Gauteng’s abandoned projects ruined by ‘challenges’ and vandalism

Government projects in Gauteng continue to face various challenges, including vandalism and construction delays that hamper service delivery.

The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Oversight Committee in the province visited ten unfinished and abandoned projects in the West Rand, Sedibeng, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane regions this week.

According to Jane Mananiso, Head of the Gauteng NCOP, the visits were part of the provincial week programme, which was themed “Addressing the challenges associated with the timely delivery of sustainable public infrastructure to communities”.

“These monitoring meetings were attended by officials and managers from the affected districts as well as provincial and national governments,” she said.

Here are some of the projects visited:

The NCOP visited unfinished road and housing projects in the province, as well as other public infrastructure projects that have been delayed, destroyed or abandoned.

Construction of the Kopanong Hospital in Vereeniging began in 2021, with original completion scheduled for August 2022. However, the contractor appointed was unable to complete the project and the contract was terminated.

“[We] were very concerned about the state of the Kopanong Hospital, which is falling into disrepair. The abandoned, unfinished wards were meant to accommodate emergency patients during Covid-19, but the contractor has not completed the work.”

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The Montrose megaproject in Randfontein began in 2017 and is expected to produce 13,792 mixed typologies upon completion.

While discussing the project, the provincial Department of Human Settlements said the project had faced various challenges such as non-performance by the developer and vandalism.

“Three criminal proceedings have been initiated for vandalism of infrastructure and some of the perpetrators have been brought to justice,” said Mananiso.

Mananiso said the NCOP visited the Rus-Ter-Vaal Secondary School, whose construction began in 2016 and is scheduled to be completed in 2018.

“A contractor was engaged and initiated the construction process but abandoned the site without completing the project. The project remains abandoned as of August 2024. The Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development (GDID) is expected to engage a contractor and hand over the site to the contractor by the end of September,” said Mananiso.

She said members of the Executive Council for Education were committed to providing regular feedback to the NCOP on the delayed project and had ensured that contracts with contractors would be terminated if there were any unjustified delays.

The original consultant for R82 Old Johannesburg Road in Walkerville was dismissed due to poor performance. A new consulting engineer was appointed on 23 August this year.

“[We were] informed that the resumption of the project is scheduled for the first week of October 2024. The contractor is preparing to return to the construction site in early September 2024,” she added.

The challenges facing the project include the infiltration of 10 households on the site and the intervention to relocate the residents.

Further projects in the Ekurhuleni and Tshwane regions

The committee visited further projects in the Ekurhuleni and Tshwane regions on Thursday. The projects were:

• Bekkerdal Nursing Home
• New Simunye High School in Westonaria
• Lethabong mega project in Sebokeng
• Bakerton Library in Springs
• Barcelona Primary in Daveyton
• Semphato Junior Secondary School in Soshanguve
• Transorange LSEN in Pretoria
• Living Women’s Monument in Pretoria

In addition, Mananiso said that among the projects visited, the Lethabong project was the only one making good progress.

As one of the solutions to the ongoing delays, Mananiso recommended opening criminal proceedings against developers responsible for the problems with the project.

“NCOP oversight provides an invaluable mechanism for ensuring accountability and transparency and I have no doubt that your engagement with us this week will help strengthen the systems that underpin effective governance,” she concluded.

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