[ad_1]
A general view of the border fence separating South Africa and Zimbabwe near the Beitbridge border post.
- A senior public works official has told Parliament that the government has failed to protect the country’s borders.
- Malusi Ganiso, director of urban planning for the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, said there is very little left of the country’s largest border fences.
- Ganiso and other senior officials presented in Parliament a progress report on the improvements to the country’s border fences.
“In terms of war, we are fragile. Anything can come to us. We could be bombed at any moment, we have nothing on the border line.”
With these words Malusi Ganiso, director of urban planning at the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI), summed up the dire situation on South Africa’s land borders.
On Wednesday, Ganiso and several senior DPWI officials presented a progress report to Parliament’s Public Works and Infrastructure Committee on the cleanup of the site for integrated border fences and patrol roads at the country’s land borders.
“Since 1994, we have not taken care of our borders. We can testify that the current situation on our border does not look good. We are not socially, politically and economically secure. People are crossing into the country and the fence is completely down. If you are going to Lesotho and Swaziland, there is nothing, absolutely nothing, “he said.
READ | SANDF soldiers allow desperate Zimbabweans to cross the border to buy food and medicine
The briefing came in the wake of the Beitbridge border fence fiasco.
Investigations by DPWI and the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) uncovered a cesspool of irregularities that caused the government to pay 17 million rand more than expected.
Contractors were also paid R21.8 million before any work was done. The SIU’s request to freeze the contractors’ bank accounts will be heard on Friday.
Acting CEO Imtiaz Fazel also addressed the Beitbridge border issue.
“We did not comply with the site cleanup conditions. That authorization was issued on March 10, prior to the closure. One of the findings is that the department did not comply with the requirements of its own site cleanup processes,” Fazel said. .
Ganiso also featured images of border fences that had completely collapsed.
The barbed wire is broken, cut into pieces, and severely damaged.
DA MP Samantha Graham said that economic and social problems in neighboring countries will have a big impact on South Africa.
“The more we have than they need, the more they will cross us. We have a First World plan for a Third World problem. We have a great plan here, but we have to fix the social ills. We cannot allow these problems to continue. Stop putting the cart before the horse, “he said.
READ HERE | Report calls for charges against 14 public works officials over Beitbridge R1m / km fence
ANC MP Lizzie Shabalala said there have been no problems in the past on the border with Lesotho and Eswatini.
“My instinct tells me that we have to look at the ideological aspect of this. Mozambique has always been a problem. The people of Mozambique will come to hijack cars at Empangeni in KwaZulu-Natal,” he said.
DPWI’s deputy general manager for real estate investments, Sasa Subban, said the department was looking for long-term solutions.
“There is detailed work that has been carried out by the technical team. We work at the first level [of the study] with the Department of Defense. The business case is nearing completion and will be presented to relevant stakeholders and the National Treasury in the future. We have not finalized the designs and what we are accepting as the best solution for the border fences. Technical teams are still looking at this, “he said.
Do you want to know more about this topic? Sign up to receive one of 33 News24 newsletters to receive the information you want in your inbox. Special newsletters are available to subscribers.
