Bunge towers was initially initiated by the Parliamentary Service Commission, (PAC) back in 2010 mainly to provide sufficient space for members of parliament
President William Ruto on Thursday April 25, presided over the official opening ceremony of the towers, in the company of his deputy Rigathi Gachagua, Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetangula and his senate counterpart Amason Kingi among other officials.
The launch had initially been slated for April 19, but was pushed forward following the tragic death of the Chief of Defence Forces General Francis Ogolla..
The construction of Bunge Towers was to cost tax payers a whooping cost 9.6 billion however the cost was revised to 7.1 billion with financial claims of 1.1 billion and 225 million in interest to delayed payments.The buildings basement has a parking of up to 350 vehicles.
The shield, with its intricate design ,has been a symbol of protection and unity for centuries in Kenyan culture it represents strength, resilience ,and collective identity of diverse communities coming together under one banner for the greater good, PAC says .
It’s situated directly across the parliament building with a wide range of state of art facilities for the MPs and staffs .Originally it was to have 320 offices but the introduction of the senate after the new constitution was adopted saw the senators also included.
Of the 349 members of the national assembly only 280 will be allocated offices in the modern tower, the 63 leave outs will be housed elsewhere . ‘The rest of the house will be occupied by the 51 out of the 67 nominated senators.
The multibillion building also contains a library, public entrance and lounge areas, three private dinning spaces and a modern kitchen ,up to date health club that includes cardio sections,steam bath and sauna ,massage rooms ,reflexology ,manicure and pedicure facilities and a gym.
During the launch, Ruto however observed that the committee rooms were small.
“I thought that committee members are more than this, then how do you transact if the membership is full house?” he posed.
Wetang’ula responded saying that rooms allocated for the committee meetings were larger and could accommodate all members.
