Public Works Department Says Former Ministers Damaged Allocated Government Property

• The Department of Public Works found that outgoing ministers left the properties allocated to them in a terrible state
• The Department's minister, Dean Macpherson, found that some of the 97 units the government owns in Cape Town were damaged, and one minister reported ran a taxi business
• South Africans called on the ministers to be exposed and given the bill to fix the damages caused to the properties

With nine years of experience, Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist, provided insights into infrastructure challenges in South Africa at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

WESTERN CAPE—The Department of Public Works has discovered that former ministers reportedly left government-owned property in a worse state than they found it in.

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Ministers reportedly damage buildings

IOL reported that Public Works Minister Dean Macpherson discovered that several of the homes ministers used in Cape Town were found to be in a poor state. The government reportedly owns the properties for ministers and deputies worth R830 million in Cape Town and R137 million in Tshwane.

The Department also found that some ministers and deputies who did not return to the government did not want to vacate their premises. After moving out, the department found the premises in a horrible state. Kitchen cabinets were removed, graffiti defaced the walls, and the Department even found that one minister reportedly ran a taxi business from the property. The Department is taking action to get them to return government assets.

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SA want names and faces

Netizens on Facebook demanded that the ministers who committed these infractions be exposed.

Mandla H. Ncayiyana asked:

"Why are we not told who these ministers are? After all, it's all our money. Hopefully one civil society group will go to court to compel the state to reveal ministers' identities."

Paul Mills said:

"Send them the bill for rectifying the property and returning it to its original state."

William Deale said:

"Name and shame each and everyone of them."

Angie Poggenpoel said:

"Disgusting is an understatement. Freeze their accounts and make them bring back the fittings or pay for them."

Felicity Alcock said:

"The taxpayer must not foot the bill for repairs."

338 government buildings hijacked

In a related article, Briefly News reported Macpherson revealed that the government owns 880 buildings, 338 of which were hijacked.

Macpherson also said the majority of these buildings would probably not be used and that the government must find ways to use them for the benefit of South Africans.

Source: Briefly News