along the entire route in Moruca, Region 1, I saw no road construction work being carried out.”
Duncan said the unfinished sections include exposed steel reinforcement and muddy stretches, while residents have also raised concerns about the quality of portions that have already been completed.
$83.9M contract awarded in 2020
The government’s own records show that the road has been the subject of several contracts.
In December 2020, an G$83.9 million contract was awarded to Mohamed Ramzanalli for works covering 500 metres from the Santa Rosa Bridge in Kumaka to the community ground. The Department of Public Information reported at the time that the project formed part of a wider programme of road rehabilitation and construction in Region One.
The government had presented the project as part of a broader effort to improve connectivity between communities in Moruca, with further works intended to extend toward Kwebanna.
Duncan also identified a G$38,992,800 contract awarded to Renaissance Enterprise Inc. in 2022 for rehabilitation of the Kwebanna roadway. He noted that in May 2023, the Ministry acknowledged deteriorated conditions during the works.
“Residents are entitled to know what these contracts delivered and whether the work met the required standards.”
$201.3M project followed
In December 2023, the government announced another major investment in the corridor—a G$201,308,910 contract for Kwebanna-Kumaka Phase I, with Quality Deliverer named as the contractor. Government reports subsequently stated that the project was 40 per cent complete in May 2024, with delays attributed to a sunken barge carrying construction materials.
The three contracts cited by Duncan total approximately G$324.2 million.
The MP is now questioning how much of that money has actually been paid, what work has been certified and why substantial sections of the road remain unfinished.
“The government must disclose how much was actually paid, what work was certified and why substantial sections remain unfinished.”
The demand comes as government spending on hinterland infrastructure continues to attract scrutiny, particularly where projects are announced, contracted and funded but completion remains delayed.
Duncan demands full disclosure
For Duncan, the Santa Rosa-Kwebanna road has become an example of the accountability questions his anti-corruption campaign is seeking to bring into the public domain.
“This road has become a catalogue of unresolved promises.”
He is calling on the government to publish the payment and completion records for each contract, explain the prolonged delays and establish a firm completion deadline.
He is also demanding that unfinished sections be made safer immediately and that the completed portions undergo an independent assessment of workmanship and drainage.
The road is a critical transportation link for communities in Moruca, where residents depend on reliable road access for the movement of people, goods and services.
Duncan said the issue is therefore not simply about an unfinished infrastructure project, but about whether residents are receiving value for the hundreds of millions of dollars committed to improving the corridor.
“Residents and commuters have made their demand clear: complete the road. The people of Moruca deserve reliable access and a full accounting of the public money committed to it.”
With photographic evidence now placed in the public domain, Duncan is demanding that the government move beyond announcements and provide residents with a clear account of what was contracted, what was paid, what was completed and when the remaining works will finally be finished.
