King Goodwill Zwelithini

PIETERMARITZBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – FEBRUARY 28: King Goodwill Zwelithini during the official opening of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature at Pietermaritzburg Show grounds on February 28, 2017 in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Traditional attire and formal wear was the order of the day as King Goodwill Zwelithini opened the KZN legislature. (Photo by Gallo Images / The Times / Thuli Dlamini)

Thought Nkandla was expensive? Try the projected R1 billion for Zulu king’s palace

The project has been put on hold for now…. but….

King Goodwill Zwelithini

PIETERMARITZBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – FEBRUARY 28: King Goodwill Zwelithini during the official opening of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature at Pietermaritzburg Show grounds on February 28, 2017 in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Traditional attire and formal wear was the order of the day as King Goodwill Zwelithini opened the KZN legislature. (Photo by Gallo Images / The Times / Thuli Dlamini)

A report in the Sunday Times this weekend suggest that Zulu king Goodwill Zwelithini’s palace will make the money spent on Nkandla look like small change.

The paper calls the project a “cultural precinct’” and says that it has seen has seen plans where R129 million has been approved by the department of arts and culture for the “first phase” of development. The total cost was due to be R225 million.

The Sunday Times reports:

“As part of the project, intended to improve the reed-dance venue, contractors also intended replacing “poor soil” in the area with “imported suitable soil”.

But Gobodo Forensic & Investigative Accounting reportedly tabled a report in parly this week which shows that construction companies have inflated costs to hell and back and the actual cost could reach a staggering R1 billion. According to the Sunday Times,  fees were as much as 200% more than the usual industry rates.

But there is good news. The department of arts and culture has said woah nelly… for now at least.

An investigation into the irregularities is now underway.

The department said that the irregularities included shades of Nkandla with companies being paid without actually having done any work. Consultants with high “consultants fees” is another irregulalrity.

The Sunday Times claim that it visited the facility and found that not much work has actually been done with the mone already approved. Journalists found an incomplete VIP facility and some signs of a few concrete walls.

According to the paper, the first phase of the project was due to include construction of the first 12 of a planned 16 sleeping areas as well as ablution facilities

King Zwelithini already gets a pretty penny in state funding state funding – he has been paid about R550-million in the past decade, according to the Sunday Times. The latest financial report also shows that the “royal budget” will receive ould receive R58.9-million for the 2017-18 financial year.

Read the full report in the Sunday Times.