Garankuwa residents blame stalled mall project on construction mafia

Garankuwa residents, north of Pretoria, say the construction and refurbishment of a multi-million-rand shopping mall in the township seems far from complete.

The project was initiated by the Public Investment Corporation on behalf of the Government Employees Pension Fund in 2019.

Residents say the project has stalled due to challenges with the previous contractor and the construction mafia who have demanded a share of the project.

According to research, about 183 infrastructure and construction projects worth over R60 billion have been affected by the construction mafia in the country.

Residents have called on government to intervene.

“I think the government need to take the effort and be on the ground. For example, establishing crime intelligence task team to deal with such situations that we are facing as South Africans. Because most constructions even take over five years. For example, you will find that the project is supposed to take two years but with shady deals it takes over the period of the contractual details.”

Meanwhile, the Durban-based business forum, Amadela ngo-kubona has fingered politicians as being behind the construction mafia.

The group has been linked to disruptions and attacks on workers in major construction sites. But it denies any involvement with gangs who’ve been using mafia-style tactics to demand contracts from construction companies in KwaZulu-Natal.