Auditor General Anna Chifungula today had a public dispute with Ministry of Transport and Communications Permanent Secretary Dr Muyenga Atanga over works at the Kasaba Bay International Airport.

Chifungula asked the Permanent Secretary during a Public Accounts Parliamentary review committee to explain why no works were going on at the airport when government had already paid K50 billion (Kr50 million) to the contractor.

The visibly annoyed Chifungula wondered why the runway at the airport under construction had not been completed despite over 80 percent of the construction cost being paid.

She informed the committee that the contractor had abandoned the site and that government had not followed up the matter.

Atanga however contended that over 70 percent of the work had been done on the project already.

Committee chairman Vincent Mwale later directed the office of the Auditor General and the Ministry to travel to the site and establish fact before the committee reviews the matter on March 1, 2013.