Heavy rains, which started last week, have caused severe floods in the country’s Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces, killing 31 people. The rains have also left a trail of destruction to key infrastructure such as roads. The Limpopo government said it needs $243 million for relief efforts, while Mpumalanga government requested about $140 million. Hlabisa says the disbursement of funds will be monitored at every level.

“I want to assure the people of Sa we are hands-on. The mere fact that I did not want to only hear through the media, but I decided to walk down on foot. It was raining heavily yesterday, but I was just visiting the bridges, seeing them with my own eyes. And even money, we will follow money in the same pattern. The first thing that we will do, we will announce how much money went to repair which project, and we will follow through,” he said.

–Reuters–