Johannesburg - Limpopo Premier Cassel Mathale’s expulsion closes the curtain on the administration remembered more for tender irregularities and financial mismanagement than service delivery.
While his administration has been credited with building thousands of quality RDP houses and upgrading almost all major roads connecting Polokwane with several towns in the province, it largely failed to provide health care services, water and educational facilities.
Since Mathale took over, matric results improved by 18 percent.
In the past four years, Limpopo built 63 000 low-cost houses, spokeswoman for the provincial Human Settlements Department Tseng Diale said.
Limpopo became the first province after the Presidency to launch a service delivery hotline manned by officials who spoke all local languages.
However, under Mathale, who replaced Sello Moloto in 2009, the administration had been marred by tender fraud, irregularities, nepotism and the emergence of tenderpreneurs who looted funds in exchange for providing poor services. The emergence of tenderpreneurs resulted in sidelined businessmen forming the Forum of Limpopo Entrepreneurs in a bid to fight Mathale’s government and get a piece of the cake. The tenderpreneurs were loyal or close to Mathale and then political ally Julius Malema, the expelled ANC Youth League president and founder of the Economic Freedom Fighters movement.
During Mathale’s tenure, companies owned by his business allies or his political associates won many multimillion-rand contracts.
Five provincial departments were placed under national administration in December 2011.
The Star