By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson has outlined a national framework to combat the construction mafia, criminal groups accused of extortion, intimidation and halting major infrastructure projects.
Macpherson detailed the framework at a briefing in Parliament on Tuesday, following Cabinet’s approval of the Integrated Social Facilitation Framework (ISFF).
The ISFF is intended to standardise and institutionalise community engagement in infrastructure delivery across all spheres of government, state-owned entities and infrastructure development stakeholders.
The ISFF is a binding national policy that requires government departments, municipalities and state-owned entities to engage communities before construction projects start.
Macpherson says the policy forms part of the government’s broader crackdown on construction-related extortion.
He said there was measurable progress since then in clamping down on construction extortion and intimidation with at least 770 cases reported across the country.
These cases have led to 241 arrests, and 176 convictions.
“We must make sure that employment, sub-contracting and enterprise development opportunities are not captured by gatekeepers or criminals, politically-connected groups or mafia networks.”
The framework also provides for community profiling to determine who are legitimate members of that society and establishes a project liaison committee to deal with their concerns.
He added that the government was moving away from allowing criminal groups to misuse the concept of community participation to justify illegal activities.
“Social facilitation must be qualified. They must be registered, and they must be accountable. They must understand community dynamics, project delivery, conflict management, local participation, governance, and ethics.”
He said professionally trained facilitators must serve as a bridge between communities and contractors rather than act as gatekeepers for controlling access to projects.
Macpherson stressed that the framework would support law enforcement rather than replace it, saying legitimate community concerns would be addressed, while criminal behaviour would be met with firm action.
“There can be no negotiation with extortionists or criminals. There will be no compromise with them either. And there will be no future for a construction industry where delivery depends on paying protection money.”
He said the goal was to restore confidence in South Africa’s construction sector and ensure that infrastructure projects become spaces of opportunity, employment, and development rather than fear and criminal control.