Members of Parliament (MPs) have demanded the intervention of the Minister of Natural Resources and Energy, Prince Lonkhokhela to address concerns faced during the ongoing implementation of the Manzini region Water Supply and Sanitation Project.
The MPs have expressed their displeasure and disappointment with the conduct of the Eswatini Water Services Corporation (EWSC), which is the implementing agent for the project.
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The legislators raised concerns pertaining the compensations of the affected residents as well as disregard of traditional authorities by the corporation.
The affected constituencies are Nhlambeni, Mtfongwaneni, Mafutseni, Manzini South and Manzini North.
This was during the debate and adoption of a private members notion moved by Mtfongwaneni MP Nathi Hlophe who was seconded by Nhlambeni MP Manzi Zwane during the House of Assembly sitting on Friday.
MP Hlophe moved that the House called the minister to update the House, within 14 days, on the status of the project.
The minister’s report should clearly explain whether the project was moving forward according to the original timeline and plan, if the resettlement process has been handled properly, with affected families treated fairly and with dignity.
The minister is also expected to explain whether compensation had been provided to people who lost land, homes, or livelihoods as a result of the project.
Further, the minister is expected to explain how the community was being empowered, including through local employment, education and meaningful participation in the project.
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The MP said the report should also outline any challenges the project was currently facing, such as delays, budget issues or reduced project scope and appraise the House how government planned to address the issues and ensure that the people of Manzini region still received the full benefits of the project.
While motivating for the passing of the motion, MP Hlophe said when the project was initially launched, it was welcomed by the residents as it was a good initiative that would change lives for the better.
He, however, mentioned that over- time, the mood had changed as some people complained that they were not compensated as promised.
He said as Mtfongwaneni Inkhundla council, they requested for the resettlement assessment plan from EWSC to know the homes that would be affected as well as how they would be compensated.
He stated that they were disappointed when they were denied access to the report and informed that it was not a public document.
“This made us question why the document was a secret and how we would know if the affected people were compensated the correct way,” he said.
He said when he finally gained access to the final resettlement assessment plan; it was clearly articulated how the affected persons or homesteads would be compensated.
He said the plan also detailed that the communities would be empowered in terms of employment. Posing a question to the minister, the MP enquired whether he was aware that the situation on the ground was different from what was detailed in the report recommendations for the implementation.
“I would like the minister to appraise the House if he was aware of what was happening on the ground,” he said. Hlophe added that when EWSC visited the affected chiefdoms, they granted the traditional authorities the responsibility to identify and vet the persons that would be employed during the implementation of the project.
He said it was unfortunate that the people wasted their resources to sort out their paperwork such as IDs only to end up not being hired as promised.
The MP also raised concerns about the conduct of the contractor on site, which placed the water pipes on roads and people’s fields.
He said the affected people were not even compensated for their losses.
He added that the contractor further failed to engage the affected persons when placing the pipes on their properties.
The MP said this was causing tension and disputes between the contractor and the affected residents.
The seconder, MP Zwane also said Nhlambeni was also among the five constituencies that were benefiting from the project.
The MP, however, noted that since the minister came into office, he had never engaged them about the project and said he believed that was one of the reasons there were so many problems.
He said they would appreciate an audience with the minister to discuss the issues they encountered during the implementation of the project.
“We appreciate the project, but there is a need to ensure it is implemented correctly for the benefit of the affected residents,” he said.
He also raised an issue about the conduct of EWSC as they kept shifting the goal posts whenever they were engaged.
He said the corporation was secretive about the details of the project as well as the reports. Zwane said it was normal to have challenges when implementing projects and all they were requesting for was to be engaged and transparency from the corporation.
He said many people were instructed to open bank accounts as they were promised compensation only to be excluded.
He said there were issues with the compensation as people did not receive what they were promised.
He said they were of the view that the report from the ministry would bring clarity on the cause of the delays as well as how the challenges were being handled.
MP Zwane said he was in support of awarding tenders to local companies, but was disappointed that the contractor engaged was heartless and did not have the best interests of the affected people.
Lamgabhi MP Sicelo Jele raised a concern about the alleged disregard of traditional authorities by EWSC and the contractor. He said it was important for government to consider and meaningfully engage traditional leaders when implementing projects.
He said he was surprised to learn about the conduct of the corporation and the contractor by overlooking traditional leaders.
Mafutseni MP Sabelo Mtetwa said the main problem was the contractor not EWSC, stating that the contractor made empty promises and then changed tune whenever they were called to deliver.
He said the issue had since become their burden as MPs and they were frustrated as their inputs were not taken seriously.
He said another concern was that the contractor paced the pipes on roads, which were cut and not re-tarred leading to accidents, which has led to a loss of life at Ngculwini.
The motion was debated and adopted granting the minister 14 days to table a report in the House.
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