Over R200 Million Spent on Gauteng Monument Project, Still Not Complete 5 Years Later
- The Gauteng Department of Sports, Arts and Culture has spent R50 million more than it originally budgeted on the Women's Living Heritage Monument
- Construction of the project began in 2012, was unveiled in 2016 and is yet to be completed
- The City of Tshwane has made a petition to take over the project from the Gauteng department because it believes the city has a vested interest
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PRETORIA - The Women’s Living Heritage Monument in Pretoria, which was unveiled five years ago, has still not been completed and has cost the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture in Gauteng over R200 million so far.
The project was first launched in 2012 and the budget for the construction of the momentum was initially placed at R151 million, however, by 2018 the price tag for the momentum rose to R205 million, according to News24.
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Gauteng MEC Mbali Hlophe stated that although the project has not been fully completed, the monument has received a certificate for temporary occupation.
Hlophe indicated in a written response to the DA about the progress of the project that they have had a number of setbacks in relation to the finalisation of the first phase installations of works.
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In addition, the Gauteng department says R2 million will be required for facility maintenance and upkeep once the project has been completed.
City of Tshwane wants to be in charge of the Women's Living Heritage Monument
The City of Tshwane wants to take over control of the Women's Living Heritage Monument for the Gauteng Department. According to SABC News, the City of Tshwane believes that it would be able to restore the project and have it fully functional.
Tshwane spokesperson Sipho Stuurman says Tshwane was interested in the project because the monument formed a part of a key pillar of the city. He also added that the monument is a tourist attraction and could drive tourism activities in the City of Tshwane.
"We want to get onto it, so the city is interested in running this project,” says Stuurman.
The monument was constructed as a commemoration of the key women and roles they played in the liberation of South Africa during Apartheid. Statures of iconic and remarkable struggle veterans such as Raima Moosa, Lilian Ngoyi, Sophia Williams-De Bruyn and Helen Joseph have been erected at the site.
Gauteng government causes ruckus after making payment in dollars and not rands
Briefly News previously reported that the government in Gauteng has lost over R6 million after an official mistakenly processed a payment in dollars instead of in rands. The Democratic Alliance has now made calls for stern action to be taken against the official who made the transaction.
Shadow finance and e-government DA shadow MEC Adriana Randall stated that the department in the province surprisingly paid a whopping $20 million to Microsoft Ireland instead of the R20 million which it was owed.
MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko reportedly responded to questions delivered in the legislature and Randall stated that she received the information from Nkomo-Ralehoko.
Source: Briefly News
