14 Jun 2021

 Minister of Transport and Communications Mr Thulagano Segokgo has acknowledged that some Lentsweletau-Lephephe constituency roads required upgrading to bitumen standard.

Speaking in an interview following  a constituency tour  Friday, Mr Segokgo, said government would in the meantime ensure that the roads were maintained.

Not all of them could be upgraded due to budgetary constraints, he said.

Accompanied by the area MP, Ms Nnaniki Makwinja, the minister and his entourage started the tour at Rasesa-Kgope road .

Mr Segokgo said the small stretch from Rasesa should be upgraded to enable easy travel from Kgatleng to Kweneng adding it would also ease congestion on the A1 and A12 roads.

From Lentsweletau they travelled along a gravel road to Medie which Mr Segokgo said  required upgrading as the dust raised by heavy trucks travelling on it regularly to ferry coal from Masama Mine posed  a health hazard.

He said the mining company  was to construct a road adding that mine management and ministry officials were scheduled to meet over the project.

On another road, the stretch of gravel between Medie and Kweneng, Mr Segokgo said it needed maintenance.

The Lentsweletau-Molepolole road was identified as also requiring  maintenance.

He said maintenance and upgrading of roads would ensure easy access to government programmes.

In addition, it would be economically beneficial to residents, the majority of whom depended on agriculture for their livelihoods, he said.

Minister Segokgo revealed that upgrading of the Hatsalatladi-Lentsweletau road was included in National Development Plan (NDP) 9 and was initially to be undertaken by the Kweneng District Council.

It was however transferred to the Ministry of Transport and Communications through a presidential directive.

According to Hatsalatladi councillor, Mr Kolane Kolane, road designs had been completed and the majority of those affected compensated.

The road would provide residents with easy access to services in Molepolole and Lentsweletau.

MP Makwinja said she invited the minister to get first-hand experience on the status of roads in her constituency.

She said the poor roads, especially Lentsweletau-Medie, had resulted in people giving up their farms due to the dust raised by trucks plying the route.

 

Ms Makwinja, also assistant basic education minister, however acknowledged that road development would not be undertaken soon due to budgetary constraints.ENDS