40 contractors have been blacklisted by Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB).
These non-performing contractors, nationally, means they will not tender for Government works, and Public Works and Infrastructure department has welcomed the move.
Dean Macpherson, the Public Works and Infrastructure minister says those blacklisted contractors and its entities will not do business with the Government.
“The move to blacklist these non-performing contractors is exactly what we promised South Africans when I took office — that those who underperform or engage in corruption will be held accountable and removed from the system.
“The CIDB’s action to blacklist these contractors means we have put our words into action and sent a clear message: the days of impunity are over,” noted Macpherson.
Its unclear on the size and value of those contractors and how many are black owned, etc.
The minister said this aligned with his vision to ensure the department was a professional and highly functional delivery unit, capable of providing high-quality economic infrastructure that would drive economic growth and create jobs.
He said the situation which had seen only one company blacklisted since 2002 before he took over was completely unacceptable in an environment where construction projects remained incomplete.
“It undermined trust in the state’s ability to act decisively. This is why we are turning over a new leaf by restoring accountability, cleaning up the industry and ensuring public money delivers quality infrastructure that communities can rely on,” he said.
He added that the department was also refining its own processes to ensure the blacklisting of non-performing companies happened more swiftly, and to recover money from contractors to safeguard public funds.
“Over the past year, we have worked to strengthen the department by filling key vacancies, introducing new accountability mechanisms and tightening our procurement processes
Macpherson also invited eligible and honest contractors, be it big or small to apply for Government tenders, as long as they’re compliant.
At the time of publishing CIDB had not issued the names of affected contractors.
Image (Happy with the move. Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure- Dean Macpherson has welcomed the blacklisting of contractors).
