Expenditure on the parliamentary precinct and the parliamentary village was exorbitant and Parliament needed to push back against it.
This is the view of the Speaker of the National Assembly, Thandi Modise. She was responding to a briefing to the Joint Standing Committee on the Financial Management of Parliament by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure.
Among the projects discussed was the refurbishment of lifts at R9.2 million, the refurbishment of the ground floor of 100 Plein Street at R18.2 million, refurbishment of the Cape Stores at R13.5 million, refurbishment of parliamentary kitchens at R25 million, repairs to the underground garage at R3.2 million, external security upgrades at R68.6 million and MPs’ home renovations at R88.9 million.
Of these, the Speaker was particularly irked by the cost of the kitchens. She said this price tag was far in excess of what a decent industrial kitchen would cost. ‘Parliament is not going to spend R25 million on refurbishing the kitchens of Parliament in my name,’ she commented.
Representatives should be worried about how money was being spent, she added.
The institution needed a skilled CFO, who could negotiate deals that would give it value for money.
She said that both Parliament and the Department were to be faulted. ‘Public Works continues to take us for a ride and Parliament continues to rely on Public Works, who take us for a ride.’