RESIDENTS of Ndzelele Village, in Limpopo, are unhappy with the R1,4 billion reconstruction project of Siloam Hospital.
Allegations have surfaced regarding the use of substandard building materials and the preference of hiring more foreigners than locals.
On Friday, 15 March, Deputy Minister in the Presidency responsible for planning, monitoring and evaluation, Pinky Kekana, assessed the hospital's progress.
The aim of her visit was to evaluate progress in the construction of the hospital, which has been identified as a National Presidential Priority.
At 34%, the construction began in June 2022 and has also faced criticism from members of the Vhembe Concerned Group.
Speaking to Daily Sun, a 34-year-old resident complained that the principle of hiring 30% local workers was allegedly not followed.
"They use low-quality building materials, and the workers told us that when they ask, they are threatened with dismissals. What worries us the most is that lots of money was invested in the project, and more than 100 local workers were fired and they receive low pay," he said.
Reportedly built in the 1940s, the hospital is currently in a state of dilapidation and caters to the healthcare needs of all the citizens of Nzhelele and surrounding villages. The project was launched by former president Jacob Zuma nine years ago. Now, residents are calling for building inspectors to visit the site because they fear it might not pass safety regulations.
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Residents also raised concerns about transparency, the hiring process and alleged maladministration, including alleged mismanagement of funds. The first phase, which includes the doctors' residence, has already been completed. The second phase of the hospital's construction started in 2022 and is expected to be completed in 2026. So far, the mental health ward and mortuary have been renovated and completed.
Once Phase 2 is completed, the facility will offer round-the-clock medical services, including surgical, mental health, mortuary, pediatrics, obstetrics and infectious diseases treatment.
Samuel Lusunzi, chairman of the group, claimed that they have mostly hired illegal foreigners who didn't have the relevant qualifications, and locals were allegedly fired.
"We discovered that substandard materials are used, and most of the walls, steel reinforcements are not used. This could be dangerous as the building could easily collapse, endangering patients and healthcare workers' lives," Lusunzi said.
A senior traditional leader, Mailosumbwa Tshivhase, said he hopes Siloam will be returned to its former glory.
"I'm happy with the progress so far. It's not only going to help in taking care of our health, but also in terms of poverty alleviation," he said.
Daily Sun tried to conduct an interview with the project site manager regarding the allegations, but he refused to comment.
Kekana said she's not happy with the employment of more foreign nationals than locals at the building site.
"We're excited about progress, but when we engage with the ward councillors, we have challenges of SMMEs empowerment and appointing fully local young professionals,” said the deputy minister.
According to Kekana, the biggest concern was the utilisation of foreign nationals even in low-skill jobs or ordinary jobs like plastering.
"Our people are unemployed, and it came to my attention that even on skills that are not scarce, they're employing foreigners. This region produces many gifted and skilled learners from many works of life. You can't tell me that we can't find engineers," she said.
Asked how she was going to deal with the residents’ concerns, Kekana said: "National government will come unannounced and bring inspectors to name and shame companies that are hiring foreigners instead of locals.”
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