by Fawzia Rhoda, MPL – DA Constituency Head of Bo-Karoo ![]() Date: 01 July 2020Release: Immediate Note to Editors: Please find attached soundbites in English & Afrikaans from Fawzia Rhoda, MPL. The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Northern Cape has requested COGHSTA MEC, Bentley Vass, to urgently provide answers in terms of the Modderpoel housing scandal in Victoria West.This comes after information has come to light regarding more than R16 million that was spent on the incomplete housing project that should have been completed in 2015 already. To date, only 50 of the 270 intended houses have been completed, with Happy Letters being sent to a few lucky recipients. The other 220 houses, however, are nowhere to be seen.The project was transferred from Pixley Ka Seme District Municipality to the Ubuntu local municipality in 2018, after slow progress. This, however, did nothing to speed up the project or ensure proper project management.In effect, it is once again the Northern Cape’s poorest of the poor who have lost out on an opportunity to dignified living conditions. Furthermore, given the country’s precarious financial position, the chances of there being additional funding to complete projects like these in the future, are increasingly slim.Given that MEC Vass is fully aware of the Modderpoel saga, we are requesting a full report on the project. We want a breakdown of how the R16 million was allocated. We also want to know why full payment was made to contractors in advance, before the project was completed. In addition, we also request a list of Housing Subsidy System (HSS) beneficiaries and the processes followed in allocating the completed houses.The DA refuses to simply accept that the money ran out before the project even came near to completion.Once again, the government that was meant to build a better life for the residents of the Northern Cape has failed dismally. Someone needs to be held accountable for stealing roofs from over the heads of the people of Ubuntu. Media Enquiries Fawzia Rhoda, MPLDA Constituency Head of Bo-Karoo082 408 8070 Shelley De WittResearcher082 847 1387 |
