Provincial authorities are investigating charges of negligence relating to the death of an 11-year-old boy on the building site of Mdantsane's first full-blown shopping mall.

The boy, Asemahle Daweti, who suffocated under a bulldozer load of soil, will be buried at the weekend.

If the provincial Labour Department finds evidence of negligence, criminal charges could be brought against the developers, Billion Group, and the building contractors, MXL Civils.

Meanwhile, work on the R125 million shopping centre in the heart of Mdantsane has been stopped. The site has been only partially cleared and work on the foundations is yet to start.

At least 25 major retailers have provisionally booked space at the centre.

Although schools in the area confirmed their learners had been warned to stay away from the site, no fence was erected.

Livingston Matiwane, who is in charge of enforcing safety regulations in the province, said the Labour Department had not been formally informed that work on the site had started.

"According to our records from East London, Mdantsane and Mthatha, no company has been registered as having informed the department of construction work."

Matiwane said the Occupational Health and Safety Act required that his department be informed by the contractor before work started. This was so the site could be inspected for safety risks.

The safety of the public and workers was a top priority. He said that it appeared that adequate steps were not implemented at the Mdantsane site.

He said the investigation was being hampered because the safety officer was on maternity leave.

This was irregular, as a "properly trained" safety representative needed to be available at all times.

Matiwane said it appeared the Johannesburg-based developers had no representative on the site.

Sisa Ngebulana, the chief executive of Billion Group and the man behind a R1,2 billion golf course and a five-star hotel planned for Gonubie, yesterday denied wrongdoing.

"Fencing is not necessary during clearing," he said.

Ngebulana, who said he regretted the accident, said at least three community meetings had been held in the area to warn people to keep away from the site.

However, because of the accident, fencing would be erected earlier than planned.

"We do adhere to the regulations  we've been in construction for many years."

Municipal spokesperson Mamkeli Ngam said formal building plans for the site were yet to be submitted to the municipality by the developer for approval.

"For that reason, because no building plans have yet been approved, whatever they do on site is at the developer's own risk," he said.

Ngam said it was the developer's responsibility to make the contractor aware of any risks at tender stage so safety requirements could be priced in.

It was the contractor's responsibility to prepare a health and safety plan before work started.

The MXL Civils project manager, Sandile Mdolo, refused to show the Daily Dispatch such a document this week.

The document should include a list of identified hazards and potential hazards, a risk assessment, standard working procedures for each activity and a plan for reducing risk.

He said the company would comment once the investigation was complete.

Daily Dispatch
Publisher: I-Net Bridge
Source: I-Net Bridge