Pool stagnates as funds dry up
NU2 residents stuck with haven for criminals as project goalposts drift
Work on the the Mdantsane NU2 swimming pool stopped when Buffalo City Metro ran out of funds.
This was revealed by BCM mayor Xola Pakati to the Daily Dispatch on Tuesday.
He was commenting after Friday’s heated imbizo where angry Mdantsane residents had protested over the stalled pool work.
While Pakati was expected to update the residents on progress, he merely said the municipality was looking into the matter of the swimming pool.
On Tuesday he said: “We had a challenge there when the budget of R1m ran out before the work was completed. The contractor was appointed, but they have not finished the work. We are now looking at adding more funding towards the project when we do the budget adjustment in December.
“The project is now behind schedule because of the budget constraints. The problem is that the project was not allocated enough money because of the enormity of the work,” Pakati said.
When the Daily Dispatch visited the site on Tuesday, there was no contractor on site and residents told of new incidents of vandalism.
Resident Mavis Dlanga said: “The contractor left months ago without finishing the job. They only dug inside the yard and did bush clearing and that was it.
“We were asked to stop our vegetable gardens as there would be parking on the land we used, but until now nothing has happened. Instead the bush is growing again and crime is still taking place in this abandoned place,” Dlanga said.
ANC ward councillor Senduku Maphuka said: “We had an imbizo on Friday and people from my ward staged a protest concerning this matter and housing issues.
“The mayor had promised residents that by December the pool would be open and people would be swimming, but that has not happened. Now they say the money is finished and the mayor told residents they are handling this matter.
“There is no contractor on site and even the little work that was done earlier in 2018 has been vandalised again. There were lights there but they are not working anymore.”
Maphuka said residents in the ward were disgruntled as there were no services being delivered to them.
BCM spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya said: “Work that we are in the process of rolling out [at the pool], includes the demolishing and building of a new front entrance, the refurbishment of fencing and the rebuilding of the cottage.
“We will also be doing work on the actual infrastructure area or pool and we are optimistic that, weather permitting, we will be on track to appoint a formal contractor to carry the bulk of the work towards the end of the financial year, with activity on site and a strong emphasis on local labour.”