King unhappy with palace refurbishment

schumi

schumi

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Durban - King Goodwill Zwelithini has claimed that millions of rand allocated for the refurbishment of his palace in Ingwavuma, northern KwaZulu-Natal, were squandered by people who did a shoddy job.

During the opening of the provincial parliament in Pietermaritzburg this week, the king requested economic MEC Sihle Zikalala, Premier Willies Mchunu and public works MEC Ravi Pillay to send a team of officials to Machwebeni Palace to assess the work done last year. This is one of eight palaces belonging to the king.

It was reported that the provincial government had spent R15million in renovating the palaces in the 2012/13 financial year. In the following financial year, another R20m was allocated for the overall maintenance of the royal household infrastructure, including the refurbishment of palaces, but it is not clear whether this money was spent.

King Zwelithini said the quality of the work did not amount to R10m. “The money spent there does not even amount to R7m. The money was stolen.”

He also complained about the quality of material used.

“If I am sleeping on a windy night I can hear some flappings inside, and it is terrible when it is cold. The house I built in Osuthu Palace is far better as I sleep in peace,” he said.

He said he would find time to accompany the team to show them the shoddy work.

“I know where the Zululand government stopped the construction and where the KwaZulu-Natal government took over and ended,” he said.

The king said the money had not been allocated for reconstruction from scratch, “but was just refurbishment”.
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More at: https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-af...ng-unhappy-with-palace-refurbishment-13557071
 
Someone remind me - why are millions being spent on a "King" in a democratic country?
 
f2wohf said:
Anachronism as are monarchies in Europe, advantages for churches.
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haha was wondering if someone would raise that point.

Yup. The European ones are profitable though...UK at least, not sure about rest.
 
HavocXphere said:
haha was wondering if someone would raise that point.

Yup. The European ones are profitable though...UK at least, not sure about rest.
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Not sure the Belgian, Liechtenstein or the Luxembourg one so much.

It’s sad to think of the queen in terms of P&L though.
 
f2wohf said:
It’s sad to think of the queen in terms of P&L though.
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Don't think so. If they're not adding value then can them. Doesn't need to be monetary value necessarily, but I just don't see this oke adding any net value at all. Maybe I'm not Zulu enough to see it...
 
As much as I despise this royal institution in SA, the king does hit the truth on many occasion,

King Zwelithini said the quality of the work did not amount to R10m. “The money spent there does not even amount to R7m. The money was stolen.”

He also complained about the quality of material used.
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he should take a stroll to that Nklandla plot on his land and state his opinion on the expenditure.
 
HavocXphere said:
Don't think so. If they're not adding value then can them. Doesn't need to be monetary value necessarily, but I just don't see this oke adding any net value at all. Maybe I'm not Zulu enough to see it...
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Just imagine if his weddings and births had the same profitability than the British ones.

6 wives, 27 kids with let’s say 13 boys having several wives.

That would make what? 3 births a year and 2 weddings a year?

SA would be rolling in it.
 
“If I am sleeping on a windy night I can hear some flappings inside, and it is terrible when it is cold. The house I built in Osuthu Palace is far better as I sleep in peace,” he said.
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No. Way.
Poor little king! Let's spend millions more to fix this issue, instead of getting roofs over the majority of poor South Africans' heads. I mean, no one should be subjected to some "roof-flapping" in their palatial home when it's cold. Oh-the-humanity!

:rolleyes:

****ing POS.
 
LazyLion said:
King of what? This man needs to see a mental health practitioner.
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To those paying tribute, through rent, to their king,

https://www.iol.co.za/news/opinion/...to-pay-rent-on-land-they-already-own-13545713

Ingonyama Trust wants people to pay rent on land they already own

...

One of the main problems cited in the report is that the Ingonyama Trust collects rental for itself from land that is occupied and used by the beneficiaries of the Trust.

In terms of customary law these people, who may have inherited the land over generations, are the owners of the land.

The Trust Act binds the trustee (the King) to respect and protect pre-existing land rights and customary law specifically. Yet the Trust is systematically downgrading people with pre-existing customary land rights from owners into rent-paying tenants. This has substantially boosted its revenue base.

In November 2017, the Trust published advertisements in three KwaZulu-Natal newspapers plus Ukhozi FM, inviting people to trade their Permission-To-Occupy (PTO) certificates for rental agreements with the Ingonyama Trust.

...

This abrogates their property ownership rights and opens them up to potential dispossession if they fail to make lease payments. Residential lease agreements state that continued occupation depends on compliance with a number of conditions, including regular payment of rentals.

Though the leases are presented as an upgrade of existing rights, we know from its reports to Parliament that the ITB’s annual rental revenue rocketed from a few thousand rand before the residential leases were implemented to R96.1 million in the 2015/2016 financial year.

There is no evidence in the reports that any substantial share of this income has benefited ordinary residents. Historically, PTOs were an important form of tenure for people residing on SA Development Trust land. The Upgrading of Land Tenure Rights Act of 1991 provides that PTOs are upgradeable to ownership. Yet, the ITB lease agreements put PTO holders in vulnerable positions regarding rental and rental escalation.

The ITB lease agreements provide for a 40-year term and a 10% annual increase in rental. Land that costs R1000 a year to rent now will cost R2593 in 2028.

The leases also compel the lessee to fence the property at their own expense within six months, record all improvements and submit these to the ITB and obtain permission in writing to build. They allow the ITB to cancel the lease agreement for failure to pay rent. All buildings and structures that have been built on the land will belong to the Ingonyama Trust when the lessee vacates the premises.
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he can allocate the rental income to quality work.
 
f2wohf said:
No wonder that he didn’t get value for money.

https://www.onlinetenders.co.za/news/nkandla-architect-to-build-zulu-kings-palace
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President Jacob Zuma’s private architect Minenhle Makhanya has scored a lucrative deal to build Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini’s multimillion-rand eighth palace in uLundi, KwaZulu-Natal. Makhanya got another high-profile client, through his company Minenhle Makhanya Architects, and will be one of the key people behind the construction of the re-established 20 hectares KwaNobamba Royal Residence in the eMakhosini Valley, which developers say is the birthplace of the Zulu nation.
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I guess he 'scored' the deal through a tender process?
 
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