Comptroller stymied in audit of boondoggle university project

PANAMA’S  comptroller general says  that it had difficulty getting information from University of Panama (UP) Rector Gustavo García de Paredes about  contracts that  climbed from $4.5 million to $15.5 million.

They were issued for the construction of the Innovation, Technological Development and Entrepreneurship Centers

In spite of  the difficulty, the comptroller has issued an audit of the contracts, and  found economic injury to the state estimated at $3.5 million.

The original contract called for the construction of six centers at a cost of $750,000 each.

That was in March 2011. But in September of that year, the price rose to $9 million, and would laterbe amended to $15.5 million reports La Prensa.

The center has space for video conferencing, laboratories, and simulators for medical students. The inclusion of that advanced equipment was one of the reasons the price went up.

Documents also indicate that the plans presented by the winning bidder of the project had deficiencies.

, According to a March 2012 letter the deficiencies were addressed but the UP awarded the contract $6.5 million in additional funding later that year to to fix the deficiencies.

The comptroller pointed out that the items that were fixed should have been addressed initially.

The audit also found that the project was plagued by faulty equipment and software installations.