Home-wreckers: Ministers (and their deputies) behaving badly

If it’s not diplomats trashing their apartments abroad like rockstars, it’s our ministers ripping out carpets and kitchen cabinets.

This despicable behaviour has come to light after the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) found that several ministers and their deputies left behind a trail of destruction at their allocated state-owned homes after finishing their tenure.

Recently appointed Public Works Minister Dean Macpherson revealed this week that one of the properties of the outgoing high-ranking officials was even used as the premises from which a taxi business was run.

At one of the luxury homes, nine carpets were ripped up while other “smash-and-grab incidents” by the officials included the removal of kitchen cabinets, as well as other instances of theft.

These shameful discoveries were made on inspection of the vacated premises which fall under the portfolio of Public Works as custodian of all state-owned properties at national level.

Speaking to The Citizen, the department’s spokesperson, James de Villiers, said the department can “unfortunately not name anyone at this stage as we are allowing the parties involved to respond before we take additional action”.

State-allocated homes of ministers worth millions

According to De Villiers, there are 97 state-allocated homes around the country.

The homes in Cape Town are worth almost R830 million, and those in Pretoria are valued at R137 million.

Patricia de Lille, Macpherson’s predecessor, previously revealed that the properties housing ministers averaged roughly R10 million each.

Members of Cabinet are entitled to these houses in terms of the ministerial handbook, which also provides them with other cushy extras – such as four luxury vehicles each, VIP protection and international travel perks.

ALSO READ: R37m ‘safe house’? Paul Mashatile lives in Waterfall mansion owned by son-in-law

Homes of outgoing ministers, deputies found in ‘dreadful state’

De Villers said the ministers left their properties in a “dreadful state” with some even refusing to vacate their homes.

“We can confirm that shortly after the minister took office, he found some properties in the Prestige Unit in a dreadful state.

“One of the problems encountered was some non-returning ministers or deputy ministers refusing to vacate their properties or delaying vacating their properties,” he said.

Some of the damages, according to De Villiers, include kitchen cabinets being removed, carpets being damaged or taken and graffiti left on walls.

Issues were also encountered in terms of outstanding debt for utilities which were owed to the department.

Public Works seeks to amend lease agreements with ministers

De Villiers added that Macpherson is in the process of seeking to amend the lease agreements entered into with ministers and deputy ministers when they take occupation of state houses.

This would entail that they acknowledge the state of the properties before they take occupation and ensure that the properties are returned in a similar state when they vacate them.

“It’s important that we treat these leases in the same way as someone in a private sector lease would be treated, which includes incoming and outgoing inspections,” De Villiers said.

Macpherson set on reform of Prestige Unit oversight

In another step to reform the governance of the Prestige Unit, the new DPWI minister has taken action to ensure that the director-general has direct oversight of the unit’s activities.

So far, Macpherson has removed the delegations which empowered state officials to spend up to R20 million without accounting officer approval.

“The minister is clear that people people can’t be allowed to casually walk off with assets of the state – or vandalise state property – without any consequences,” De Villiers explained.

Criminal charges

According to him, the DPWI will left no stone unturned to ensure that officials who have taken state property, are criminally charged and that the items are recovered.

“The department is currently engaging with the non-returning members to return assets which were reportedly taken or to account for them, or to repair damages which have been encountered.”

*The Citizen reached out to the department to find out the identity of the high-ranking government officials and how much it is going to cost to fix the state-owned houses. These questions however were not answered at the time of publication.

Years of heavy spending on ministerial accommodation

Over the years, Public Works have forked out millions on accommodation for MPs, ministers and deputy ministers, refurbishing rentals and procuring office space.

In 2021, News24 reported that the department had splurged more than R100 million for the upkeep of three parliamentary villages in Cape Town, while another R200 million was forked out for maintaining the parliamentary precinct between 2018 and 2020.

In 2023, about R1.4 million was spent on kitchen upgrades, R240 000 to get rid of cockroaches, a whopping R54 000 to replace a curtain rail, and R50 million to ensure that the generators of ministers and their deputies were humming away while the rest of the country were battling load shedding.

ALSO READ: No more new houses or offices for ministers and their deputies

Diplomats behaving badly

Meanwhile, TimesLIVE reported in August 2020 on South African diplomat David Kweli Nkosi who allegedly left his luxury apartment in Vienna, Austria, in a badly damaged state.

In a written parliamentary response about the incident, the then Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco) minister, Naledi Pandor, said the damages amounted to a staggering R714 000.

An Austrian TV show even flighted an exposé on the deplorable state in which Nkosi had left the rented property.

The owner of the apartment, Karl Widy, alleged that all the electrical appliances in the kitchen were destroyed and valuable cutlery was missing.

Widy revealed that there were no glasses left in the apartment, the window and door frames were damaged, the sink, bath and toilet were stained, the walls and floors were dirty and stained with black soot, and the place was infested with cockroaches.

Nkosi was also accused of  damaging his lodgings at a previous deployment in New Delhi, in India.