More than 60 roads with potholes roads in Limpopo are expected to be repaired by the end of this week. Tabling her department's 2011/2012 budget in Lebowakgomo this week, Roads and Transport MEC Pinky Kekana said the projects were part of the department's drive to maintain roads and create jobs for the unemployed.
"The department will spend R60-million on more than 60 pothole projects in all districts. These projects will be completed at the end of this week," said Kekana.
Kekana said the department would spend an additional R200-million on 11 projects aimed at repairing potholes and routinely maintaining roads in the 2011/12 financial year.
"As the responsible authority on secondary and gravel roads, our role will steadily move away from the current practice of reactionary maintenance on repairing potholes to preventative maintenance so as to keep the roads in good condition so that potholes do not develop," she said.
She said it was common sense that preventative maintenance was way cheaper than reactive maintenance.
In preventative maintenance of roads, money is spent on pothole repairs instead of spending it on accidents that could have been prevented through good maintenance of roads.
"It is our collective view that when potholes do occur, they must be properly repaired," Kekana said.
Kekana said the department would spend R452-million on 32 other preventative maintenance projects that have been identified in the province.
She said that an amount of R250-million had also been set aside for infrastructure improvement, including the construction of pedestrian bridges, walkways and an interchange in Botlokwa outside Polokwane.
She said after discussions with the South African National Roads Agency, the department would award the infrastructure contract in June 2011.
"The people of Botlokwa will finally say government has listened to us. We cannot shy away from acknowledging that on a daily basis pedestrians in particular were dicing and risking with their own lives having to cross a busy freeway,” she said.
“We can safely say that when the yellow machines start arriving, that will be the beginning of improved safety for the people of Botlokwa."
Kekana added that the department would complete two bridges that go over the Olifants River. The bridges include Mankele and a bridge between Maredi and Senyatho in the Sekhukhune area, both of which will cost R46-million and R47-million respectively.
"It is with great joy that the pain endured by the people of Mankele and others, of having to cross the Olifants River under very horrendous and risky conditions, is finally coming to an end," she said.
Kekana added that the bridge R24-million between Sibasa, Khalavha, Fondwe, Nzhelele and Musekwaspoort outside Thohoyandou was also near completion.
Source: Polity
Showing posts with label Pinkie Kekana. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pinkie Kekana. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Monday, March 1, 2010
Ja well no fine, Malema
As media scrutiny continued around Julius Malema yesterday, it appeared he no longer had a valid driver's licence and that he also had several unpaid fines. The Mercury has reliably learned, and confirmed, that Malema's driver's licence expired in September last year and has not been renewed. It has also been established that the ANC Youth League president has 12 outstanding traffic fines, amounting to R4 450. The offences were committed during the past two years around in Joburg. Eleven of them were for speeding and one for jumping a red robot. The fines range from R100 to R1 100 from September 2008 until September last year. Although Malema is known to be chauffeured, as the legal owner of the car he is liable for the fines - unless he can prove he was not the driver.
According to an official at the traffic department, nine of Malema's fines have "stagnated" after several failed attempts by traffic officials to serve summons for the outstanding fines at an address in Seshego, Limpopo. The Joburg Metro Police Department claims he could not be found, despite Malema being a prominent figure. All the fines were linked to a C-class Mercedes-Benz, which Malema last week confirmed as the only vehicle that he owned. This is not the first time Malema has been on the wrong side of the country's traffic laws.
Reports in November said he was being probed by Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin for verbally abusing Limpopo traffic officials who had stopped him after trapping him speeding at 107km/h in a 60km/h zone. According to the reports, traffic chiefs had rounded up the nine officers who had pulled Malema off the road within two hours of the incident and apparently issued them with letters and gave them less than two hours to supply a written explanation for their "ill-treatment" of Malema. It was further reported that Malema was not issued with a R1 500 speeding fine after he had sought the political intervention of Limpopo Transport MEC Pinkie Kekana. This follows a week of controversy surrounding Malema's lifestyle and business connections after The Mercury broke a story on his millions. The paper started a series of lifestyle audits with Malema when it was found that he owned two houses worth R4.6 million, wears a watch worth R250 000 and has been seen in a range of expensive vehicles.
He has also been seen on two separate occasions in a a R1.2m Range Rover that lacked number plates. Malema refused to comment on the outstanding traffic fines or his expired driver's licence. When he was initially contacted he asked for a request via Sms, but failed to respond to that and to numerous follow-up telephone calls.
However, youth league spokesman Floyd Shivambu responded on Malema's behalf, saying: "We don't know anything about that, so I won't be commenting." Shivambu said the information was confidential and threatened to "act" if it was published.
Source: IoL
According to an official at the traffic department, nine of Malema's fines have "stagnated" after several failed attempts by traffic officials to serve summons for the outstanding fines at an address in Seshego, Limpopo. The Joburg Metro Police Department claims he could not be found, despite Malema being a prominent figure. All the fines were linked to a C-class Mercedes-Benz, which Malema last week confirmed as the only vehicle that he owned. This is not the first time Malema has been on the wrong side of the country's traffic laws.
Reports in November said he was being probed by Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin for verbally abusing Limpopo traffic officials who had stopped him after trapping him speeding at 107km/h in a 60km/h zone. According to the reports, traffic chiefs had rounded up the nine officers who had pulled Malema off the road within two hours of the incident and apparently issued them with letters and gave them less than two hours to supply a written explanation for their "ill-treatment" of Malema. It was further reported that Malema was not issued with a R1 500 speeding fine after he had sought the political intervention of Limpopo Transport MEC Pinkie Kekana. This follows a week of controversy surrounding Malema's lifestyle and business connections after The Mercury broke a story on his millions. The paper started a series of lifestyle audits with Malema when it was found that he owned two houses worth R4.6 million, wears a watch worth R250 000 and has been seen in a range of expensive vehicles.
He has also been seen on two separate occasions in a a R1.2m Range Rover that lacked number plates. Malema refused to comment on the outstanding traffic fines or his expired driver's licence. When he was initially contacted he asked for a request via Sms, but failed to respond to that and to numerous follow-up telephone calls.
However, youth league spokesman Floyd Shivambu responded on Malema's behalf, saying: "We don't know anything about that, so I won't be commenting." Shivambu said the information was confidential and threatened to "act" if it was published.
Source: IoL
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)