Chikunga will also lead a stakeholder dialogue.

The visit is amid the controversy surrounding the troubled Department of Public Works and Roads in the province, where it is alleged that a tender worth R134 million was allocated to a blacklisted company. 

ALSO READ: North West department to scrutinise tender worth R134 million

The multimillion-rand Integrated Public Transport Network (IPTN) is also set to be in the spotlight again after billions were reportedly spent with little progress.

In 2022, former Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula said a whopping R4 billion was injected into the controversial project in Rustenburg, in the North West, which commenced at least 11 years ago with little progress.

ALSO READ: Investigation into billions spent in North West

Mbalula went further and said R3 billion of the budgeted R4 billion has already been used, but there's very little progress in the project. 

In April of that year, members of the Transport Parliamentary Committee conducted an oversight visit to assess and inspect progress. The leader of the Portfolio Committee on Transport’s delegation, Lawrence McDonald, has urged the Department of Transport to rescue the IPTN project.

"The project implementation started way back in 2012, and should by now have been long handed over for full implementation and use by communities. It concerns the committee more that there are no timeframes for full implementation. The committee needs to consider a follow-up visit soon, as a lot could still go wrong," McDonald added.

Meanwhile, Tuesday's dialogue is expected to be attended by the provincial and local governments, as well as stakeholders from the private sector and communities. Following the engagement, the Minister is also set to brief the media about the outcome of the stakeholder engagement. 

OFM News