Pretoria - The government and contractors who left an unfenced quarry in Mamelodi must pay reparations to the families of the two boys who drowned after falling into it.
This is one of the recommendations of the final report into the investigation of the deaths of children in the township east of Tshwane in February this year.
Siyabonga Mabila, 7, and Lawrence Tshwenu, 4, met their fate on the K54/Tsamaya Road upgrading and rehabilitation project between the Old Bronkhorstspruit and Solomon Mahlangu Roads in Mamelodi.
The contractors involved are King Civil Engineering Contractors, GMH Tswelelo Consulting Engineers, who had been hired by the City of Tshwane to upgrade the road.
Their deaths came immediately on the back of the drownings of four other children in two separate incidents in Hammanskraal, in what communities called the negligence of service providing corporates.
Gauteng MEC for Public Transport and Roads Infrastructure Jacob Mamabolo appointed senior council Advocate Thomas Bokaba in March to lead an independent team to investigate the tragedy following complaints from the victims’ families and the community.
In the report released yesterday, Bokaba recommended that the Department of Public Transport and Roads Infrastructure facilitates a possible restoration process, where it would come together with the City of Tshwane and the contractors in question to pay the victims’ families.
Other recommendations included the following:
* Proper community engagement and continued consultation, coupled with campaigns to educate the community about the importance of public infrastructure and ensuring that community were aware of all the responsible parties or agents
* Safety and security must be the responsibility of everyone involved in the project and legal prescripts must be followed at all times. Effective safety and security measures must be reviewed for effectiveness regularly
* Proper oversight must be put in place in projects of this nature. “It is clear that oversight was not fully accomplished in a number of respects and the department had no way of recognising these shortcomings and dealing with them effectively”.
* Intergovernmental co-operation: A concerted effort should be made to co-operate for the benefit of the project and the residents of Mamelodi. Further to that, the City has to re-join site meetings so that they are aware of the challenges, particularly those that fall within their competencies.
* Relocations, access to basic services, and recreational facilities: It is recommended that the City expedite the relocation process and communicate its efforts effectively to the various role players including the department, contractors, and the affected community.
* Ceasing of all illegal mining in the area: It is recommended that the City together with law enforcement agencies see to the stopping of the illegal sand mining in the area and the filling of the holes created.
* The speedy resolution of contractual issues affecting security: It is recommended that disputes, particularly those that affect security, are dealt with in an expeditious manner to ensure that safety and security are not compromised.
The report, however, found that the issues around the incident were complex, vast and multi-layered.
They ranged from social factors, contractual matters, inter-governmental relations, and human factors, including actions and inaction. The report notes that the tragedy could not be attributable to a singular act or omission. Mamabolo said his department welcomed the report in its entirety and hoped that it would assist the families in their healing process.
“In line with the principles of transparency and openness, we welcome the report as we believe that the families should always be assisted to find answers and not left without any support or unanswered questions. Furthermore, we are extremely grateful to Advocate Bokaba and his team who conducted the investigation. The team has assured us that they have engaged extensively with the families and presented the report to them.
“Advocate Bokaba and his team conducted a thorough, comprehensive and inclusive investigation to assist the department and affected parties understand the events and put in place measures to ensure they do not happen again,” Mamabolo explained.
Pretoria News