MBOMBELA – Last year the provincial rapid implementation unit (RIU) apparently saved the day when it secured the emergency appointment of five service providers for bulk-water infrastructure.
“Losing” contractors have expressed their unhappiness with the awarding of the unadvertised contracts amounting to tens of millions of rand, for the implementation of water infrastructure in Mbombela Local Municipality (MLM) in December.
Head of the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Mr Cain Chunda explained, upon being cornered about the matter last week, weeks after his office had ignored queries about the tenders, that it had used the RIU, a database of approved suppliers to award the contracts to expedite appointments before the end of December for Mbombela to retain its municipal infrastructure grant (MIG).
In the middle of 2013/14 National Treasury informed Mbombela that it would not be receiving the second half of its MIG, due to underspending in the first six months of its financial year. Chunda said MLM was at risk of losing MIG funds in December 2014 too. “We couldn’t let the money go. We had to save the funds, which at the time had not been committed.”
It was to avoid such a situation that the RIU contractors were appointed, claimed Chunda. The reason for the delay in appropriating the funds were that Rand Water was tasked with taking over as implementing agent from Bushbuckridge Water Board and Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency in 2014. Each local municipality had to enter into new service level agreements with Rand Water, and this process was delayed.
“There were teething problems,” explained Chunda. “It was an administrative nightmare for Rand Water which first had to lift the moratorium that had been placed on appointing new staff.”
He confirmed that Mpfumelelo Business Enterprise, Dumezulu General Dealer, Thulatsepo General Trading, Whitehazy Jv Phin Trading and Sihle Property Development & Plant Hire were appointed by Cogta in this manner to commission the Hoxane Treatment Plant, construct the Boschrand to Phumlani water pipeline and upgrade the Elandshoek water supply and the outfall sewer. The companies would have formalised their appointments with Rand Water in the meantime.
According to MLM’s 2014/15 mid-year assessment report, the municipality spent R88 million on capital from the MIG against the planned target of R197 million. Mbombela referred all questions to Cogta and Rand Water. At the time of going to press, spokesman for Rand Water, Mr Justice Mohale, had not yet responded to queries.
- Read more on Mbombela’s water situation here.
