Threats of violence may delay vital road projects

Issued by SANRAL
Pretoria, Jul 4, 2017

Sanral is expressing concern about a growing number of disruptions at its regional offices and construction sites by groups demanding to be appointed outside the regular tender processes.

Roshan Morar, the Chairperson of the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral), says incidents at various construction projects in the country have caused disruptions and threats were made against both Sanral employees and contractors. Such incidents risks delaying the completion of vital infrastructure projects - and also hamper Sanral's own efforts to create jobs and economic opportunities for members of local communities.

"There is an unfortunate trend of disruptions at road construction projects by groupings that claim to be local business forums or representing community interests," he says. "They demand to be given contracts without having to go through the tender processes, or meet the grading requirements of the Construction Industry Development Board. In some cases they then threaten with violence if their ultimatums are not met."

He says Sanral fully understands the critical role it can play to create business and job opportunities for local sub-contractors and residents on construction projects located close to communities. The Agency is at an advanced stage in crafting a transformation policy to ensure the inclusive participation of black business and unemployed people in national road projects and will soon be consulting with the construction and related industries on the policy. Internal government consultations are nearly complete and the Minister of Transport will launch the policy in the near future.

However, recent violent incidents at construction sites have created major disruptions to road building activities and cause concern about the safety of Sanral employees and contractors.

Morar says Sanral regards the safety of its employees and contractors to be of paramount importance and will engage with other organs of state to ensure safety on construction sites and disruption-free service delivery.

"We are strongly committed to local economic development and job creation within the communities that will benefit from the road construction. This is a priority for Sanral and we are also talking with main contractors to ensure they understand the importance of accommodating black businesses and sub-contractors in their projects," he says.

"We have an obligation to ensure that our projects are inclusive in nature, enabling black business to participate in the economy. We will never abandon our people and continue to create platforms for engagement to find common ground and ensure equitable access to the capital we invest in the construction industry on an annual basis."