7 November 2000
1. The first point to note is that the provision of housing to KwaZulu Natal MECs or any other province is not the task of the Department of Housing nor the task of the individual minister. It is the sole task of the provincial Department of Public Works.
2. There is a Cabinet resolution that the provisioning of housing for Ministers Dumisani Makhaye and Michael Mabuyakhulu should be facilitated because of the security situation in areas they stay. This is in response to achieving equality between ministers staying at Ulundi and those living in or near Pietermaritzburg.
3. The Department of Public Works implements this decision by calling for public tender through advertisement in newspapers.
4. Three home-owners respond to the advert.
5. The inspectors from the Department of Public Works (not Department of Housing nor Minister Makhaye) inspect the three houses on offer. They recommend the hose presently occupied by Minister Makhaye. The inspectors in their written assessment say the other house would cost R730 000 - 00 in repairs and Vat in two years while the other would cost R1 093 200 - 00 in repairs including Vat in two years. The inspectors say the total cost of the house presently occupied by Minister Makhaye would cost R652 536 - 00 including Vat in two years. Referring to this house, the assessment further states "it is cheaper with no repairs or painting. The building is structurally sound and well maintained."
N.B. It must also be noted that when Minister Makhaye inquired from the Department of Public Works whether it was not possible for the Department of Public Works to buy any other house for the minister rather than rent this house, the response was that it would take too long to draw up tender documents. The contract with the home owner would only be for two years with an option to review an agreement after one year. In the meantime the Department of Public Works would be drawing new tender documents for the MEC for Housing in KwaZulu Natal.
6. Minister Makhaye accepts the recommendation from the Department of Public Works
7. The preferred tender is forwarded to the Tender Board for evaluation, approval or disapproval. The Tender Board approves the house presently occupied by Minister Makhaye.
8. The furnishing of the house occupied by Minister Makhaye was done by the Department of Public Works. The team from Public Works was led by Regional Director, Bongani Dlamini. Several furniture shops were visited (Bradlows, Furniture City, Morkels, Beares and Geen and Richards). It is understood that furniture had to be bought from one shop. It was only Geen and Richards that had all the furniture needed as prescribed by policy. Again, it was not Minister Makhaye nor the Department of Housing who chose Geen and Richards but the Department of Public Works following known policy.
House items that according to policy are not supplied by the Department of Public Works to ministers, such as TVs and linen, were bought by Minister Makhaye himself.
9. The only active part that Minister Makhaye played in this process was for him to accept the key to the house.
10. The National Ministers have two houses not simply because they are national ministers but because of the fact that there are two capitals, Pretoria and Cape Town.
11. Similarly, there is the Cadman Commission which recommended two seats for the government of KwaZulu Natal, Ulundi and Pietermaritzburg. This was followed up by the KwaZulu Natal Cabinet resolution and legislative resolution.
12. It has been the understanding of the KwaZulu Natal Cabinet that the case of KwaZulu Natal is similar to that of the national government with two capitals.
13. There is a KwaZulu Natal Cabinet resolution requesting clarity to the Commission of Remuneration through the Minister of Public Service and Administration.
14. The response of the Commission will determine whether there is one house free for provincial MECs near or in one of the capitals or not; if rental must be paid, how much; how much must be paid by those MECs who have used hotels through government coffers near one of the capitals because they avoid having houses in which they will pay market related rentals or those ministers whose houses have been equipped with expensive security devices and yet they are registered under the names of their spouses, etc.
15. Minister Dumisani Makhaye has consulted lawyers to look at the report of the Independent on Saturday with a view to claim damages from Cyril Madlala as the editor, Xolisa Vaphi as the reporter and the Independent Newspapers as the owner of the Independent Newspapers and employer of Cyril Madlala and Xoliswa Vaphi.
16. The Minister is requesting the Provincial Protection Unit to reassess his security in the light of information he has and whether the article in the Independent on Saturday has anything to do with his security situation.
Issued by the KwaZulu Natal Ministry of Housing
For further information, contact Harry Mchunu at:
082 805 4130 or (031) 336 5321/7
By Dumisani Makhaye - KZN MEC for Housing.