Dean Macpherson, the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, has been presented with the final Council for the Built Environment (CBE) report on the collapse of the George building, which left 28 people injured and 34 people dead.
Macpherson reaffirmed that he would personally meet with the affected families in George to present them with the findings after studying the report.
He said the department will continue to work with law enforcement agencies to ensure accountability.
Macpherson received the final report from the CBE through the Engineering Council of South Africa.
The report marks a critical step in the department’s commitment to uncover the truth behind this preventable disaster and to ensure that those responsible are held accountable.
“As the department, we will now carefully study the report to develop a pathway forward to ensure that a tragedy such as the George building collapse never happens again,” said Macpherson.
“As I have previously committed, after studying the report, I will personally return to George to present the findings of this report to the families affected by this tragedy.
“They deserve to hear directly from us, not through the media, about what went wrong and how we intend to rectify it.”
Systemic failures
He emphasised that the collapse was the result of systemic failures across various regulatory bodies and a lack of cooperation among key stakeholders.
The minister also reiterated that accountability cannot be optional when human lives are lost due to human error.
The department will, therefore, continue to work with the police, the National Prosecuting Authority, and other relevant regulatory bodies to ensure accountability.
“As I have said before, the collapse of the George building was entirely preventable, and we will therefore work towards accountability and address any errors which may have been identified.
“By working together, we are ensuring a safe and secure construction sector for all stakeholders,” said Macpherson.
