PAC DISMAYED BY E3M RENOVATIONS ON RA’S HOUSE

MANZINI – Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Chairperson Thuli Dladla expressed her dismay concerning the fittings found in the Regional Administrator’s (RA) revamped house which cost E3 million.

Dladla said this after being taken through a tour of the house which will soon be occupied by the Manzini RA, Prince Gcokoma.
The PAC met all the concerned ministries that were involved in the renovation of the house which she said attracted their attention when it was brought to light by the Auditor General’s report in parliament.

“This house was meant to be renovated in 2003 at the cost of E300 000. Ten years later this house has cost taxpayers E3 million and we are here to establish what caused such a delay,” she explained before entering the house.
Dladla mentioned that the fixtures that were installed in the house were not up to standard, especially because the Auditor General was informed that the house had two wings to it.

She explained that the house was also expected to be used by members of the royal family when attending events within the region and also if they need to make a quick stop while in the city.

“The fittings within the royal wing are embarrassing in the very least,” she told officials from the Ministry of  Public Works and Transport led by PS Cyril Kunene and Chief Buildings Engineer Mkhululi Mamba.
Also present to tour the house were Principal Secretaries (PS) Princess Gcebile, Evart Madlopha and high ranking officers from the Manzini Regional Administrator’s office.

Observation

Dladla made this observation when noting that the entire layout of the RA wing and the royal wing were identical and nothing depicted the fact that the wing would be utilised even by the country’s leaders.

She said that this is a problem they encountered when they first paid a visit to the house and asked for the relevant changes to be made.
She said that nothing was changed as even the royal wing was fitted with the ghastly toilet paper dispensers that were made of steel.
“Can you even begin to imagine the RA using that dispenser,” she asked the architect from the Works Ministry Nomsa Dlamini.

Another area of concern was the uniform tiling throughout the entire house, even the bathrooms.
Dladla questioned the uniformity of these tiles and even wanted to know whether the contractor had been offered a discount for buying in bulk.
“The RA will certainly have to stomach living with such drab tiling and it’s not fair.

“Even I Thuli, in my personal capacity, would not have wanted to live with such tiling,” she said after noting that the entire flooring of both wings was uniform.
The size of the bath tubs in all the three bathrooms in the entire house was also brought under intense scrutiny. The tubs were very small and of the most standard material   and it was wondered how the RA’s was expected to bath in such small bath tubs.

It was noted that the tubs in the bathroom to be used by children was the exact size as that in the RA’s ensuite bathroom as well as the bath in the wing which was expected to be utilised by royal family members.

 Nomsa Dlamini informed the PAC that as the responsible ministry they were satisfied with the work performed by the awarded contractor FJ constructions owned by John Nkambule who was present during the PAC visit.

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