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“Construction Mafia” continue to invade sites

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The so-called construction mafia has continued to disrupt construction sites across the country. They present themselves as an emerging business forum. The group invades construction sites and demands money or a stake in development projects.

The Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime’s research report revealed that in 2019, such disruptions affected at least 183 infrastructures and construction projects worth more than R63 billion in South Africa.

The reports of alleged politically-connected people who are wreaking havoc within the construction industry continue to make waves.

Webster Mfebe, CEO of the South African Forum of Civil Engineering Contractors (SAFEC), has written an article about the group calling themselves the Construction Mafia. The group allegedly threatens construction site managers to give them contracts.

Webster Mfebe on the ‘Construction Mafia’

According to the Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry, such disruptions recently became more blatant in KwaZulu-Natal. The council’s Lindie Fourie says contractors fear for their lives.

“There must be some type of other ways of dealing with it in terms of the action plan that has been developed by the bargaining council. It has to be a collaborative approach; we have to involve all the other stakeholders. It will be government from a national, provincial and local level. It will involve different government departments, SAPS without a doubt, and all prosecuting authorities in terms of preventing, addressing, and controlling criminal elements who become involved and removing them from those areas,” says Fourie.

Below is Fourie’s full interview:

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