The lives of motorists and pedestrians using the provincial road D483 between Bapsfontein and D713 Cullinan are in danger because the sinkhole has not been fixed.
The huge sinkhole has surfaced in the middle of the road. It stretches across the two lanes, which affects on and off-going traffic. This is a major risk that can result in deadly accidents. Several trucks that use this road to transport goods have suffered severe damage.
The appointed contractor has failed to complete the project within the stipulated timeframes, which resulted in incurring an extra R92 000.
Furthermore, the Auditor General (AG) found in the 2022/2023 annual report for the Gauteng Department of Roads and Logistics that there are discrepancies in the payments to the service provider and that penalties were not imposed.
Failure to penalise the contractor is setting the wrong precedent, as the contractor will only keep on disregarding the timelines that are put in place to complete the project.
The affected community where the road is situated is petitioning the department to fix the road urgently.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will be engaging the petitions committee in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) to assess the progress of the petition and urgently seek interventions to ensure that the sinkhole is fixed. We will also be tabling questions to the MEC for Roads and Logistics, Kedibone Diale, to ascertain when the sinkhole will be fixed and whether the contractor will be blacklisted for failing to complete the project.