KZN MEC say they have not received funds to rebuild damaged roads
7th June 2022
The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government needs R6.5 billion to rebuild roads and bridges damaged by floods in April.
However, MEC for Transport Peggy Nkonyeni, says the province has not yet received the requested funds from national government, and that the province is using its own funds to rebuild damaged roads.
“Some roads are really, really dilapidated so it could even take more than six months to reconstruct some of the roads. Like for instance your N2 road, when we engaged with SANRAL they did inform us that it might take even a year to reconstruct that N2. Then we conducted assessments we submitted to the National Disaster Management Centre. According to our calculations, we need that kind of money in order for us to reconstruct our roads. So, we are still expecting that response from the national disaster management Centre. Right now, there has never been any allocation,” says Nkonyeni.
The P725 road links the rural area of Umbumbulu and to areas like Isipingo and Umlazi in the south of Durban. The recent floods worsened the condition of the gravel road, causing huge potholes.
Premier Sihle Zikalala says government will put measures in place to ensure that contractors deliver value for money and that the project is completed on time.
