Reports on Free State House fire rule out any foul play

Staff reporter

Bloemfontein – At least three reports on the Free State House fire incident rule out any foul play.

This is according to Dibolelo Mahlatsi, MEC for Public Works and Infrastructure in a written reply in the legislature.

Mahlatse was responding to questions from Dr Roy Jankielson of the Democratic Alliance (DA).

Jankielson asked Mahlatsi:

Whether repairs/renovations to Free State House after the fire have been completed, if not, when will they be completed.

Who were the respective contractors who carried out the work regarding respective goods and services, and (c) what amounts were paid to the respective contractors?

Whether the investigation has taken place into the cause of the fire, if not, why not, if so, (a) what was the cause and (b) if foul play is suspected whether, given that this residence is protected by the SAPS, any individuals have been identified as being guilty of this, if not, why not, if so, what are the relevant details?

Mahlatsi responded:
The repair processes have not commenced, however planning work has been carried out by the appointed Heritage Architect together with a Structural Engineers who have submitted their reports. The estimated cost of reinstatement have also been determined. The next process is for the Quantity Surveyor to finalize the bill of quantity and to advertise for the appointment of the contractor. The contractors have not yet been appointed and there are no costs to the contractors.

Yes, an investigation was conducted after the fire incident at the Free State House. The investigations were conducted by SAPS Park Road Police Station, The National Fire Forensics as well as the Mangaung Fire Department.
(a) According to the report from Mangaung Fire, the cause of the fire could not be determined. The forensic investigation/SAPS report indicated a possible electrical malfunctioning as the probable cause of fire classified as Accidental cause.
(b) None of the reports pointed out any foul play or identified any individual as being guilty.

This fire sent shock waves throughout the province and this put the life of Premier, Mxolisi Dukwana and his family at risk.

The fact that the cause of the fire could not be identified does not rule out any foul play and/or possible electrical malfunction is not definitive.

Surely the house had cameras.

Before Dukwana became a Premier he stayed at a hotel with the house burnt to ashes, he is still staying at the hotel at the cost of tax payers.

Last year we asked Brigadier Makhele about the fire and he said no suspects had been apprehended.

This is a developing story.

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