16 May 2017

Newly elected Mogoditshane/Thamaga sub council chairperson and also councillor for Mmankgodi North Mr Ofentse Mafoko has expressed worry over illicit land dealings in Mogoditshane.

Councillor Mafoko said this when delivering his maiden speech during a full sub council session in Mogoditshane on May 15.

Although the issue of unlawful land dealings in the sub district an old one, the problem seems far from over as the sub council chairperson indicated that a week does not pass without security agents being called in to assist in such matters at the sub land board.

He further stated that illegal land dealings mostly involved members of the public, some dikgosi and dikgosana as well as some politicians.

However among those cases he said few have been linked to land board employees where action has already been taken against them.

He also pointed out that as a result, the sub land board leadership spent a lot of time assisting in investigating these issues and also screening documents to differentiate between true records (customary certificates) and modified ones.

A high number of forged certificates was also reported to be top on the list of fraudulent cases with the most affected area being Mmopane Block 1.

Currently, the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime is investigating about 410 plots which are believed to have been acquired fraudulently.

On other issues, the sub council chairperson also updated the council on the Gabane infrastructure saying the intention to award the project was done while the cooling off period elapsed on March 3.

At the moment, he said recommendations have been passed to the ministry for verification purposes.

The Gabane infrastructure project covers 21.18km of tarred roads and associated drainage works and 4.5km of street lighting.

Commenting on the state of internal roads, councillor Mafoko said one intersection using pavers has been completed in Mogoditshane.

He highlighted that council intended to pave six intersections in the current financial year particularly around Mogoditshane to address the problem of deteriorations and potholes which were rife on the intersections.

Also, he mentioned that as a way of improving accessibility of roads especially during rains, two culverts were being constructed in Mmankgodi and two in Thamaga.

However, he said that maintenance interventions were ongoing to correct defects such as potholes. ENDS