ActionSA Free State chairperson Patricia Kopane. Picture: File
ActionSA Free State chairperson Patricia Kopane has condemned the provincial government’s failure to spend R600 million towards reducing the housing backlog in the province.
This comes after the provincial government is reported to have forfeited more than R600 million back to National Treasury after it failed to spend this grant funding on the much-needed housing backlog in the province.
In a statement on Tuesday, provincial chairperson of the party said they are concerned over the Free State Department of Human Settlements’ forfeiture of a staggering R600 million in unspent budget, which is set to be returned to the Treasury.
Kopane said this is in spite of Premier Mxolisi Dukwana, who in his February 2023 State of the Province Address, pledged to complete the 11 000 incomplete houses and resolve stalled projects in collaboration with the National Home Builders Registration Council.
“The revelation that the Human Settlements Department failed to utilise the allocated budget is disheartening. This significant sum could have been instrumental in finishing abandoned projects like the White City Integrated Social Housing Project, initially valued at R110 million, which has been incomplete since Ace Magashule’s premiership,” Kopane said.
According to reports, the housing problem in Bloemfontein and parts of the province has seen thousands of low-income earners not having a roof over their heads while others live in shacks.
It has emerged that the Department of Human Settlements, led by ANC Free State deputy chairperson Toto Makume, returned the funds after it failed to build houses.
EFF leader Julius Malema tore into Makume and accused him of spending money meant for service delivery on ‘endless braais’.
Kopane has decried the recent revelations saying this also comes amid the recent R225 million asbestos scandal which failed to address roofing issues in the province over five years ago.
“Furthermore, the forfeited funds could have addressed critical issues such as the removal of asbestos roofing, where R255 million has been embezzled. Despite ActionSA’s earlier statement urging newly appointed MEC Makume to prioritise the completion of houses due to escalating homelessness, this plea has seemingly fallen on deaf ears. Now, unused funds are set to be returned to the Treasury,” she said.
According to Kopane, the residents of the province are not convinced that the recently unveiled premier Dukwana is acting in the best interests of the Free State residents.
“Residents of the Free State lack confidence in Premier Dukwana, as the province’s infrastructure continues to deteriorate under his tenure. Concerns are mounting about his ability to address the leadership and service delivery crisis inherited from his predecessor, Ace Magashule.
“ActionSA calls upon Premier Dukwana to honour his commitment to the people of the Free State by reviving abandoned projects and constructing more houses which are imperative steps to rectify the current state of affairs and fulfil the province’s needs.
“The government’s systemic failures have far-reaching consequences, eroding the fabric of South Africa’s social structure. South Africans are robbed of their dignity, access to opportunities is stifled, and the economy has been ruined by the government’s continued failures,” she said.
However, according to the Sunday World, the provincial department has indicated that it was not its intention for this to happen.
Motale Sebego, Free State human settlements spokesperson, said the department ‘acknowledges that unspent funds will return to the National Treasury due to circumstances beyond our control. (It) deeply regrets this unfortunate incident.
“However, we wish to restate our commitment to the poorest of the poor in the province that the provision of shelter is an inalienable right enshrined in our constitution,” he is quoted as saying.
The Star
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