SANDF facilities in disrepair: Defence Department holds Public Works responsible

Today, Secretary of Defence, Dr Sam Gulube, reported back to the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans about the strained relations between the Departments of Defence and Public Works with regards to a massive backlog in the poor maintenance of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) facilities.

The backlog in the maintenance and repair of the Department of Defence facilities was estimated to be R8 billion in 2011 and according to Gulube the situation is only getting worse. As it stands, currently only 1% of defence facilities are in good condition, while 55% are in a fair condition.

Gulube told MPs: “I told the Chief of the South African National Defence Force [that when I report back to Parliament] I am going to be diplomatic, as the Department of Public Works are part of our government, we are one government and it makes no sense to go to town with being too critical... and the chief of the SANDF said ‘No, don’t be too diplomatic, tell the Committee in no uncertain terms how much our soldiers have been let down by the Department of Public Works”.

Over the past three financial years, the Defence Department has paid R3.3 billion to Public Works for accommodation charges, of which only R1.9 billion was used by the latter and the balance of R1.4 billion was “used by public works for other purposes”, said Gulube.

With regards to refurbishment projects, Gulube claimed Public Works has only spent R1.5 billion of the R3.1 billion allocated to them by his Department over the past five financial years. Furthermore, of the total accommodation payment of R1 090 810 747 made to Public Works in 2013/14, Defence have only received 46% of the value. Later in his presentation he described the two departments working relationship as “non productive” and bordering on “dysfunctional”.

In the mean time Gulube said that the SANDF’s ability to effectively deliver its constitutional responsibility has been severely impacted, adding that soldiers are “demoralised”, with many of them “sleeping in rooms where the ceiling is dripping water” so that they have to move their beds and use buckets for the leaks.

Gulube further added that many of the living quarters are not compliant with environmental legislative requirements and the operational readiness of defence facilities were “at high risk”. He drew the Committee’s attention to a Defence Department workshop held back in March 2008 when a decision was taken to create an internal Defence Department facility management capability and “to migrate away from reliance on the National Department of Public Works

Responding to questions from Democratic Alliance’s David Maynier about what the current estimates of the maintenance and repair backlog is [the estimated R8 billion figure is from 2011] and the primary reasons behind the Department of Public Works under spending on SANDF facilities, Gulube suggested the Defence and Military Veterans Committee invite the Department of Public Works to come and answer those questions themselves and to account directly to Parliament.

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