No money for key Giyani road repair

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13-04-2026
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Letaba Herald
Source

A flood-damaged road near Giyani Golf Club remains unrepaired as the municipality cites budget constraints, forcing motorists to rely on a temporary bypass.

LIMPOPO – The Greater Giyani Municipality says financial constraints are the reason for delays in repairing a road that was severely damaged by heavy rains earlier this year.

Busy route still unrepaired months later

The road in question is at the entrance to Giyani Golf Club.

Since it was damaged during the heavy floods in January, the municipality has not yet fixed it.

Temporary bypass in use

Despite it being one of the busiest routes in Giyani, municipal spokesperson Steve Mavunda said that temporary measures were put in place to ensure continued access for motorists.

“It is not true that the road has not been attended to, as our bulldozer went there to open a bypass, which is currently being used by motorists,” he said.

Budget contsraints delay repairs

Mavunda explained that the delay in repairing the road was due to a lack of funding for disaster-related damages.

He stated, however, that roads requiring minimal resources were repaired, while those needing substantial funding remained a challenge.

“Those that could be fixed without an additional budget have already been repaired. However, roads like this one require a substantial budget, which we currently do not have,” he said.

Mavunda further explained that municipalities do not usually budget for disasters, as such incidents are normally handled by district and provincial government structures.

However, no money has yet been made available from those levels for the affected road.

“It is now up to us to make budget adjustments.

“We have already made some adjustments, but we are now forced to make further changes to secure the required money,” he said.

Stormwater issues add to delays

What complicates the situation further is that the repair work is complex.

Apart from the damaged road surface, a faulty stormwater drainage system in the area must also be addressed to prevent recurring damage.

“The water accumulated there is due to a stormwater problem. It needs to be fixed along with the road; hence, the road will be damaged again in a short time,” explained Mavunda.

No timeline yet for fix

He added that while the municipality understands the community’s frustration, it cannot commit to a timeline without securing the necessary budget.

Engineers still need to conduct a full assessment and determine the scope of work and cost of the project.

“We are exploring all possible avenues to secure funding, but there is no guarantee at this stage.

“Therefore, we cannot provide a specific date for when the road will be fixed,” he said.

In the meantime, motorists are expected to continue using the temporary bypass as the municipality works to resolve the funding challenges.