Pretoria - The City of Tshwane has undertaken to investigate allegations of irregularities in the first phase of a R2 billion project to upgrade the Rooiwal Waste Water Works.
MMC for finance Peter Sutton said the investigation followed concerns raised about the supply chain processes for the phase 1 tendering.
According to him, mayor Randall Williams asked for a formal investigation into any irregularities, with a 90-day deadline.
Sutton said: “This contract was previously challenged in court but was successfully defended. Nonetheless, a formal investigation assists in further scrutiny. Should this investigation identify irregularities the appropriate disciplinary action will be taken.”
Phase 1 of the refurbishment and upgrade project was started early in 2020 and was currently under way with the primary settling tank at 88% complete and digesters 68% complete.
Sutton said: “There is still a lot of work to be done and we are investigating certain aspects of this project, but I was pleased to see that work is progressing on-site.”
However, he expressed disappointment with the national Department of Water and Sanitation for not providing the grants aimed at assisting in the project to improve quality of water at the plant. The department could not be reached for comment on allegations that they failed to provide the grants.
Sutton said it was disappointing that the department was not fulfilling its promise “nor even responded to the City in terms of the support they have previously committed”.
Despite the department’s unfulfilled promise, he said he was committed to “investigate the aspects of and appointments to the maintenance and capital work at this plant that failed residents”.
Sutton reiterated the concept of value for money and fit for purpose when it came to dealing with the plant.
He said he was committed to ensuring that the belt presses returned to operational level as quickly as possible.
“The fact that the key aspects of the plant are not working is gravely unacceptable,” Sutton said.
He said he would strengthen the City’s working relationship with the department to the benefit of stakeholders in Tshwane.
“I want to give my commitment to the residents and farmers in the Rooiwal and Hammanskraal areas affected by the polluted water that this coalition government will continue to work to find long-term solutions to this critical issue,” he said.
He said the imminent phase 2 project would focus on upgrading the plant to handle greater amounts of sewage, from its existing 120 megalitres a day capacity to include an additional 80 megalitres a day for a total of 200 megalitres a day.
“This will ensure that the plant has sufficient capacity to handle the current inflow of sewage into the plant without the risk of spills or overflow into the rivers, as well as to unlock developments in the area discharging to the plant.”
For many years the ageing plant has come in for criticism for being the source of dirty water consumed by people in Hammanskraal owing to its lack of capacity to purify waste water, resulting in the sludge being discharged into the Apies River.
Pretoria News