Construction of the Matatiele Sports Centre is due to begin in 2028 and is not yet complete. Photo by Nombulelo Damba Hendrick
Six years after work began on the Matatiele Sports Centre in the Eastern Cape, and more than R37 million has been spent, the facility remains incomplete.
Construction on the center began in October 2018 and was scheduled to be completed in December 2021. However, Isibana Construction, the contractor hired to carry out the first phase of the project, left the site in 2019, leaving behind only a fence and lawn.
According to the city's bidding documents, a new contractor, MVI Construction and Maintenance, was appointed on May 19, 2023. The contractor was to build changing rooms with restrooms, bleachers and a security station, and lay asphalt along the running track.
Matatiele local municipality spokesperson Luncedo Walaza said about R23 million had been spent on the first phase of the project, and so far R12.2 million has been spent on the second phase.
Asked about the status of the project, Walaza said contractors had built security and dressing rooms and installed steel frames for the spectator seating. He said the project was on schedule but did not answer questions about when the center would be completed.
However, residents living near the site say they have not seen workers there since April.
Despite multiple calls and messages over a two-week period, GroundUp was unable to reach MVI Construction and Maintenance for comment.
The Matatiele Local Municipality has spent millions of rands on the sports centre, which has been under construction for six years.
Ground Up visited the site twice in the last month and confirmed that a new guard post had been erected and poles for the stands were being put up. The stands have yet to be built. We did not see any construction workers on site.
Resident Biwe Kwababa says her brother was employed to do fencing work for the first phase of the project in 2019. “They were only paid R2,500 each. We were waiting for the company to give us another job but that didn't happen. Then our mayor went on national TV and told the whole country that the stadium would be ready in December 2021 but we are still waiting,” she said.
Another resident, Simthembil Nogwaza, said construction resumed late last year and workers left the site in April.
“My brother works there. One month he worked the whole month, the next he only worked a couple of weeks, then in April he was told to go home and wait to be called in. In July he was paid by the city and told he'd be back to work in August,” he said.
DA ward councillor Wonga Potwana said he had tried to ask the municipality about the sports centre's budget but was yet to get a proper answer.
“This is an old project. It was supposed to be done in one phase, not two. The second phase started after questions were raised about the funds spent and after so many years, very little has been done.”
This article was first published on GroundUp.
