ANC secretary-general in KwaZulu-Natal Bheki Mtolo has been hauled to answer for the unfinished sports complex that cost the Greater Kokstad municipality a whopping R55-million.
The project, dubbed Gym Payne Sports Complex, was conceived while Mtolo was the mayor of the council located on the border of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape.
This week, the DA fired the first salvo demanding answers for the project which despite its exorbitant cost has come to naught.
“This project has stunted our town’s growth while accumulating a jaw-dropping cost of over R55-million for the taxpayers,” explained Bradywn Marnce, DA’s Greater Kokstad caucus leader.
“The project remains incomplete and appears doomed to fail, having been illegally constructed on a protected wetland. We will be writing to municipal manager Sipho Zwane and mayor Lwanda Madikizela asking for a forensic investigation into Mtolo’s project.”
According to Marnce, opposition parties in the council had raised objections over the sports complex because it had disregarded environmental laws and regulations coupled with being riddled with poor oversight.
“Our focus on the Gym Payne Sports Complex project intends to shed light on the circumstances of its implementation, exposing the truth behind Bheki Mtolo’s forced imposition of the poorly planned venture.”
Other issues raised include the questionable appointment of a company as an implementing agent at a cost of R2.1-million.
The project has also been a subject of litigation between the municipality and Andimahle Trading Enterprise responsible for constructing the sports complex.
The company charged the municipality with a breach of contract after the council pulled out of the arrangement and appointed a new contractor to complete the project.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa.
