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Sunday Times reports that the controversial Construction Education and Training Authority’s (Ceta’s) Midrand headquarters, the 2024 purchase of which was found to have been irregular, was concluded without the building having a working air conditioning system.
Despite previous claims by the now-ousted former Ceta CEO Malusi Shezi that the R49m building purchase was value for money, Ceta is now poised to spend a whopping R20m for the building to comply with Occupational Health and Safety requirements, including overhauling the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. It is expected that the Auditor-General (AG), who will appear before parliament’s portfolio committee on higher education and training alongside Ceta on Wednesday to discuss Ceta’s audit, will confirm its earlier finding that the purchase of the building was irregular.
At the time of the AG’s initial flagging of the transaction, Shezi defended the purchase, saying there were extenuating circumstances that warranted Ceta purchasing the building outside of normal procurement processes. But, according to a Ceta employee, it was clear that the building was “not worth the money spent on it”. The employee further claimed: “The building is filthy, there is no air conditioning, and there are cables everywhere posing a safety hazard”. Ceta did not respond to questions sent on Tuesday.
- Read the full original of the extensive report in the above regard by Sabelo Skiti at TimesLIVE Premium (subscriber access only)
Get other news reports at the SA LabourNews home page