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Govan Mbeki Municipality in turmoil after R49m shoddy construction work

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In May, the Govan Mbeki local municipality admitted that a shoddy job was done during the construction of the R49m sewer reticulation network, the construction started in 2006.

The then acting marketing and communications manager, Benzi Soko, said that the contractor would be held responsible and the municipal manager was ordered to draft a plan on how to deal with the issue.

On Friday, Govan Mbeki municipal spokesman Henry Masango said: “The municipality has acknowledged that we are having the challenge of a dysfunctional sewer, and this [issue] was even escalated to the district municipality, provincial government and our corporate partners for financial assistance ...”

Last week, Mpumalanga premier David Mabuza instructed that the municipality be put under administration. He said the municipality needed “decisive intervention by the provincial government”.

Meanwhile, municipal manager Mmela Mahlangu and 11 others, including municipal speaker Cyril Gwigi, several councillors and local taxi association chairman Fanyana Sibanyoni, appeared again in the Evander Magistrate’s Court last week on assault charges.

The group allegedly assaulted members of the Embalenhle Joint Committee a day before a planned march against lack of service delivery. They have all been released on R500 bail each and are expected to appear in court again on October 4.