Parliament Not Insured, Fire Repairs Will Be Paid by Taxpayers As Public Works Dept Takes No Responsibility

• The Department of Public Works said that it does not insure the properties it leases out to client departments
• A spokesperson for the department said it would too expensive to insure the government's property portfolio
• Currently, the estimated value of the fire damage is R221 million, which could be for taxpayers' accounts

CAPE TOWN - The Department of Public Works said that it does not insure the properties it leases out to client departments, including the Houses of Parliament in Cape Town.

Imtiaz Fazel, the Acting Director-General of the department, said that Parliament's estimated value of properties at the end of February 2022 would be R141 billion. Fazel added that the cost of insuring the state's property portfolio would be too expensive to sustain.

According to SABC News, valuing Parliament is a complicated process because historical cost records are unavailable and there are few similar buildings to compare costs with. Currently, the estimated value of the fire damage is R221 million.

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Parliament fire: Insurance loophole could cost see taxpayers covering R1b cost of rebuild

South African taxpayers might have to foot the bill

BusinessTech reports that due to Parliament not being insured, tax money will most likely be the source of funding to repair the damage. The repair process can only begin after a request has been submitted to the accounts department of Public Works.

Experts have suggested that either the department must restructure their allocated funds to pay for the repairs or Enoch Godongwana, the Minister of Finance, can provide for the repairs in his budget in February.

President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his sadness following the fire and said investigations into the blaze are ongoing in a process that South Africans need to respect.

South Africans react to Parliament repair costs

@koesal asked:

"So what? We were going to do so in any event whether the insurance paid out or not. They were always going to make us pay."

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City of Cape Town Fire Services release Parliament fire report along with previous pre-SONA inspection reports

@nkosi___ believes:

"Nothing is ever done right by this ANC run government. Let’s vote them out come the national elections."

@Dayungone remarked:

"Obviously, taxpayers would pay for the sins of government."

@Ngoako2030 said:

"It will cost less to build a new parliament in Pretoria."

@Letebem shared:

'This can't be true."

SA reacts to Parliament fire report, thanks CT mayor

In earlier news about this case, Briefly News recently reported that the City of Cape Town's Fire Department has released a report following the fire at the Houses of Parliament in Cape Town.

Geordin Hill-Lewis, the Mayor of Cape Town, said that the report strived to be as transparent and objective as possible.

The report, which has been submitted to the Speaker of Parliament for comment, states that it is not extensive but rather consists of observations by those firefighters who help to extinguish the blaze.

The City is limited in the extent to which it can impose fire safety regulations on Parliament as it is a national key point and therefore does not fall under their direct jurisdiction.

Source: Briefly News