Thank cadres for Polokwane ruin

Polokwane has grown exponentially, perhaps more than any other city or town in South Africa since 1994 – and undoubtedly much of that is due to the economic activity fuelled by the ANC’s “cadre deployment”, which has seen the civil service balloon around the country.

That thrusting, confident growth is evident in a number of areas, including the big football stadium built for the 2010 Fifa World Cup; in the fancy dual carriageway bypass around the town and in the mushrooming double storey houses in communal areas alongside the road to Tzaneen.

It is also evident in the bumper-to-bumper traffic to and from the city on the N1 highway on long weekends.

The fact that most of that growth is illusory and that this is an apparent success story built on foundations of
sand is evident in our stories today about what happens when incompetent cadres ruin a potentially lucrative
public asset.

Polokwane’s airport used to have “international” in its name … these days that seems like a sad joke. Last
week, the last scheduled air service to the Limpopo capital, operated by Airlink, had to be cancelled because the SA Civil Aviation Authority has, quite correctly, downgraded the airport’s licence because it simply does not meet the requirements to host regular airline services.

That downgrading came despite repeated warnings from the aviation authority for the airport to get its act
together … and despite R60 million annually of taxpayers’ money being poured into its upkeep.

Its state today is pathetic. The parking area booms don’t work, weeds are growing and the safety services are at a bare bones level.

Polokwane has the potential to be an aviation gateway to the rest of Africa, not to mention a vital hub for tourists heading to our top resorts.

That the operation has been allowed to collapse is yet another indictment of the government.