The KwaZulu-Natal government has decided to spend millions of rands worth of taxpayers’ money to rebuild a controversial concrete wall on South Africa’s border with Mozambique.
The wall will be built near Mkhanyakude, KZN, despite an ongoing investigation by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) into the R85.7 million project.
On Monday, Premier Nomsa MaDube Ncube introduced a new contractor to rebuild the New Jersey concrete barriers on SA’s eastern border to fight the scourge of carjacking and trafficking from KZN to Mozambique.
It is not clear how much the new project will cost.
UMkhanyakude mayor Siphile Mdaka told Scrolla.Africa that the original walls currently under investigation will not be destroyed.
He said the new contractor will continue with them to complete an unfinished stretch of about 5 km.
In 2021, President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered an investigation into alleged tender irregularities involving ISF Construction and Shula Construction, who were awarded the contract to build an 8 km stretch from Gate 6 in Mhlabuyalingana.
The area is known for trafficking stolen cars to Mozambique.
The investigation focused on whether the tender was awarded fairly to ISF and Shula after allegations of irregularities.
It was claimed the tender was awarded by the provincial Department of Transport without the approval of the Public Works Department.
It must assess if the barrier’s procurement and payments followed fair, competitive, and transparent practices, adhering to relevant legislation and guidelines.
In 2021 Parliament’s Public Works and Infrastructure portfolio committee revealed that an amount of R48 million had already been paid to the contractors who had not completed the construction.
SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyakgo was not available to comment on the current status of the investigation.
The KZN premier’s spokesperson Bongi Gwala said he would respond via email but had not done so by the time of publication.