The new MEC for Community Safety, Roads, and Transport, MaQueen Letsoha-Mathae, led the delegation to impound the government vehicle at a panel beater in Bochabela, Bloemfontein. It is understood that the vehicle in question was involved in an accident. However, the official responsible for the car did not inform the government garage of the incident. There was no report filed to the government garage by the official for an investigation to take place. 

The government vehicle was taken to the panel beater for repairs, this is however against the procedures and protocols that are supposed to be followed. “The matter is now handled by the government garage for processing and actions that ought to be taken.”

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Recently, a private vehicle nearly collided with MEC Letsoha-Mathae’s official vehicle on the N8 road near Schoeman Park Golf Course. It is explained that the private vehicle was stopped and it was discovered that the driver is intoxicated and failed to produce his driver's license. The driver was then apprehended and taken to a hospital nearby for blood tests, to verify whether the alcohol level in his system has exceeded the set limit, which is 0,05g of alcohol per 100 mil of blood. 

“Motorists are urged to always carry their documents with them when driving and they must comply with the regulations of the road.”

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A truck has previously been stuck on a bridge under construction at Koffiefontein after an accident in the early hours of Thursday morning. The spokesperson for the provincial Department of Community Safety, Roads and Transport, Hillary Mophethe, said they have been informed of the incident. She explained that it was reported that the driver of the truck indicated that he was feeling tired and lost control of the vehicle. Earlier in the week, the department informed motorists in the area that the bridge, together with the R48 access road, will be closed from 09:00 to 13:00 from Wednesday 19 April to Saturday 22 April, to allow repairs to take place on the bridge and asphalt surfacing of the road.

In 2019, OFM News reported the community of Koffiefontein is concerned about the state of the bridge that crosses the Riet River on the R48 road. The surface of the bridge is not level and the tar seems to have melted, and as a result, shifted. A resident of Koffiefontein, Danieka Muller, told OFM News that the condition of the bridge is alarming and extremely dangerous for motorists and pedestrians who use it daily. She said she recently had to replace her car's exhaust pipe after it was damaged by the bridge.

At the time in 2019, the spokesperson of the Letsemeng Municipality, Jimmy Mokgwetsi, explained to OFM News that the municipality was not aware of the issue and is also concerned about the condition that the bridge is in. He said the municipality considers this matter a security risk that could lead to possible deaths.

OFM News