IFP SLAMS FUNDING BEHIND GATEWAY HOUSING PROJECT

June 21, 2006

The multi-million rand funding for the Gateway Housing Project in Cape Town was based on a 2003 agreement among the Housing MECs from all nine provinces and comprised a 10-percent contribution of each province's housing allocation.

KwaZulu-Natal's contribution to the project was R97-million. These facts emerged from the Auditor-General's report. The high-profile project has not yet been delivered.

"The decision of the then KwaZulu-Natal Housing MEC to participate in this project was not mandated by the then Premier and the cabinet," said IFP leader in the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Parliament and former KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Dr Lionel Mtshali MPP.

In principle, the IFP condemns all unilateral decisions by MECs who deliberately by-pass their cabinet and such decisions as lead to forfeiture of much-needed funds allocated to KwaZulu-Natal for the benefit of other provinces.

"KwaZulu-Natal has long faced a major shortage of housing. This never prevented the former MEC for Housing from reallocating a significant part of our province's housing budget to Cape Town without authorisation from the provincial government," said Dr Mtshali.

Contact: Dr Lionel Mtshali, 083 256 4902