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Departmental “blame game” leaves uniformed SANDF personnel in “crumbling facilities”

Simon Osuji by Simon Osuji
June 13, 2025
in Military & Defense
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Departmental “blame game” leaves uniformed SANDF personnel in “crumbling facilities”
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Shack building at Happiness Village on the Marievale SA Army base. Picture: Groundup

South Africa’s military infrastructure is on the verge of total collapse, a National Assembly (NA) Parliamentarian said in the wake of a joint meeting of two oversight committees.

The high-stakes meeting of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans (PCDMV) and the Portfolio Committee on Public Works and Infrastructure (PCPWI) on 11 June laid bare deep institutional dysfunction and mistrust between the Department of Defence (DoD) and the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI). The session, held in Parliament, aimed to address the stalled devolution of infrastructure maintenance functions from the DPWI to the DoD and the growing crisis in defence facility management across the country.

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The meeting was called in response to security concerns and service failures at military bases, many of which are over a century old and suffering from chronic neglect. Members heard that some bases house live ammunition depots and sensitive military equipment yet are surrounded by informal settlements due to land invasions that the DPWI, as the legal custodian of state property, has failed to respond to in a timely manner.

“We Are Sitting on a Powder Keg”

Chairperson of the PCDMV, Dakota Legoete, opened the hearing with a stark warning. He said some military bases house ammunition depots and are subject to land grabs and people residing next to these bases. It becomes very difficult to always consult the public works department to say there’s a land grab as public works takes six months to respond and by the time they do, squatters need to be provided with alternative land because the law allows for this if they have stayed on the land for over 48 hours.

The DoD underscored that their lack of custodianship over their own bases prevents them from legally evicting trespassers or initiating critical repairs, making the situation untenable.

DPWI Admits to Backlogs and Budget Deficits

The DPWI, represented by Deputy Minister Sihle Zikalala and senior officials, conceded to a widespread breakdown of infrastructure delivery, pointing to years of underfunding and operational instability. “In 2016 our budget was R17 billion. Today it is R18 billion. With inflation and increasing property rates, we are R9 billion short of what we should have had,” said Siza Sibande, Head of the Property Management Trading Entity (PMTE).

He further reported a nationwide infrastructure maintenance backlog of R29 billion, with R4 billion directly related to Defence properties. “We are struggling with under-spending, limited planning capacity and a model where the funds for projects sit with the client departments who then delay payment,” he added.

The department also revealed it was holding R4.171 billion in unpaid accounts under a shared savings utility management programme, with the DoD being the largest debtor.

Frustration from Defence

Vice Admiral David Maningi Mkhonto, Chief of Logistics in the DoD, detailed the department’s efforts to reclaim control of its infrastructure portfolio, citing a 2018 directive from the Standing Committee on Appropriations. “The poor state of our facilities is due to DPWI’s failure to deliver. Our own Works Capability is being rebuilt so we can take over key functions,” he said.

So far, emergency repairs and day-to-day maintenance have been devolved as of April 2024. However, rates and taxes, leases and capital projects remain under the DPWI. The DoD claims to have the professional and technical capacity to manage these, noting it currently has over 1 000 trained artisans and professionals in infrastructure roles.

Deputy Minister of Defence Richard Mkhungo reinforced the need for departmental autonomy. “We are a complex department with security sensitivities. Civilians managing critical infrastructure pose a risk. We do not seek superiority over DPWI, but we do seek independence where it matters.”

Committee Members Voice Concern

Committee members delivered pointed criticism of both departments, with several voicing frustration at the repeated absence of key ministers. The failure of the Minister of Defence to attend or stay for the duration of crucial meetings was viewed as indicative of a broader lack of respect for parliamentary oversight.

Concerns were raised over the DPWI’s track record in managing its responsibilities, with strong views that the department’s repeated underperformance had put national security at risk. The notion that the Department of Defence should continue relying on a landlord that struggles to maintain essential infrastructure was described as unacceptable, with the implications stretching far beyond administrative inefficiency.

Others highlighted what they saw as the real drivers behind the ongoing dispute—the competition for control over infrastructure budgets rather than a shared commitment to improving service delivery. There was a clear call for departments to shift focus from internal power struggles to tangible outcomes.

The handling of documentation was also criticised. Committee members questioned why DPWI submitted a modified version of its presentation without prior notice, suggesting this undermined transparency and accountability. Similar concerns were directed at the Defence Department, which introduced legal references during its briefing that were absent from the written materials, leaving members unable to scrutinise the claims properly.

Way Forward: A Technical Working Group and Political Oversight

Despite tensions, both departments agreed to establish a joint technical working group to review project statuses and agree on a path forward. DPWI proposed an “accelerated execution model” using pre-approved contractor panels to improve turnaround times. The DoD committed to finalising its internal infrastructure management structure by March 2026.

The committee recommended a reversal of the DoD’s 2021 moratorium on new infrastructure projects, warning that failure to complete design-stage projects could lead to fruitless and wasteful expenditure.

Legoete concluded the hearing by stressing the urgency of progress. “This is not a bureaucratic squabble. It is a national security risk. We need performance, not paper pushing. And we need it now.”

Further hearings are expected as the Portfolio Committees push for executive-level accountability and the resolution of a dispute that has effectively paralysed the maintenance of South Africa’s military infrastructure.

Democratic Alliance (DA) defence and military veterans’ spokesman Chris Hattingh said in a statement post Wednesday’s meeting that immediate political intervention was needed. This, because the DoD and its facilities maintenance arm the Works Formation and Minister Dean Macpherson’s DPWI are in “a destructive stand-off, paralysing infrastructure delivery”. He maintains the DoD/DPWI briefings “laid bare this dysfunction – a complete breakdown in trust, co-ordination and accountability”.

Both sides are to blame he has it, saying years of DWPI under-performance has left defence facilities in disrepair with Minister Angie Motshekga’s DoD failing to settle its debts. One of these, according to Hattingh, is the over R4 billion owing for municipal services.

“In 2021, the DoD unilaterally froze all unfunded and planned infrastructure projects, citing excessive delays. The DPWI says this action wasted millions in design costs, now likely to be written off. What followed was a blame game: Defence accusing Public Works of inefficiency and Public Works accusing Defence of financial neglect and unilateralism,” his statement on the meeting notes.

Hattingh concluded that while departments point fingers, “our soldiers are left to serve in dangerous, crumbling facilities. This is not just a governance failure it is a betrayal of the men and women in uniform.”



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