Members of Parliament, including Cabinet Ministers, are expected to cost government millions of Pula as renovation at the parliamentary flats starts at a snail’s pace following a delay in the refurbishment of the same flats, The Telegraph has learnt.
There was delay in the commencement of renovating the parliamentary flats which insiders say will cost government millions in MPs and Cabinet Ministers rental expenses. 
It is understood that renovating the parliamentary flats should have commenced as soon as the MPs and Ministers were moved out the flats almost a year ago.
Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Margret Nasha, when contacted, acknowledged the delay adding that, “The contractor is on the site as we speak.”
Asked why it has taken long for the refurbishment to commence, Nasha said normally government projects are a process hence the delay.
While she referred this reporter to the Deputy Clerk whom she said had all the data, and was reported to be on an official business trip in South Africa, Nasha said “I think we are contributing P10┬á000 each per month for an MP.”
┬á“If an MP gets a house that is more than that, he or she has to top up,” she said. She added that the parliamentary flats have been in a sorry state for quite some time.
The MPS had long complained that the roofs were leaking and ceilings falling apart, thus putting their lives in danger.
“The buildings have some defects. For instance there have been regular leaks. We had tried to patch up there are there but we ended up coming to the conclusion that we must renovate them,” she said adding that “it was a serious problem that needed to be attended to and treated as a matter of urgency.”
Asked to comment or reports that the delay in renovating the parliamentary flats was likely to cost government a lot of money, Nasha said; “We are working within the budget.”
The provision for the project amounts to P10 million and it was  made in the Ministry of Infrastructure, Science and Technology (MIST) maintenance budget for refurbishment of Parliamentary flats.
