Public Works Budget: R190 million upgrade for Presidential residence is reckless and self-indulgent

The R356 million allocation for the upgrading of the Bryntirion Estate- including an allocation of R191 million for the refurbishment of the President's official Pretoria residence, Mahlamba Ndopfu- constitutes wasteful, self-indulgent expenditure in a country where access to basic services is still regarded as a luxury by millions (see M&G report).

The R356 million that will be spent on the Bryntirion Estate over the next three years is enough to build over 6 500 RDP houses. It brings wasteful expenditure under the Zuma administration to the R4-billion mark, as tracked by our Every Rand Counts campaign.

This is reckless spending, and underscores President Zuma's insincerity when repeatedly stating his administration's commitment to alleviating poverty, improving performance, and reforming service delivery.

In addition to Mahlamba Ndopfu's R191 million allocation, over the next three years R103 million has been set aside for the building of offices at the Bryntirion Estate- where the homes of cabinet members, including the President, are situated- to accommodate the SAPS security personnel who police the estate's grounds. A further R62 million has been allocated to the construction of an executive military health facility on the estate for use by the President, Cabinet members and visiting VIPs.

President Zuma has expressed his intention to foster a "culture of greater prudence and less extravagance; achieving greater value for money and delivering more and better services with less resources."

Barely two weeks ago in the State of the Nation Address, the President painted a picture of a country "...where millions more South Africans have decent employment opportunities, which has a modern infrastructure and a vibrant economy and where the quality of life is high."

"We all have a responsibility to work hard to make this a reality," he said.

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan echoed this sentiment in this week's Budget Speech, in which he stressed the need for efficient and effective use of public funds.

If we are to make progress as a nation, decreasing the inefficiency associated with wasteful expenditure is a critical step towards leveraging our resources for maximum gain.

However, it appears that, under an ANC administration, there is one set of rules for the ANC, and another set of rules for everyone else.

The DA will be submitting a series of questions to the Presidency and Treasury to probe the Bryntirion Estate budget allocation, and determine how this administration reconciles such reckless expenditure with its repeated public commitments to a performance driven state. 

Statement issued by Athol Trollip, MP, Democratic Alliance Parliamentary Leader, February 25 2011

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