Parliament requested Maldives Police Service to provide details on the vehicles imported by the agency to develop Police Welfare Corporation (POLCO) flats.
In a letter sent on Tuesday addressed to Police Commissioner Ali Shujau, the parliament requested for details of all vehicles imported between 2014 and 2017 to develop the Blue Housing Project, before this coming Tuesday.
These include a crane and two vans of one model each imported in 2014, two motorcycles imported the following year and details of a car imported in 2016. Another motorcycle imported in 2017, three tower cranes and 14 crane lorries were also included in the list.
The parliament specifically requested for the purpose of importing the vehicles, the party which the vehicles are registered to, and details of any of the said vehicles which are registered to Maldives Police Service.
They also inquired about the purpose of importing the car, the present location and custodian of the vehicle, as well as registration copies of the vehicles.
This comes following last year's audit report by the Auditor General's Office, which revealed several discrepancies in the development of 'Blues Housing' project run by POLCO in Hulhumalé Phase 1.
According to the report, over MVR one billion was spent on the project, at a loss of MVR 355 million.
The report also said that the agreements with the contractors were changed several times and that fees were paid to the contractors under different names instead of paying them for their work directly.
Construction of the flats started in 2013. Locally based company, Noomadi, was awarded the project at the time on a contractor financing basis. However, the agreement was voided on 27th January 2016 due to reported political challenges and financial difficulties.
The project was then handed over to Island Experts. However, the company went bankrupt during the Covid-19 pandemic and the project came to a stand still. This led to the agreement being cancelled again, with Amin Construction stepping in as the third contractor. Although the project was supposed to be completed in 2022, they required an extension to complete all the work
The 361, three-bedroom flats built under the project have been occupied by police since last year.
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