- Third revised deadline for Lilian Ngoyi Street passes as road remains closed to traffic.
- Road costs almost R100 million per kilometre.
- DA demands that National Treasury conduct a forensic audit into contracts.
English soundbite by Cllr Belinda Kayser-Echeozonjoku
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Johannesburg is outraged by the Mayor wilfully misleading residents of the City of Johannesburg with regards to spiralling costs and shifting deadlines of the Lilian Ngoyi Road upgrade.
The initial contract was worth R172 million, with R22 million spent for just 22% of the work.
A new R192 million contract was then signed to complete the remaining 78%. This brings the total to R215 million across two contractors, already R40 million over budget.
The original completion date of December 2024 was extended to July 2025, then again to 31 August 2025, and today, the City claims that “Phase 1” has been launched. But, the road is not ready for traffic. What exactly has then been launched today?
For all this expenditure, residents have only seen 1.8 km of road delivered, at almost R100 million per kilometre. This is simply unacceptable. Morero is seemingly allergic to deadlines, but a pro at shifting the goal post as it suits his poor planning.
It is for this reason that the DA has written to National Treasury to request a full investigation into all contracts related to the Lilian Ngoyi Road project. We want clarity on whether the Executive Mayor and senior officials are personally benefitting from these inflated, over-budget contracts.
The DA further demands:
- A forensic audit into both contracts and all officials involved;
- A full public breakdown of expenditure and reasons for cost escalations; and
- A clear, realistic completion timeline, without more empty promises.
Johannesburg residents deserve transparency and accountability. Instead, they are left with a project that is over time, over budget, and under-delivering.
All this while businesses remain closed people lose jobs and commuters left in limbo
Only a DA government has the proven track record of responsible financial management to ensure that major infrastructure projects are delivered on time, on budget, and for the benefit of communities not cadres.