R28 million spent on a home for the elderly and only dilapidated buildings to show for it

It has been over a decade since the elderly of Emfuleni, Gauteng, were promised a supportive and nurturing environment to call home.

While R28.35 million has already been spent on the Boipatong Old Age Home, the site remains incomplete and idle, with construction long abandoned.

What was once envisioned as a safe and supportive environment for its elderly residents, particularly those without family support, has become a symbol of protracted delays, with its future increasingly uncertain.

Boipatong, a name meaning ‘the place of hiding’ in Sesotho, has long been a community grappling with profound socio-economic challenges.

Its expansion, a direct consequence of apartheid policies, resulted in severe overcrowding and woefully inadequate facilities, significantly intensifying the urgent need for dedicated elderly care facilities.

The township holds a significant, albeit painful, place in South African history, being the site of the horrific Boipatong Massacre of 17 June 1992.

This was an event of political violence that claimed over 40 lives, many of them women and children, and temporarily halted democratic negotiations.

Against this backdrop of historical trauma and ongoing socio-economic struggles, the absence of appropriate facilities for its elderly population has remained a pressing concern.

Discussions surrounding the establishment of an old age home in Boipatong stretch back well before 2015.

As early as the 2007/08 financial year, Kgaugelo Lekgoro, then Gauteng’s MEC for Social Development, highlighted the severe disparity in elderly care, noting that only one in nine old-aged homes were situated in townships.

Lekgoro pledged that the department would “start building old-age homes in the 20 poorest townships on an incremental basis from one financial year to the next”.

This commitment was echoed in the provincial department’s 2008/09 budget, which acknowledged “an absence of appropriate facilities in the neediest communities.”

A budget of R5 million, equivalent to R12.25 million in 2025 terms, was allocated for the “Boipatong Aged Centre,” with an ambitious projected completion date of March 2010.

However, this initial promise never materialised, and the focus eventually shifted to what is now referred to as the Boipatong Old Age Home.

New project kicks off… and stalls

The formal R44.35 tender for the construction of the home was finally issued by the Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) in 2015.

The project was initially managed and implemented by the ELM for the Department of Social Development (DSD).

Main contractors appointed for the project were JM Mcwango Trading and Makgotamishe Building Construction, with their appointment formalised on October 16, 2015.

Despite the tender award, the project quickly encountered significant hurdles.

Responding to questions posed to him by ActionSA MPL Funzi Ngobeni, Gauteng MEC for Infrastructure & Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Jacob Mamabolo said that it faced “capacity limitation, administrative challenges and community unrest.”

This ultimately led to a series of contractual disputes. Critically, the appointed contractors were deemed to have exhibited “poor performance,” failing to deliver the full scope of work on time and to meet the agreed-upon targets, said Mamabolo.

Compounding these issues, the “protracted Municipality procurement process” further contributed to delays.

The situation deteriorated to the point where, despite numerous attempts to revive the project, Mamabolo said that the municipality was unable to resuscitate it due largely to “community interference”.

Ultimately, these challenges, coupled with “cash flow challenges,” led to the contractors abandoning the site.

This resulted in the termination of the original contractor and professional team by the Municipality, leaving the project without ongoing construction activities.

Financially, the initial approved budget for the project stood at R44,347,987.82.

Of this, a substantial amount has already been spent: R25,197,292.13 on construction and R3,151,412.37 for Professional Service Providers (PSPs), totaling R28,348,704.50.

Mamabolo explained that the aged care home project was withdrawn from ELM and handed to the Department of Infrastructure Development (DID), which began a comprehensive planning phase.

However, a SASOL gas pipeline discovered near the site forced a suspension of planning due to safety concerns. The DID and DSD are now in talks with SASOL.

The project’s scope, approval processes, and timelines depend on the outcome of these discussions.

Over 10 years since kicking off, the completion date is now tentatively set for the end of 2026, assuming favourable conditions.

No penalties have been applied for previous delays, but future contracts will include delay provisions, said Mamabolo.

Not good enough, says opposition parties

For the community of Boipatong, the unbuilt aged care home remains another white elephant promised to uplift the community.

This is a disgraceful indictment of the Gauteng Provincial Government and a brutal betrayal of the elderly in Boipatong and surrounding areas.

Bongani Dhlamini, ActionSA Emfuleni Regional Chairperson called it “an unacceptable delay.”

Over “R28 million has been spent with nothing to show for it but a dysfunctional procurement process, poor planning, and failed contractor appointments.”

ActionSA has called for an urgent oversight visit to the site involving officials from the Premier’s Office, the Department of Social Development, and the DID.

The party is also demanding a full forensic investigation into the R28 million already spent on the project, as well as a clear, binding completion timeline with a public report-back to the Boipatong community.

“The dignity of the elderly must not be treated as an afterthought,” he added.

Emfuleni Local Municipality was contacted for comment, but did not respond to BusinessTech by the time of publication. Comment will be added if received.

Other images of the Boipatong Old Age Home