After a fire in 2022 destroyed the historic building, Parliament’s officials have handed over the site to demolition contractors to begin the rebuilding project.
“Today, it is both a great pleasure and a privilege to announce a significant milestone in our journey towards renewal,” Secretary to Parliament, Xolile George, said on Thursday.
He told the media that the building project is expected to be completed within two years.
“The initial phase of the rebuild project will involve the demolition of structurally unsafe sections of the building, which have been designated as the ‘red zone’ due to their instability and compromised safety,” he explained.
The removal of these areas, he said, requires specialised expertise and machinery, particularly given the historical and heritage significance of the building.
“This delicate process ensures that we preserve as much of the original architectural integrity as possible while making way for new, safe structures. This careful and precise approach underscores our commitment to maintaining the building’s heritage while safeguarding its future.”
In January 2022, a fire severely damaged the historic Parliament building, including the National Assembly Chamber, hundreds of offices belonging to Members of Parliament (MPs) and staff, and parts of the Old Assembly Chamber.
The fire is believed to have started at the National Assembly building before it engulfed the adjacent Old Assembly, which was built in 1983 to accommodate the expanded needs of the Tricameral Parliament.
“The fire that gutted these buildings on that fateful morning of 2 January 2022 did not only destroy the brick and cement structures of the precinct but also much of the invaluable history that resided between these walls.
“The recently upgraded broadcast technology in the House and the artworks showcasing our indigenous knowledge systems and traditional arts were also destroyed,” George explained.
Although the fire caused a devastating loss of significant fabric, he said recovery remains possible.
The damaged sections of the buildings will be cleared this month to start rehabilitation works by August 2024.
“They are structurally unsafe, and work must be undertaken under careful and controlled engineering approaches to prevent injuries and loss of life and to ensure that the sections that were not affected by the fire remain intact.”
George said they envisage an outcome that reflects a reimagined and democratised Parliamentary complex that meets both functional and practical needs and reflects the democratic character of South Africa.
In addition to accommodating the enlarged Assembly chamber and support spaces, the rebuilding process will incorporate modern technology and infrastructure.
Asset register
Shifting his focus to Parliament’s assets, these have been verified and a register has since been updated based on their net book values.
“The loose rubble and debris were removed, and assets were recovered for offsite storage. The fire did not affect some assets but had close to zero book value.”
He stated that the disposal of these assets is underway in line with Parliament’s Supply Chain Management Policy and Procedures.
“The involvement of the public in rebuilding our Parliament is not just important, it is essential. Parliament belongs to the people of South Africa. As such, it must reflect their will, aspirations, and hopes in terms of not only its constitutional mandate but also its heritage and practical usefulness.”
George also unveiled a special website dedicated to the Parliament rebuild project, which is a platform that hosts the new architectural designs, detailed project outlines, overviews, and conceptual frameworks. – SAnews.gov.za
Dallas Burn
A British man on safari walks into a bar far out in the reaches of a game reserve in Southern Africa, he stays at the bar for a while shooting the shit with the bartender and drinking like a fish, he offer to buy the barkeep a round and since no one else is within 2km of their small oasis of liquor the barkeep obliges. The englishman goes off to the bathroom to have a good old go at the porcelain, he\’s back and ready for a few more whiskeys. He\’s just sat down when suddenly in the distance he hears a scream. He looks over his shoulder and dismisses it as nothing, he turns to the barkeep and orders a drink, takes a sip and hears the scream again. He looks at the barkeep who just shrugs it off. A minute or two later he and the barman hear it again and go outside to take a look. They see a lone figure running towards them screaming, he spots them and lets out a cry, RUN!!!!! HE\”S COMING!!!!!
The barkeep and the Englishman both look at the terrified bedraggled sight before them, and try to calm him down, but he\’s completely inconsolable. They give him water and finally manage to get a word out of him but he struggles free from their grasp and run away screaming.
A few minutes later the same thing happens with a whole group of men running in and screaming, he\’s coming, he\’s coming the barkeep grabs hold of one of the men as he tries to sprint past the bar and tries to get information out of him, again no response other than terrified gibberish.
The barkeep and his customer are starting to get worried, they start to pack up before another group of horrified natives run up to the bar most of them flee but one tries to hide behind the bar, the barkeep pulls out a shotgun and points it at the terrified man\’s face, finally managing to coax some words out of him. \”He\’s coming for us, Vernon Koekemoer is coming for us, we have to hide!!! We have to get out of here.\” He gets up and tries to run but the barkeep grabs him, feeling trapped in a panic he grabs the barkeeps shotgun and blows his own head off. The Englishman and the barkeep look at each other starting to really panic now.
They look out of the window and off in the distance they see a tornado coming towards the bar, at the bottom of the tornado they see the hugest beast of a man they have ever seen, as he gets closer they spot that he is riding a rhinocerous and using a crocodile as a riding whip, with each smack of the crocodile across the back of the rhino the louder is screams and the faster it runs, the tornado following it getting ever larger.
The 2 look at each other and start to fortify their position, they\’ve got a gun and they\’re waaay to drunk to run, so they start piling bar stool and tables and anything they can get their hands on to make sure they\’ll be safe when he arrives. They\’re not gonna make it, they can see the man slowing down his rhino, by now the crocodile is nothing but reptile paste on the bruised rump of the half dead rhino, the rhino drops down dead from exhaustion and crashes to the ground right outside the bar the tornado loses it\’s last breath in a cloud of dust as the huge man crashes his way through the make shift barricade and charges up towards the bar where the 2 men have taken shelter, he grabs a bottle of the hardest liquor on the shelf and down the entire litre in 1 gulp, he peers over the bar sobbing and sees the 2 defenders cowering down behind the crates of beer, they look up at the mans\’ face and he stares at them with a look of complete and utter hopelessness, he stares at them for a half second and half screams, half sobs, \”Oh my god what are you still doing here!!! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE NOW!!!! Vernon Koekemoer is coming!!!!\”
Sleek Assassin
Olympic sailing competition just finished. France got the gold, South Africa got the silver, and … Somalia got the boat.