Public Works vows to blacklist corrupt and errant contractors

Corrupt and errant construction-related contracted will soon find themselves blacklisted and litigated by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).

This is the new way of doing things, following Wednesday’s media briefing hosted by the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Machperson in Cape Town.

Macpherson, who unveiled his South African Construction Action Plan (SACAP), which he said will go a long way in restoring service delivery and other challenges faced by his department, said his department is serious about ridding itself of corrupt contractors.

During his media briefing alongside, Director-General of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, Sifiso Mdakane, and Deputy Director-General: Construction Project Management, Batho Mokhothu, Macpherson reported back on the outcome of a special meeting convened with the Ministers and Members of the Executive Council for Public Works and Infrastructure (MinMec).

He said the meeting, which was held on Tuesday, was aimed at addressing the state of underperforming and stalled construction projects as well as a string of neglected public buildings across the country.

He further cautioned contractors, consultants, and officials who fail to deliver on projects, that they will be held accountable for their transgressions.

" It is a framework of collective and individual accountability. A plan that sets measurable targets, real timelines and enforceable consequences. Every official and accounting officer will now be measured against these metrics, and if they're unwilling to comply, they will have to make way for those who will."

Last November, the minister decried the negative impact of stalled construction projects amid an increase in the number of extortion syndicates.

At the time, Macpherson said out of 206 infrastructure projects overseen by his department, 64 of these were experiencing delays.

To counter this, the minister unveiled SACAP, which he said seeks to turn the department, both nationally and provincially, into economic delivery units, ensuring projects are completed on time and within budget while restoring public trust through transparency, performance monitoring, and quarterly public reporting.

The action plan has been premised on six key priorities that the department aims to tackle.

These include blacklisting of defaulting contractors, ring-fencing of project budgets, the establishment of Procurement War Rooms, real-time audit collaboration with the Auditor-General, digital tracking of all construction projects, and the professionalisation of built environment practitioners within the public sector.

“Our goal is to turn the Department of Public Works & Infrastructure - nationally and provincially - into economic delivery units that complete projects on time, within budget, and with full transparency,” he said.