In spite of several promises, the bridge at Ha-Lambani village just outside Thohoyandou is still not complete. The R17 million project has become an uncomfortable subject for all involved, including the municipality and the contractor.
In June last year, Limpopo Mirror reported on the unfinished project at Ha-Lambani. The project, which started in June 2019, was supposed to have been completed in April 2020, but was not even halfway complete in June 2021. At the time, the spokesperson for the Thulamela Municipality, Mr Nndwamato Tshiila, said that the construction of the bridge was almost done and would be handed to the public in August the same year.
When Mr Tshiila was asked about the progress of the bridge last week via WhatsApp, he did not respond. The message was read, but no response was forthcoming. Shortly after Limpopo Mirror's enquiry, Tshiila posted a message concerning the bridge on the municipality's Facebook page. He wrote:
"Thulamela Municipality would like to acknowledge the public outcry about construction of Lambani bridge which was brought to the attention of the municipality through Facebook alert. Measures are being taken to conduct oversight visit on site (construction site)."
The community liaison officer of the project, Ms Mbavhalelo Ramatamba, responded to questions by saying that the bridge was not yet finished. "We are left with just touch-ups. I think we will be done by the end of this month. We were delayed by rain," she said.
SANCO chairperson Mr Takalani Musetsho said he was not happy with the structure of the bridge. "I guess we will just have to accept it as it is. We are surprised that they are still working on it, because they should have finished it a long time ago," he said.
Steve Munyamela, who is the chairperson of the project-steering committee, said that he was not satisfied with the way things were done. "At first the project was delayed and some of the delays were caused by the municipality, but we pushed them to work harder. At least they are now trying to fix their mistakes," he said. He said he was only happy because 55 local workers had been employed during the project.