The department of rural development and land reform (DRDLR) has spent R2.7-million on “importing” 1200 trees to be planted along the 10km paved road from the N2 to Chief Mandla Mandela’s Mvezo home.
This is in addition – to the more than R200-million already spent by various government departments on Mvezo.
The money was spent without the knowledge of the parliamentary committee on arts and culture, which oversees the national Department of Arts and Culture’s (DAC) funding for the Nelson Mandela Museum legacy project.
Not far from the controversial road, more than 5000 bags of cement worth an estimated R1-million lie in the open, damaged.
A machine used in the paving process also lies neglected close by. It is worth an estimated R900000, while a generator worth about R150000 was left in a partially fenced yard in Mvezo.
This week when the Dispatch visited the site, there was no security guard. The cement bags were sourced by the rural enterprise and industrial development (REID) unit in the DRDLR. The Dispatch understands that the bags were dumped by service providers. DRDLR spokeswoman, Linda Page, failed to respond to questions sent to her earlier in the week by the time of writing yesterday.
Despite the museum and DAC withdrawing from the Mvezo site, following a disagreement with the late president’s grandson, development has continued.
Mandela told the Saturday Dispatch that much of the funding had been sourced by the Mvezo Traditional Council through the Mvezo Development Trust.
Just two weeks ago, the Dispatch reported the director of the rural development unit in DRDLR was being probed for alleged fraud related to the Mvezo project.
With regard to the 1200 trees, a Dispatch source who works in the department, said funding for them had come from the rural infrastructure unit in the department.
A worker near Ludondolo village, who declined to give his name, said the trees were brought from Limpopo and Mpumalanga.
The department source said people employed to plant the trees were from other provinces even though the department should have used National Rural Youth Service Corps (Narysec) registered employees to do the work.
Other sources in the DRDLR cautioned that not all the trees would survive due to drought.
“Why were the trees bought in other provinces while we have hundreds of nurseries in the province, which are selling the same trees in abundance?” asked the source. —bonganif@dispatch.co.za; msindisif@dispatch.co.za
Millions spent on trees at Mvezo
This is in addition – to the more than R200-million already spent by various government departments on Mvezo.
The money was spent without the knowledge of the parliamentary committee on arts and culture, which oversees the national Department of Arts and Culture’s (DAC) funding for the Nelson Mandela Museum legacy project.
Not far from the controversial road, more than 5000 bags of cement worth an estimated R1-million lie in the open, damaged.
A machine used in the paving process also lies neglected close by. It is worth an estimated R900000, while a generator worth about R150000 was left in a partially fenced yard in Mvezo.
This week when the Dispatch visited the site, there was no security guard. The cement bags were sourced by the rural enterprise and industrial development (REID) unit in the DRDLR. The Dispatch understands that the bags were dumped by service providers. DRDLR spokeswoman, Linda Page, failed to respond to questions sent to her earlier in the week by the time of writing yesterday.
Despite the museum and DAC withdrawing from the Mvezo site, following a disagreement with the late president’s grandson, development has continued.
Mandela told the Saturday Dispatch that much of the funding had been sourced by the Mvezo Traditional Council through the Mvezo Development Trust.
Just two weeks ago, the Dispatch reported the director of the rural development unit in DRDLR was being probed for alleged fraud related to the Mvezo project.
With regard to the 1200 trees, a Dispatch source who works in the department, said funding for them had come from the rural infrastructure unit in the department.
A worker near Ludondolo village, who declined to give his name, said the trees were brought from Limpopo and Mpumalanga.
The department source said people employed to plant the trees were from other provinces even though the department should have used National Rural Youth Service Corps (Narysec) registered employees to do the work.
Other sources in the DRDLR cautioned that not all the trees would survive due to drought.
“Why were the trees bought in other provinces while we have hundreds of nurseries in the province, which are selling the same trees in abundance?” asked the source. —bonganif@dispatch.co.za; msindisif@dispatch.co.za
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