BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – In what might come as good news to the people of Sigangeni under Siphocosini Inkhundla, government has allocated E29 million to a road construction project from Mvambi in Siphocosini to Sigangeni Clinic.
Today (January 12, 2014), Minister for Public Works and Transport Chief Ndlaluhlaza Ndwandwe has launched the road construction project at Sigangeni Chiefdom. A contractor known as Afri Civils will be the one implementing this project. The minister urged the residents of Sigangeni to work in cooperation with those that would be working on the project.
He expressed confidence that the road would be of good quality and would last for a very long time, for the benefit of the people under Siphocosini Inkhundla, particularly those from Sigangeni Chiefdom. The minister also emphasised that government tried as much as it could to give such projects to many contractors. He said Inyatsi Construction constructed the Siphocosini-Mvambi road, while Roots Civils constructed the road from Motshane to Kupheleni.
The event was graced by the presence of Sigangeni Chief Prince Maloyi and Siphocosini Member of Parliament (MP) Mduduzi Matsebula.
Speaking during the event, Minister Ndwandwe stated that the road stretch to be sealed covered a distance of 6.5 kilometres and was from Mvambi to Sigangeni. The minister said the road stretch in question was to be sealed with a chemical soil stabiliser, commonly known as the probase and was to be finished by this time next year.
Appreciating what was done by the minister, Siphocosini MP Mduduzi Matsebula, who is also the Minister of Health, thanked Minister Chief Ndlaluhlaza for deeming it fit that his ministry could launch the road construction. Matsebula said this was a step in the right direction in ensuring that traffic congestion was eased at Ngwenya Border Post.
Matsebula said Mvambi-Sigangeni Road was part of the D78 road, which was one of the strategic roads that gave access to the country’s border gates. He said this road gave access to the Lundzi Border Gate, which was a few kilometres from Ngwenya Border Gate. “This gives us hope that the traffic congestion experienced at Ngwenya will be eased because Lundzi serves as a strategic border gate that can help in easing the traffic congestion,” Matsebula said.
The MP said this project did not only help the people of Siphocosini Inkhundla, but also helped Emaswati in the entire country. According to the MP, all Emaswati would be welcome to make use of the Lundzi Border Gate whenever they experienced inconveniences that came with using the Ngwenya Border Gate. He mentioned that Lundzi Border Gate could give access to areas that could also be accessed when using the Ngwenya Border Gate.
Sigangeni Chief Prince Maloyi praised government for prioritising his area and the entire Siphocosini Inkhundla. “The development we see here is positive because it is going to be helpful to the residents from their chiefdoms under the Siphocosini Inkhundla,” Prince Maloyi said.
In 2020, government had instructed that the road from Siphocosini to Mvambi should be constructed. This road stretch, which was 6.5 kilometres, was completed in 2021.
