Despite government’s failure to deliver its services by assembling a borehole worth E75 000 under Ludzeludze Inkhundla, the Public Accounts Committee says the ministry of tinkhundla administration and development cannot engage a private company for the project when the country has a Geology Department.
This was shared by the PAC after Manzini Regional Secretary Arnold Dlamini said when they undertakE projects that they do not have expertise on, they engage the relevant ministry for assistance.
He said the Geological Survey Department from the ministry of natural resources and energy helped them in the procurement of the materials that they needed for assembling the borehole at Ludzeludze, but left them halfway.
“We bought the materials with the view that they would install them but they abandoned us,” he said.
He added that they HAD now found another person to help them fix the issue.
This was after Auditor General Timothy Matsebula stated that there were unassembled borehole fittings valued at E75 216.75 that were found at Ludzeludze Inkhundla.
He said the borehole parts were delivered on July 9, 2023 and were still not assembled.
He said this raised concerns whether community development officers (batfutfukisi) conducted inspections of tinkhundla projects.
Matsebula said he was concerned that over and above denying a service to the citizens, this could also result to theft and misappropriation of the borehole fittings.
He said he then advised the controlling officer to assemble the borehole for the immediate benefit of the citizens and to further explain reasons for not assembling it.
“How many boreholes are these and also who guided them in procuring these items because this is a specialised field?” he said.
Deputy Chairman Manzi Zwane stated that they cannot engage a private company while they had asked the ministry to do the job. He asked what the officials from the ministry of natural resources and energy under the department were doing because they had complained about not having jobs.
He said the department should state their challenges as to why they were not able to proceed with the job.
“We cannot allow the Geology Department to make us buy these things and not proceed with the work. We will not find a private person while they are here and we bought the items as per their recommendations,” he said.
Somntongo MP Sandile Nxumalo said they should be given the reason as to why they were failing to install the boreholes. He asked where the officials of the ministry had disappeared to because their offices were in Mbabane and they were known by everyone.
