It was revealed, during the sitting in Bloemfontein, that the R 10 million is meant solely for the purpose of advisory services related to the project. ANC Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL), Kenalemang Phukuntsi, was the first out of a long line of committee members who criticised the money appropriated. Phukuntsi says she fails to understand how such a large sum of money could be directed to advisory services only. DA MPL, David Van Vuuren, expressed concern that more money is being spent on the Ramkraal building. Van Vuuren told Public Works Department Head, Gadija Brown, and her team that the jury is out on the future of the project. Van Vuuren says the project and money assigned should remain on halt until reports on the historic building, by the Auditor General and the Free State Institute of Architects, are released.

The Ramkraal Prison, which was registered as a National Heritage Site on July 13, 1990, was selected by the provincial government as the ground onto which a new legislature building would be built and parts of the prison would be converted into a museum at a cost of R 560 million. It was revealed during the sitting that the decision to do this was made around 2014, after it was discovered that homeless people were living in the dilapidated structure. Brown explained that the provincial government was unable to fund the full R 560 million and, as a result, investment is required to complete the project. 

The department head told the committee that the R 10 million advisory fees are meant to lay the groundwork for a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) which, according to Treasury’s website, is defined “as a contract between a public-sector institution and a private party where the private party performs a function that is usually provided by the public sector and/or uses state property in terms of the PPP agreement”. Brown stresses that ending the project completely would result in fruitless and wasteful expenditure seeing as money had already been spent. Brown argued, while no tangible work can be seen on the ground, 24% of the R 120 million was spent on consults, planning and designs.

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