Tuesday, March 22, 2011

PM to get lavish residence

(19 March 2011, Reporter)--A lavish residence is being built for Prime Minister Meles Zenawi which could cost more than 80 million birr, according to estimates.The new residence includes presidential suites for visiting guests of the PM according the reporter.

Prime Minister Meles and his family were living inside the Grand Menilik Palace since the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) ousted the Derg regime in 1991. The First Family then moved to a G+1 establishment facing Sheraton Addis, leaving the Grand Menilik Palace three years ago.

Varnero Construction Plc, a local contractor, who had built this house for the First Family is said to have taken up the construction of the new edifice inside the premises of the Grand Menilik Palace. The project is said to be supervised by the First Lady of Ethiopia, Azeb Mesfin.

The office of the Prime Minister requested 14,207,800 birr from this year’s government budget to construct guest houses but only 6,310,000 birr has been approved by the House of Peoples Representative (HPR). In addition, the HPR approved 3,769,200 birr from the requested 29,549,000 birr for the Palace Administration to construct guest houses.

According to informed sources, the budget for the new PM’s residence and guest houses will possibly come from both institutions.

The new PM’s residence is expected to be finished in two years time, and the Grand Palace compound has been upgraded to a marvelous green garden.
Source: Reporter

No comments:

Post a Comment